The Spatialization of Politics: Local and National Actor-Spaces in Environmental Conflict

Abstract

Political practice is still not adequately integrated into the geographical study of economic and social change a point illustrated here by reference to the localities debate in which a central tension is evident between structural determination and contingency in socio-spatial relations. However, localities have recently been considered as constituted by networks of relations operating over various spatial scales. This approach requires attention to the ways in which actors in local situations are tied into wider sets of relations. A perspective derived from micro-sociology is introduced to facilitate the analysis of the links, or associations, between actors-in-situations, or actor-spaces. A case study illustrating how such an approach can make sense of political action at both 'national' and 'local' levels is examined. The study of an environmental conflict around minerals development shows that in practice the local and the national become 'mixed up' as actors build associations in pursuit of their goals. It is concluded that the practices of association between actor-spaces leave 'layers' of outcomes in places which contribute to patterns of regional development.