Protected areas are demarcated not only by physical boundaries but by differing, and sometimes incompatible, perceptions. For some, protected areas are the remnant of a commons, lost as agriculture, enclosures, and private property regimes spread. For others conservation areas have been expropriated by imperial peoples for their exclusive economic benefit. With reference to the California State Department of Parks and Recreation, this article looks at these romantic and critical narratives around protected areas, and highlights how Jane Carruthers’ writing refuses to embrace either.
DOI: doi.org/10.5282/rcc/6284