The Economics of Conflict and Human Rights Violations

This thesis explores the causes and consequences of social and civil conflict, within the field of political economy. It consists of three self-contained empirical studies that advance the current body of knowledge on the relationship between natural resource abundance, conflict, and the impact of violence. While the focus of the existing political economy literature has mainly been on armed civil conflict and war, this thesis focus on social conflict around environmental degradation and communal land rights. It provides new insights on why socio-environmental conflicts turn violent and how civil society can hold powerful multinational corporations accountable for human rights violations.