Abstracts Sociology

Governing Resources - Governing Peace. Environmental Peacebuilding. Case studies from Lake Victoria

by Christina Koch

The worsening environmental degradation is a growing concern for politicians and practitioners around the globe. Some academics argue that there is a causal link between environmental degradation and violence, others claim that cooperation and not violence is a much more likely outcome. Even though Lake Victoria suffers from severe environmental degradation, there are only few reports of violence. This thesis seeks to understand how governmental and civil society dynamics can offer conflict resolution opportunities through the governance of water. The purpose is twofold: (i) to contribute to the debate under which conditions environmental peacebuilding is (un-) successful; and (ii) to include state and non-state actors in the research. Conducting a comparative case study analysis in the fishing and the energy sector, governmental and civil society initiatives on environmental management and conflict dynamics are examined. The theoretical framework combining New Regionalism and post-structuralism allows to research power and governance structures beyond nation-states. The paper's analysis finds that interdependency between the actors is substantial and non-state actors are of considerable importance in managing the environment and peace. External actors and economic interests, in contrast, seem to spoil successful environmental peacebuilding. Advisors/Committee Members: Rubin, Olivier (advisor).