Neoliberalizing cultural landscapes: Bali's agrarian heritage

In Bali, rapid conversion of agricultural land has been framed by opinion leaders and mass media as an indication of an agrarian crisis. The government responded by nominating subak (a traditional water management system) landscapes for world heritage status, which was achieved in 2012. Instead of mitigating land conversion, world heritage status has incentivized local farmers to sell their agricultural land. This article examines market-based conservation strategies by investigating their conceptual foundation. It argues that a romantic characterization of subak, combined with neoliberal assumptions which conceive of the land crisis in Bali through a rational choice lens, has led to a counter-productive market-based solution managed in a technocratic manner, ignoring the structural conditions which have been the main cause of land conversion. Thus, the neoliberal response to Bali’s agrarian crisis, rather than conserving subak landscapes and empowering local farmers, has contributed to the further marginalization of local farmers and their landscapes.