Capitalism Colonisation and the Ecocide Genocide Nexus Critical Human Rights Studies

This timely publication examines the drivers of ecologically induced genocide, in particular, how environmental destruction can lead to conditions that fundamentally threaten a social group's cultural or physical existence. Focusing on the former British colonies of Kenya and Australia, both united by a discourse of developmentalism, this book draws attention to the critical role that ecological destruction has in the genocide of Indigenous and place-based peoples. The book synthesizes radical political ecology with a political-economic approach, illuminating the chain connection between the inherent genocidal and ecocidal properties of global capitalism, and how this connection intersects with settler and post-colonial structures. In exploring the genocidal effects of climate governance, the economic market for environmental rights, and energy extraction on Indigenous peoples in Kenya and Australia, the book also draws on original interviews to prioritize the lived experiences of the groups that have suffered structural violence and social harm. Fundamentally, Crook calls forward the political economy of genocide. As such, this important book deepens and enriches our knowledge of genocide, the eco-genocidal nature of colonization, and the capitalist mode of production that underpins developmentalism.