Patagonia Land Grab Case Study

Preparation (1 hour)
Before the next class, students are expected to read the following two articles, watch the video, and answer the questions below:

“Creating the Future Patagonia National Park,” Conservacion Patagonica.
http://www.patagonia.com/web/us/patagonia.go?assetid=27528
Goni, U. 2007. Eco-millionaire’s land grab prompts fury. The Observer.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2007/feb/04/argentina.theobserver
Baldock, H. 2004. “Benetton in trouble over evicted Patagonian couple.” The Observer.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2004/jul/18/internationalnews

Students should bring written responses to class answering the following questions:

List the various stakeholders in the land of Patagonia. What are each stakeholder’s central concerns?

Pick one of the stakeholders you listed above. What type of arguments (i.e., ethical, legal) could the group use to make their case for their right to the land. For example, David Tompkins is called a “deep ecologist.” What type of arguments might a deep ecologist use to justify purchasing millions of acres in Patagonia? What arguments could the Machupe people use to justify their right to the land?

Read chapters 27 and 28 (quizzes are due on thursday, www exercises friday) to help you with the politics and ethics associated with this case study)