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SUMMARY:Neoliberalism and the environment revisited: The North American Fr
 ee Trade Agreement and the US-Mexico border 20 years on - Professor Diana 
 Liverman Distinguished Visiting Fellow\, Department of Geography\, Univers
 ity of Cambridge  Regents Professor of Geography and Development and Co-Di
 rector of the Institute of the Environment University of Arizona
DTSTART:20150302T161500Z
DTEND:20150302T180000Z
UID:TALK58025@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:Charlie Barlow
DESCRIPTION:The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) came into forc
 e in January 1994\, breaking down trade barriers between the US\, Canada a
 nd Mexico.  Strong opposition from unions and activists resulted in enviro
 nmental and labor side agreements that established some oversight and new 
 institutions. We drew on trade theory\, political economy\, and especially
  critiques of neoliberalism to analyze the likely impacts of NAFTA\, espec
 ially in Mexico and along the US-Mexico border (Liverman and Vilas 2006\; 
 Vilas-Ghiso and Liverman 2007\; Liverman et al. 1999\; Gallagher 2004).\nT
 hose who opposed free trade and neoliberal policies in Mexico (including s
 ocial movements such as the Zapatistas) forecast devastating impacts on Me
 xican landscapes and livelihoods.  Theoretically\, NAFTA provides an impor
 tant case for evaluating geographical perspectives on neoliberalism – an
 d the value of approaches that connect material nature\, political economy
 \, social agency\, discourse\, and governmentality that constitute politic
 al ecology (Robbins 2011).   \n\nThis lecture will compare what was projec
 ted in terms of the environmental impacts and benefits of the trade agreem
 ent with the state of the debate and the material environment 20 years lat
 er. The focus is on the US-Mexico border region and draws on reviews of li
 terature\, critical institutional analysis\, longitudinal datasets\, and i
 nterviews with key individuals on both sides of the border who have worked
  long-term in the region on environmental issues. While the impacts of NAF
 TA on the environment are hard to detect because of the challenges of aggr
 egating case studies and because of other changes in the political economy
  of Mexico and the border region\, I will argue that the effects of NAFTA 
 are both materially and discursively far more differentiated than anticipa
 ted and seem to include some positive outcomes for people and ecosystems. 
  \n\nGallagher\, K.P. 2004. _Free Trade and the Environment: Mexico\, NAFT
 A\, and Beyond._ Palo Alto: Stanford University Press.\nLiverman\, D.\; R.
  Varady\; O. Chavez\; and R. Sanchez. 1999. Environmental Issues along the
  US Mexico border: Drivers of Change and Responses of Citizens and Institu
 tions. _Annual Review of Energy and the Environment_ 24:607-643.\nLiverman
 \, D.M. and S. Vilas. 2006. Neoliberalism and the Environment in Latin Ame
 rica. _Annual Review of Environment and Resources_ 31:327-363.\nRobbins\, 
 P. 2011. Political ecology: A critical introduction. John Wiley & Sons.\nV
 ilas-Ghiso\, S. and D. Liverman. 2007. Scale\, technique and composition e
 ffects in the Mexican agricultural sector: the influence of NAFTA and the 
 institutional environment. _International Environmental Agreements: Politi
 cs\, Law and Economics_ 7:137-169.\n
LOCATION:Small Lecture Theatre\, Department of Geography\, Downing Site
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