This argument is rhetorically persuasive in that it recognizes the primacy of local voice in the conservation process, a point further elaborated upon at the Hearing by Michael Wright. In seeking local support for global conservation norms, what this position fails to note is that fundamental to an individual s rights to participate is an individual s right not to participate, and fundamental to a community s right to collaborate is a community s right not to collaborate. Otherwise, the possibility that the local population will choose not to collaborate and to reject both conservation initiatives and democratization programs as part and parcel of the same international attempt to undermine local standards of living will increase. None of the statements at the Hearing recognize this primacy of individual choice at the local level as an indicator of program success, let alone recognizing that individual choice may determine program success. Perhaps more important than the normative adoption of democracy concurrent to conservation are the implications for governance.
Most African states lack the capacity to enforce conservation policies at the local level.
If, therefore, the local population rejects a conservation program as too costly, the program will likely fail and the money invested will be wasted. Indeed, this is an echo of Bombardier s point that democracy, human well-being, and conservation are in fact interrelated. The application of this needs, however, not to be concentrated mostly on helping soft governments to get the conditions right for conservation on the one hand, while trying to promote local democratic initiatives on the other. Such a process will likely act to pit one program against the other, eroding the personal freedoms necessary for democracy while eroding the economic preconditions necessary for environmental consciousness. Rather, application needs to focus on providing the social safety-nets, economic alternatives, and educational programs necessary to facilitate local adoption of both democratic and conservation initiatives.