The Diverse Properties of Private Land Conservation in Chile: Growth and Barriers to Private Protected Areas in a Market-friendly Context

Abstract

Private land conservation and many other contemporary environmental practices and policies are commonly described as ′market-based′ or ′market-driven.′ We argue that this characterisation derives in part from a conflation of private property rights with markets, and that it can obscure the diversity of institutional logics, practices, and political dynamics involved in conservation. We seek to illustrate this diversity through an analysis of private protected areas (PPA) in Chile. Through the experiences of different types of protected areas, as well as the related policy debates, we explore the ideological, political, and institutional conflicts and barriers to private land conservation within a legal and policy framework widely considered to be market friendly. Based on the diverse qualities of property rights observed in conservation projects we suggest the need for a critical environmental research agenda focussed on this neglected form of institutional diversity.

Keywords

• private protected areas
• market-based conservation
• private property rights
• commons
• Chile