Purpose This paper outlines a morphogenetic landscape approach to explore the legal geography of wolves in Sweden. The purpose of this paper is to develop a theoretical framework for further research on species protection and law in the Anthropocene and to analyse law’s potential in protecting wolves in Sweden and Europe. Design/methodology/approach Building upon insights from legal geography and process philosophy, this paper outlines a morphogenetic approach to law in the landscape where law emerges within the interrelated processes that constitute a landscape. This paper then implements this approach in an analysis of wolves’ legal protection in Sweden and concludes with a more general discussion on implications for legal geography and law in the Anthropocene. Findings Situating law as an aspect in wider landscapes rather than as a catalyst for general eco-centric paradigmatic changes produces a more nuanced discussion on the potential of legal solutions in the Anthropocene. Using laws to increase the legal protection for wolves is intrinsically entangled with broader efforts to shift anti-wolf dynamics in the landscape in more progressive directions. Originality/value This paper develops a process-oriented, relational approach to law in the landscape, which legal scholars and practitioners can use to understand how species protection and law function in dynamic landscapes in the Anthropocene.
Gustav Stenseke Arup (Thu,) studied this question.