Resistance in spaces of triple exception: between mining, conservation, and exceptional people

‘Green’ mining may produce what Le Billon calls ‘spaces of double exception’ – spaces where people are stripped of their rights to give way to both mining and biodiversity offsetting. However, this article highlights that resistance movements can also use the ‘exception’ by claiming that ‘exceptional people’ have special rights to remain on their lands. By drawing on two landmark cases, the article argues that ‘spaces of triple exception’ provides a more suitable picture of the stakes and power battles involved, considering the ambivalent resistance and exclusionary risk of indigenous or tribal claims.