Introduction: Environmental conflict in the Asia‐Pacific

Abstract: The literature on environmental conflict has expanded greatly over the past 10 years, yet most of the cases and theory have been from a Western, Northern, and developed world context. This volume concentrates on cases of current conflict and its management from Asian and Pacific nations. This paper presents a brief literature review of the nature of environmental conflict and highlights some of the key authors who have featured. Their conclusions are summarised into four key suppositions; a) Environmental conflict is a result of scarcity and represents social struggles against uneven usage and allocation of resources; b) Environmental conflict reflects poor performance by governments in developing complex public policy; c) Environmental conflict involves the issues of power and rights; d) Environmental conflict is an inevitable consequence of development and can be constructive.