The political ecology of small freshwater bodies in Kerala, India

Abstract

AbstractThis article situates the empirical context of small freshwater bodies in the theoretical debates of commons and political ecology to understand the processes of institutionalization. We argue that a “politics of empty space” operating in the policy narratives and the practices have resulted in a partial decommodification of rural waters in Kerala. The communities, especially the oppressed and the marginalized, have managed to co‐produce ecological assets like rural ponds. Such efforts towards re‐embedding the economy in the society could be a starting point to address the water and the larger environmental crisis that we are in today.