Mapping Dominican transnationalism: narrow and broad transnational practices

This article maps the structure for understanding the Dominican transnational field. By transnational field we refer to a web of linkages that affects the lives of Dominicans in their places of residence in every social field. We find that social boundaries of the nation do not coincide with political ones and the degree of participation in transnational exchanges varies. We suggest that the structure of the transnational social field is better understood by establishing and defining broad and narrow transnational social practices.     

Elementary Forms and their Dynamics: Revisiting Mary Douglas

Mary Douglas's oeuvre furnishes the social sciences with one of the most profound and ambitious bodies of social theory ever to emerge from within anthropology. This article uses the occasion of the publication of Fardon's two volumes of her previously uncollected papers to restate her core arguments about the limited plurality of elementary forms of social organisation, about the institutional dynamics of conflict, and about conflict attenuation. In reviewing these two volumes, the article considers what those anthropologists who have been sceptical either of Douglas's importance or of the Durkheimian traditions generally, will want from these books to convince them to look afresh at her work. It concludes that the two collections will provide open-minded anthropologists with enough evidence of the creativity and significance of her achievement to encourage them to reopen her major theoretical works. An internal critique of some aspects of Douglas's handling of her arguments is offered, before the conclusion identifies the wider significance of her arguments for the social sciences.     

A critique of and recommendations for a subsistence fishery, Lake St Lucia, South Africa

The fish resources of Lake St Lucia, the largest estuary on the eastcoast of Africa, present resource managers of the Natal Parks Board with acommon property resource (CPR) problem. Problems associated with illegal gillnetting by local people from three tribal areas, prompted the introduction of asystem of legal, subsistence netting. This paper reviews the legal fisheries inthese three areas from 1995 to 1997, and examines existing organizationalarrangements, suggesting reasons why the three fisheries show differences infunctioning. By employing concepts from CPRs theory, elements of anorganizational design for fisheries management involving local users and theconservation organization staff are proposed.     

Institutions,Biophysical Factors and History: An Integrative Analysis of Private and Common Property Forests in Guatemala and Honduras

Attention to institutional arrangements has become integral to research on forest management and conservation. While strong institutions typically are associated with better forest conditions, few institutional studies have evaluated the influence of underlying biophysical factors on forest conditions. Our research compared institutional arrangements and forest conditions across nine forests in Guatemala and Honduras while accounting for biophysical characteristics. Statistical analyses found that soil nitrogen concentration, annual temperature, and annual rainfall were positively correlated with better forest conditions. Better forest conditions were in turn associated with stronger institutions. In part, the results suggest that the biophysical characteristics most favorable for high productivity, given the socioeconomic context, constitute an incentive for strong institutions. One common-property forest presented strong institutions with very good forest conditions, but stronger institutions and better forest conditions in this region typically occur with private property. The situation reflects historical contexts that have supported private property and undermined common property. The findings indicate that efforts to improve natural resource management should recognize the biophysical factors and historical contexts that facilitate or constrain strong institutions.     

Local livelihoods and institutions in managing wildlife ecosystems: The case of Babile Elephant Sanctuary in Ethiopia

This paper analyzes inherent incentives and institutional challenges in managing elephant sanctuary ecosystems, using the case of the Babile Elephant Sanctuary in Ethiopia. The study was based on the data collected from local communities experiencing different livelihood systems and experts from the local state authorities. A total of 35 interviews were conducted for an in-depth case study. Results show that historical and socio-political factors have undermined the effectiveness of state-based institutions in managing the ecosystem. The welfare loss of local communities relying on the ecosystem has resulted in a dispute between the state managing the ecosystem and those holding customary rights to the delineated land. Absence of adequate compensation for the crop damage by elephants has made the local people to regard the state intervention as unfair action. The study suggests the need to search for institutional frameworks that can transform hostile relationship into a mutually beneficial one. Such condition may ensure humans’ peaceful co-existence with the wildlife without destroying the habitat and constraining sustainable livelihoods.     

A Complex-Systems Approach to Pastoral Commons

In recent years a new approach has begun to emerge in commons scholarship that draws on complex systems thinking and that makes use of concepts such as fit, scale, and the adaptive renewal cycle. This paper explores what complex systems thinking has to offer for commons scholarship by applying these concepts to the pastoral commons of the Gabra ethnic group of north-central Kenya. The concepts of fit and scale can help us to understand why some features of the institutional regime of the Gabra do not conform to mainstream principles such as clearly defined boundaries, clearly defined membership rules, and subsidiarity. The notion of the adaptive renewal cycle can help us to describe and understand some aspects of dynamics of Gabra institutions, especially those related to the management of shallow wells. Applying the adaptive renewal cycle to larger and longer scales highlights the possibility that the Gabra social–ecological system is becoming increasingly brittle, with evolving institutional arrangements putting more and more constraints on adaptation and especially on nomadic mobility. An examination of the distinctive nature of dryland pastoral commons, and in particular a complex systems approach to this examination, suggests a number of issues that relief and development organizations should consider, including how to foster novelty and innovation through all the phases of the adaptive cycle.

The shifting sources of racial definition in Trinidad and Tobago,and Guyana: a research agenda

This comparison of ethnic relations in two countries, Trinidad and Tobago, and Guyana, supplements the research findings of synchronic studies of "the social construction of race" by offering a historically based framework to understand particular and local instances of ethnic relations. Drawing on a long historical study of Trinidad and Tobago, and Guyana, I argue that the institutional sources of definition of key "ethnicities" have shifted through the centuries. "Ethnicities" have been successively defined by the institutions of capital, state and community. While these institutions have overlapped in time they are not equally important at a given moment in the matter of defining "ethnicity". The content of the definitions has also varied significantly. At present political communities and the family are the major social institutions that determine "ethnic" content.     

Biodiversity informatics in Eastern Africa: Status,drivers and barriers

This article uses content analysis to review policies and relevant documents that promote or hinder the generation and use of biodiversity data in Eastern Africa. The review found that all countries in the region are committed to international and regional conventions that emphasize the protection and conservation of biodiversity. Some of the other drivers for biodiversity informatics include countries’ national biodiversity related policies although there are few, which highlight the need for biodiversity data management systems. However, the existing policies are deficient in terms of policies for biodiversity data management. Suggestions to ensure the success of biodiversity informatics in East Africa include: (i) Avoiding overlaps but promoting complementarities within and/or between different institutions and stakeholders involved in biodiversity conservation; (ii) Putting in place clear, complete and simple policy documents pertaining to biodiversity data management.     

Text mining analysis of institutional fit of Lake Basin water governance

The purpose of this work was to quantitatively determine the institutional fit of the existing and applicable water governance laws in the Songkhla Lake Basin (SLB) Thailand, using text mining analysis. The study found out that the current governance system is not fit for the purpose of the sustainability of the SLB. Data derived from text mining were able to show the weakness in the applicable/relevant water governance laws and such challenges in enforcement and compliance. Institutional priorities were identified and compared to management response to issues concerning SLB; this imbalance showed another challenge to fit. The results of this study further buttressed the need for institutional reforms towards an Adaptive Integrated Lake Basin Management (AILBM). The general assessment of degree of recognition and involvement of institutions, overlaps, gaps, institutional priorities and response to resource management show a clear picture of misfit of the water laws used to govern the SLB. To achieve institutional fit, future institutional reforms should be based on the principles of AILBM and the development of institutions that are capable of creating a singular coordinating and policy harmonization committee to clearly identify roles and responsibilities and delineate functions with appropriate management response to the socio-ecological system of the SLB.     

A bioeconomic analysis of community wildlife conservation in Zimbabwe

This paper uses a bio-economic model to analyze wildlife conservation in two habitats adjacent to a national park by two types of communities in Zimbabwe. One community is made up of peasant farmers operating under a benefit-sharing scheme such as CAMPFIRE, while the other is made up of commercial farmers practicing game farming in a conservancy. Both communities exploit wildlife by selling hunting licenses to foreign hunters but with different levels of success. The park agency plays a central role by authorizing the harvest quota for each community. We formulate a bio-economic model for the three agents, optimize the market problem for each agent and compare the outcomes with the social planner’s solution. Our results show that the level of anti-poaching enforcement by the park agency is suboptimal, while anti-poaching effort exerted by the conservancy community achieves social optimality. CAMPFIRE communities exert more poaching effort than what the social planner would recommend. Our model shows that institutional reforms in benefit-sharing schemes could result in the decisions of CAMPFIRE communities gravitating towards the social optimum.