Descriptions of the late 1800s landscape in the Ovambo floodplain in north-central Namibia closely match the area's late 1900s appearence, suggesting that little change occured between the pre... Show moreDescriptions of the late 1800s landscape in the Ovambo floodplain in north-central Namibia closely match the area's late 1900s appearence, suggesting that little change occured between the pre-colonial baseline and the postcolonial outcome. Yet, paradoxically, colonial conquest, population pressure, biological invasions, new technology, and economic globalization caused both dramatic deforestation and reforestation in less than a century. The paradox stems from the fact that the prevailing global environmental models obscure and homogenize the process of environmental change: different and contradictory interpretations are dismissed as alternative readings or misreadings of the same process. Deforestation and reforestation in Namibia, however argues that the paradox highlights the need to reframe environmental change as plural processes occuring along multiple trajectories that may be dissynchronized and asymmetrical. Show less
In the last two decades El-Niño-induced fires have caused widespread destruction of forests in East Kalimantan. The 1997-98 fires were the most extensive yet. The post-fire situation was studied in... Show moreIn the last two decades El-Niño-induced fires have caused widespread destruction of forests in East Kalimantan. The 1997-98 fires were the most extensive yet. The post-fire situation was studied in detail by field assessments and high-resolution SAR-images. My results show that rain forests are better able to conserve their high plant diversity than has been assumed because of the network of unburnt remnant forest, large remnant trees, and abundant tree regeneration. These elements were present in burnt forests throughout the burnt region. Subsequent destructive human activities, rather than El-Niño fires themselves, are the major threat to these forests' plant diversity. Show less
