State-organized crime and the killing of wolves in Norway

Abstract

While scholars of state crime and organized crime have frequently explored the intersection of these fields with green criminology, for the most part they have not brought the two together as organized state criminality as a means to explore environmental destruction. Of the few explorations of organized state green crime that do exist, most do not embrace a non-speciesist perspective. In this article, we develop a non-speciesist theory of organized state green crime to explain the Norwegian state-licensed killing of wolves, a phenomenon that we analyze through the use of the concept ideological inertia. Our main argument is that the underlying cultural, political and economic interests that were prioritized up to the 1970s in Norway continue to have a counteracting effect on the protection of large carnivores, which the country committed to as a signatory to the Bern Convention.

Wolf Conservation and Management in Spain, An Open Debate

“…Yet, granting wolf hunting does not necessarily favor wolf acceptance (Pepin et al, 2017). In some areas, social values that traditionally considered predators as vermin still allow lethal management of wolves, even in small populations dependent on immigration from neighboring areas (Sollund and Goyes, 2021).…”

Unpacking the political-criminal nexus in state-cybercrimes: a macro-level typology

“…Manifestations of state-organized crime, not surprisingly, are more common in weak states (because of the higher levels of impunity, or because of their low level of legitimacy due for instance to ethnic conflict or terrorist activity), in authoritarian regimes (because of the high levels of corruption, even if the presence of a strong state has an effect in containing some organized crime activities), or in states undergoing profound economic transformations (because of the criminogenic opportunities offered by emerging markets) (as discussed in detail in the political model offered by Williams and Godson 2002). Nonetheless, also democratic and economically stable states can manifest forms of state-organized crime (e.g., Sollund and Goyes 2021).…”

Wildlife Trade and Law Enforcement: A Proposal for a Remodeling of CITES Incorporating Species Justice, Ecojustice, and Environmental Justice

“…This, and the ways in which CITES is enforced, should also be seen from the perspective of Norway’s lack of fulfilment to the country’s obligations to the Bern Convention. 5 This can be perceived as state-organized crime caused by ideological inertia ( Sollund & Goyes, 2021 ). Inherent in this inertia is the failure of acknowledging nonhuman animals as bearer of rights and entitled to justice ( Nussbaum, 2006 ), due to their being subjects in a life as sentient beings ( Regan, 2004 ), with interests in pursuing their life as they were meant to, unharmed by humans.…”