Plantation Ecology and Urban Political Ecology

 > Plantation Ecologies (PE)

 Focus on racialized, capitalist landscapes created by plantation. Highlight how colonialism and slavery shaped land use and labor show how environment degradation and exploitation persist through modern agriculture and global trade.

>Urban Political Ecology (UPE)

 Analyzes how urbanization transforms nature through power and inequality. Reveals how cities are shaped by socio- political forces, not just natural or neutral process. Focuses on who controls resources like water, land, and air in urban settings.

WHAT ARE PLANTATION ECOLOGIES?

>Monocultures system built for profit and depend on racialized labor and environmental control.

KEY FEATURES

1.Monocultures and ecological harm

> one crop replaces natural biodiversity

EXZMPLE: Tea plantation in assam push out forests and elephant

2. Long term ecological damage

> Soil loss, pesticide pollution, climate risks. 

EXAMPLE: Old sugarcane plantation in Louisiana linked to current flooding

Example in context of Bhutan

PLANTATION ECOLOGY: Cardamom Cultivation in Southern Bhutan 

 > In southern Bhutan, especially in districts like Samtse, Chhukha, and Sarpang, the expansion of large-scale cardamom plantations has become prominent since the early 2000s

>URBAN POLITICAL ECOLOGY: Thimphu’s Urban Expansion and Water Governance

>Thimphu, Bhutan’s capital, is rapidly urbanizing, leading to increasing stress on urban infrastructure and natural resources, especially water systems sourced from surrounding forests and rivers.







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