Anti-extractivism: contesting and empowering resource nationalism in the Americas

Thomas Chiasson-LeBel, Tamara Ortega-Uribe, Nathan Edenhofer and Alejandro Artiga-Purcell

Chapter 19 in Handbook of Resource Nationalism, 2026, pp 293-310 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: The capacity of social movements to block extractive projects has transformed anti-extractivism into a significant counter-tendency in the Americas, reflecting a shift in how natural resources are perceived. For decades, the debate focused on who should benefit from non-renewable resource extraction. Now, it also raises the question of whether resources should be extracted at all. By examining anti-extractivism in Chile, Ecuador, Honduras, and El Salvador, this chapter demonstrates how opponents of extraction have called for a broader understanding of sovereignty that encompasses local and Indigenous voices, as well as other resources, such as water. In some places, anti-extractivists’ opposition to neoliberal extraction has sidelined extractivist resource nationalism, while in others, it has led neoliberal-authoritarian governments to adopt a resource nationalist stance to restart extraction. All cases demonstrate that anti-extractivism is a powerful counter-tendency that needs to be considered seriously alongside extractivist resource nationalism.

Keywords: Anti-Extractivism; Latin America; Chile; Ecuador; Honduras; El Salvador (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
ISBN: 9781035333431
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