Transnational Advocacy and the Politics of Sustainable Development in a Small Island Developing State: An Uncertain Future for the Grenada Dove

Abstract

This article presents a qualitative case study of a transnational activist network (TAN) to protect the endangered Grenada Dove that achieved measurable success in the 1990s and then reformed in the 2000s when a planned resort complex and new law allowing the privatization of public lands renewed threats to the dove habitat. Unlike many of the success stories of TAN influence, this case questions the long-term efficacy of TANs engaged in political contestation over biodiversity conservation in small, economically dependent democracies. Findings suggest that when TANs participate directly in political contestation over national development policy, they do amplify the voices of local activists but lose influence and cohesion when engaged in domestic-level political contestation against alliances of elected officials and transnational corporations, especially when powerful and popular politicians, responding to exogenous economic shocks, link their “sustainable” development priorities to foreign direct investment and competitiveness in global markets.