| This study analyzes environmental conflicts involving TNCs, states, and environmental groups and concerned individuals in Latin America by examining cases in Chile, Costa Rica, and Venezuela. Of interest are conflicts that arise over the use of resources or environmental degradation resulting from corporate operations. The combination of actors involved from both domestic and international levels makes the environmental conflicts in this study a good tool for addressing the broader question of the interaction between domestic and international actors. For this, it is helpful to view the conflicts as an example of the point at which local and global forces collide in the international arena. It is important to not only analyze the conflicts, but also the larger political, social and economic structures within which they take place. Data collection for the project involved focus groups and interviews with corporate representatives, government officials, and members of communities and environmental organizations engaged in environmental conflicts. Primary interviews are supplemented by documentation from governments and international organizations, news articles, World Wide Web postings, and corporate documents.;This study contributes to the larger body of work on international environmental policy by analyzing areas that are not fully developed in the existing literature concerning globalization, social movements, corporate and state power, environmental policy, and international development. This study's findings suggest that environmental conflicts involving TNCs, states, and environmentalists are much more complicated than is often portrayed. The greatest potential for resolving and avoiding these conflicts is through increased transparency and greater inclusiveness. Just as the conflicts cannot be oversimplified, neither can the actors who engage in them. Results of this investigation demonstrate the continued importance of state institutions and local level actors in conflicts involving international actors. The findings of this investigation will facilitate the work of others examining other issues, such as the role of states in global society and the relationships between national and transnational corporations. |
