ABSTRACT

The Round Table on Responsible Soy (RTRS) is a multi-stakeholder organization that has set as its aim to improve the environmental, social and economic conditions of soy production. To do so, it relies on a certification scheme whose standards seek to regulate the practices of producers. Unlike most certifications, however, RTRS allows for the detachment of ‘sustainability’ from physical commodities. In this way, the former is converted into ‘RTRS credits,’ a certificate that attests for the responsible conditions of production. These credits are sold by certified producers and bought by soy consumers who use them to offset the negative impacts of the physical soy they actually handle. This article seeks to identify the tensions that spring from the (a priori paradoxical) strategy of resorting to an intangible in order to preserve the physical environment. The analysis is guided by the concept of Landnahme, which accounts for the processes through which previously non-capitalist spheres of life become colonized by this system’s logic. In the case under examination, two analytically different levels of Landnahme are identified: the economicization of an environmental struggle and the commodification of sustainability. After describing both processes, the paper reflects on the shortcomings faced by RTRS’ approach.

摘要

负责任大豆圆桌会议 (RTRS) 是一个多利益相关方组织，其目标是改善大豆生产的环境、社会和经济条件。为此，它依赖于一个认证计划，该计划的标准旨在规范生产者的做法。然而，与大多数认证不同，RTRS 允许将“可持续性”与实物商品分开。通过这种方式，前者被转换为“RTRS 信用”，这是一种证明负责任的生产条件的证书。这些信用额度由经过认证的生产商出售，并由大豆消费者购买，消费者使用这些信用额度来抵消他们实际处理的实物大豆的负面影响。本文试图确定从（先验矛盾的）战略中产生的紧张局势，即诉诸无形以保护物理环境。分析以 Landnahme 概念为指导，该概念解释了以前非资本主义的生活领域被该系统的逻辑殖民化的过程。在所审查的案例中，确定了两个不同层次的 Landnahme：环境斗争的经济化和可持续性的商品化。在描述了这两个过程之后，本文反思了 RTRS 方法面临的缺点。确定了 Landnahme 的两个不同分析层面：环境斗争的经济化和可持续性的商品化。在描述了这两个过程之后，本文反思了 RTRS 方法面临的缺点。确定了 Landnahme 的两个不同分析层面：环境斗争的经济化和可持续性的商品化。在描述了这两个过程之后，本文反思了 RTRS 方法面临的缺点。