Executive Summary
The political situation has a lot of impact on wildlife conservation effort globally.Myanmar has been in prolonged long civil war for more than 70 years and, theinstability increases after the military coup happened in February 2021. There are several environmental consequences due to the political instability in Myanmar, key among them that wildlife conservation is largely overlooked. The study of “the impact of Political Instability in Wildlife Conservation Efforts in Putao, Myanmar” highlights the impact of human resources loss due to the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM), the impact of economic crisis on the local people’s livelihoods and consequently, huge reliance on forest resources along with the market demands. Additionally, the mistrust between the local communities and the conservation authorities due to the historical grievances such as forced displacement for national park demarcations and concerns for mining are hindering the conservation efforts. Finally, the conservation efforts in Putao have been weakened by these interrelated issues, putting its ecosystems and species at greater risk of degradation and extinction.
The paper shows that the conservation efforts should not be considered as isolated from political conditions particularly in conflict-affected regions like Myanmar as it has significant impact on it.
