Your Place or Mine? Environmental (In)justice in Myanmar and Australian Activism

Abstract

<p>In 2012, a battle raged in northern Western Australia in Australia between the multinational Woodside Petroleum, local Aboriginal people and environmentalists. Woodside was developing a $35 billion liquefied natural gas project. Opponents were determined to save an iconic site from desecration and protect local flora and fauna. In 2013, Woodside abandoned the project with activists claiming victory. But Woodside had merely shifted its focus, to an exploration "hotspot" off the west coast of Myanmar in Southeast Asia. Myanmar is a weak state and local people suffer a range of environmental injustices. Indigenous peoples lack the resources and political freedom to agitate for protection or policy change. This article is based on empirical/secondary insights. Using a case study of Woodside Petroleum as an example, it asks a number of pertinent points regarding environmental justice in the Anthropocene. Should our activism consider "others"? If our activism results in oppression elsewhere, are we responsible? If we are responsible, how should we respond? Considering our interconnectedness and interdependence, what relationships should we be forming? This article highlights the transnational environmental justice issues and consequences that stemmed from activism against development and argues that, in this era of the Anthropocene, we should be expanding the sphere of environmental justice discourse ever further for it is not your place or mine, but ours.</p>