Natural resources have political as well as physical energy. State and corporate claims for energy and resource security frequently fail to align with local concerns for sustainable livelihoods or popular sovereignty.
My research largely considers the causes and histories of this misalignment. It considers the dynamics of conflicts it produces in the present. It also aims to explore and identify possible appropriate and legitimate political and legal responses to the worst social and environmental consequences of these developments.
As such my work makes good use of theoretical insights drawn from political anthropology, the political economy of Latin America and a growing political ecology of the subterranean. It highlights the terrible socio-economic disparities, violence and epistemological conflicts at work. It furthermore encourages a co-productive dialogue betweeen indigenous and peasant communities, researchers, development practitioners and policy-makers both within and without the region.
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Areas of work
- International Environment Studies
- International Development Studies
- Social Anthropology.
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Publications
Books:
McNeish, J.A (2019 Forthcoming) Sovereign Forces: Political Energy of Natural Resources in Latin America. Berghahn Books:NY.
McNeish, J.A; Borchgrevink, A & Logan, O (eds) (2015) Contested Powers: The Politics of Energy and Development in Latin America. Zed Books.
Seider, R & McNeish, J.A (eds) (2014) Genero y Justicia Plural: Perspectivas Latinoamericanas y Africanas. La Casa Chata/CIEASAS. Mexico D.F
Seider, R & McNeish, J.A (eds) (2013) Gender Justice and Legal Pluralities: African and Latin American Perspectives. Routlege: London & NY
McNeish, J.A & Logan, O (eds) (2012) Flammable Societies: Studies in the Socio-Economics of Oil and Gas. Pluto Press.
McNeish, J.A & Sand Lie, J (eds) (2010) Security and Development: Critical Interventions/Social Analysis Series. Berghahan Books.
Jacobsen, F & McNeish, J (eds) (2006) From Where Life Flows: The Local Knowledge and Politics of Water in the Andes. Trondheim: Tapir Academic Press
Eversole, R; McNeish, J.A & Cimadamore, A (2006) Pueblos Indigenas y Pobreza desde una perspectiva multi-disciplinario. CLACSO: Buenos Aires
Eversole, R; McNeish, J.A & Cimadamore, A (2005) Indigenous Peoples and Poverty in International Perspective. CROP series in Poverty Studies. Zed Books.
Book Chapters:
McNeish (2017) A Vote to Derail Extraction. Popular Consultation and Resource Sovereignty in Tolima, Colombia. In Leifsen et al (Eds). New Mechanisms of Participation in Extractive Resource Governance. Routledge Publications.
McNeish, J & Borchgrevink, A (2015) Recovering Power from Energy- Reconsidering the Linkages Between Energy and Development. In McNeish, J.A; Borchgrevink, A & Logan, O (eds) (2015) Contested Powers: The Politics of Energy and Development in Latin America. Zed Books.
McNeish, J (2015) Latin America Transformed? In McNeish, J.A; Borchgrevink, A & Logan, O (eds) (2015) Contested Powers: The Politics of Energy and Development in Latin America. Zed Books.
Logan, O & McNeish, J (2015) From the King´s Peace to Transition Society. In McNeish, J.A; Borchgrevink, A & Logan, O (eds) (2015) Contested Powers: The Politics of Energy and Development in Latin America. Zed Books.
McNeish, J (2015) Extraction, Protest and Indigeneity in Bolivia. Forthcoming in Saglie, J (eds) Indigenous Politics. ECPR Press
Arteaga Bohrt, A & McNeish, J (2014) Una Rabia Acumulada: Pluralismo Legal y Justicia de Genero en Bolivia. In Seider, R & McNeish, J.A (eds) Genero y Justicia Plural: Perspectivas Latinoamericanas y Africanas. La Casa Chata/CIEASAS. Mexico D.F
McNeish, J.A & Arteaga Bohrt, A (2013) An Accumulated Rage: Legal Pluralism and Gender justice in Bolivia. In Seider, R & McNeish, J.A (eds) Gender Justice and Legal Pluralities: African and Latin American Perspectives. Routlege: London & NY
McNeish, J (2012) The Multiple Forms of Violence in Guatemala. In Suhrke, A & Berdal, M (eds) The Peace Inbetween: Post-War Violence and Peacebuilding. Routledge: London & NY
McNeish, J (2012) On Curses and Devils: Resource Wealth and Sovereignty in an Autonomous Tarija, Bolivia. In McNeish, J.A & Logan, O (eds) (2012) Flammable Societies: Studies in the Socio-Economics of Oil and Gas. Pluto Press: London & NY.
McNeish, J & Logan, O (2012) All Other Things Do Not Remain Equal. In McNeish, J.A & Logan, O (eds) (2012) Flammable Societies: Studies in the Socio-Economics of Oil and Gas. Pluto Press: London & NY.
McNeish, J (2012) More than Beads and Feathers: The Indigenous Problem in Latin America. In Haavard Haarstad (ed) New Political Spaces in Latin American Natural Resource Governance. Palgrave Macmillan. London & NY
Logan, O & McNeish, J (2012) Rethinking Responsibility and Governance in Resource Extraction. In McNeish, J.A & Logan, O (eds) (2012) Flammable Societies: Studies in the Socio-Economics of Oil and Gas. Pluto Press: London & NY.
McNeish, J.A (2008) Constitutionalism in an Insurgent State: Rethinking the Legal Empowerment of the Poor in a Divided Bolivia. In Banik, D (ed) Rights and Legal Empowerment in Eradicating Poverty. Ashgate Publications. UK.
Jacobsen, F & McNeish, J.A (eds) (2006) From Where Life Flows: Local Water Management Strategies and Poverty Reduction in the Highlands and Lowlands of Bolivia and Ecuador. Tapir Akademiske Forlag. Norway.
McNeish, J. A & Jacobsen, F (2006) Local Water Management Strategies in the Andes and Beyond. In Jacobsen, F & McNeish, J.A (eds) From Where Life Flows: Local Water Management Strategies and Poverty Reduction in the Highlands and Lowlands of Bolivia and Ecuador. Tapir Akademiske Forlag. Norway.
McNeish, J.A (2006) The Politics of Water in Bolivia. In Jacobsen, F & McNeish, J.A (eds) From Where Life Flows: Local Water Management Strategies and Poverty Reduction in the Highlands and Lowlands of Bolivia and Ecuador. Tapir Akademiske Forlag.
McNeish, J & Eversole, R (2005) Introduction: Indigenous Peoples and Poverty. In Eversole, R; McNeish, J.A; Cimadamore, A (2005) Indigenous Peoples and Poverty in International Perspective. CROP Series in Poverty Studies. Zed Books: London and NY.
McNeish, J (2005) The Right to Self-Determination. In Eversole, R; McNeish, J.A; Cimadamore, A (2005) Indigenous Peoples and Poverty in International Perspective. CROP Series in Poverty Studies. Zed Books: London and NY.
McNeish, J (2005) Indigenous People’s Perspectives on Poverty and Development. In Eversole, R; McNeish, J.A; Cimadamore, A (2005) Indigenous Peoples and Poverty in International Perspective. CROP Series in Poverty Studies. Zed Books: London and NY.
McNeish, J & Eversole, R (2005) Poverty, Peoples and the Meaning of Change. In Eversole, R; McNeish, J.A; Cimadamore, A (2005) Indigenous Peoples and Poverty in International Perspective. CROP Series in Poverty Studies. Zed Books: London and NY.
McNeish, J (2005) Poverty, Policy and "Sleight of Hand" in Bolivia and Latin America. Chapter in The Poverty of the State: Reconsidering the Role of the State in the Struggle against Global Poverty. Cimadamore, A, Dean, H y Siqueira, J (eds). Buenos Aires: Consejo Latinoamericano de Ciencias Sociales.
McNeish, J (2005) "Luchando para la Prosperidad: Reflexiones sobre él crisis y la politica de pobreza en Bolivia". Chapter in Alvarez, S (ed) Trabajo y la Produccion de Pobreza. Buenos Aires : Consejo Latinoamericano de Ciencias Sociales.
McNeish, J (2005) "Luchando para la Prosperidad: Reflexiones sobre el crisis y la politica de pobreza en Bolivia". Chapter in Lopez Rivera, O (ed) La Pobreza: Un Problema de Todos. Memoria del Seminario Internacional Agosto 2004. FLACSO Guatemala.
McNeish, J (2003) Globalization and the Reinvention of Andean Tradition: The Politics of Community and Ethnicity in Highland Bolivia. In Brass, T (ed) Latin American Peasants. Frank Cass: London & Portland.
McNeish, J. A (2002) Globalisation and the Reinvention of Andean Tradition. Chapter in Latin American Peasants. Library of Peasant Studies 21. Frank Cass: London & New York.
Articles:
McNeish J (2019 Forthcoming) Violence in an Age of Hyper-Extraction. Special Issue.Environmental Politics.
McNeish, J (2019) Community-Based Policing in Nicaragua: Do the claims of Communitarian, Proactive and Preventative hold true? Special Edition on Community Based Policing. Journal of Human Security. Vol 15. Issue 2.
McNeish, J (2018) Resource Extraction and Conflict in Latin America. Introduction to Special Issue on Extractive Violence. Colombia Internacional. Issue 93.
McNeish, J.A (2016) Voting to Derail Extraction: Popular Consultation and Resource Sovereignty. Third World Quarterley 38: 4. pp1128-1145.
McNeish, J.A. (2016) Extracting Justice? Colombia´s commitment to mining and energy as a foundation for peace. The International Journal of Human Rights. See: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13642987.2016.1179031
McNeish, J (2013) Extraction, Protest and Indigeneity in Bolivia: The TIPNIS Effect. Latin American and Caribbean Ethnic Studies (LACES). Taylor & Francis.
McNeish, J (2010) Sobre Maldiciones y Demonios: Hidrocarburos y soberanía. In Wanderley, F (ed) Hidrocarburos, política y sociedad. UMBRALES 20 Abril. CIDES: La Paz
McNeish, J.A (2008) The Ugly Poetics of Violence in Post−Accord Guatemala. Forum for Development Studies: Nordic Journal of Development Research. Vol 35. Number 1. Universitetsforlaget.
McNeish, J.A (2008) Beyond the Permitted Indian? Bolivia and Guatemala in an Era of Neoliberal Developmentalism. Latin American and Caribbean Ethnic Studies. Vol 3, No.1 Routledge: Taylor and Francis.
McNeish, J.A (2007) Fighting for Prosperity: Reflections on the Crisis and the Politics of Poverty in Bolivia. Iberoamericana: Nordic Journal of Latin American Studies. VOL XXXVI, pp 107−132
Lazar, S and McNeish, J eds (2006) The Millions Return: Democracy in Bolivia at the Start of the 21st Century. Special Issue. Bulletin of Latin American Research Vol 25:2 . Wiley Blackwells.
McNeish, J ( 2006) Stones on the Road: The Politics of Participation and the Generation of Crisis in Bolivia. In Lazar & McNeish (eds) Bulletin of Latin American Research Vol 25:2. Wiley Blackwells: Cambridge.
McNeish, J (2006) New Publications on Protest and Possibility in Bolivia: A Critical Review Essay. IberoAmericana XXXVI. Inst. of Latin American Studies. University of Stockholm.
McNeish, J. A (2002) Globalisation and the Reinvention of Andean Tradition: The Politics of Community and Ethnicity in Highland Bolivia. The Journal of Peasant Studies Volume 29, No 3⁄4 April/July. Frank Cass: London & New York
Consultation Reports
McNeish, J (2015) A Hawk in Dove´s Feathers: Civil Military Relations in Santos´Colombia. Everyday Maneuvers Project Brief. Funded by Peace and Reconciliation Department. Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. See http://www.cmi.no/publications/publication/?5389=a-hawk-in-doves-feathers
McNeish, J & Irias, A (2012) Evaluation of Cooperation Between LO Norway and the CTC Cuba. Norad: Oslo.See:http://www.norad.no/no/resultater/publikasjoner/ gjennomganger-fra
Hardcastle, P; Oksanen, T; Lincoln, P; Brander, M; Telle, K; Tjonneland, E; McNeish, J; Hirsch, C (2012) Real Time Evaluation of Norway’s International Climate and Forest Initiative: Lessons Learned from Support to Civil Society Organizations. Report 5. Norad Evaluation Department. Norad: Oslo.
McNeish, J; Camargo, M & Pedroni, L (2011) Real-Time Evaluation of the Norwegian Climate and Forest Initiative. Contributions to National REDD+ Processes. Country Report: Brazil 2007-2010. See:http://www.regjeringen.no/upload/MD/2011/vedlegg/klima/ klima_skogprosjektet/Evalueringsrapportene/ Report_13_Brazil_web.pdf
McNeish, J.A (2010) Rethinking Resource Conflict. Background Paper. World Development Report 2011. World Bank Group. See
Enghoff, M, Jørgensen, A, McNeish, J, Baltzer Jørgensen, A, Arnegaard Johannsen, T (2009) Global Review and Capacity Analysis of the International Work Group on Indigenous Affairs.
McNeish, J.A & Bohrt, Anne−Cecilia (2008). Evaluación: Cooperación del Fondo de Asistencia Internacional de los Estudiantes y Académicos Noruegos (SAIH) con las Unidades Académicas Campesinas (UACs), Bolivia. Bergen: Chr. Michelsen Institute (CMI Report R 2008: 8) 42 p.
McNeish, J.A & Bohrt, Anne− Cecilia (2008) Evaluation: Norwegian Student and Academics' International Assistance Fund's (SAIH) Cooperation with the Bolivian Unidades Academicas Campesinas Peasant Academic Units (UACs). Bergen: Chr. Michelsen Institute (CMI Report R 2008: 7) 39 p.
Borchgrevink, A & McNeish, J.A (2007) Review of Bistandsnemda's (Norwegian Missions in Development) Work with Indigenous Peoples. Bergen: Chr. Michelsen Institute (CMI Report 2007: 15) 33
PhD Thesis:
McNeish, J.A (2001) Pueblo Chico, Infierno Grande: Globalisation and the Politics of Participation. PhD Thesis. University of London.
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Lecturing
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Projects & research
Projects
Recognizing the increasing number of socio-environmental conflicts surrounding resource extraction in Latin America over the last decade, this research project aims to study the nature and outcome of currently available mechanisms for conflict resolution.
Areas of research
Theme:
- Environment
- Energy
- Society
- Development
Specialities:
- Indigenous Politics
- Resource Politics
Research areas:
- Social sciences
- Anthropology
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Other
