Environmental Justice in Rural South Asia: Applying Lessons Learned from the U.S. in Fighting for Indigenous Communities Right and Access to Common Resources

Abstract

"This paper explores the environmental justice struggles of communities facing an outside force and intra-community struggles for environmental justice. The first section details the evolution of environmental justice and its beginnings in the U.S. The discussion then moves to the struggle for environmental justice that faces local and indigenous communities when their ability to access and use natural resources is taken by an outside source. The third section looks at the intra-community struggles for environmental justice and the difficulties facing marginalised individuals within a community. The final section aims to take lessons learned from the example of the U.S. and apply them to the natural resource use and access case of South Asia. "