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
This book analyses changes in the use of the landscape and the nature of rural livelihoods in two South African villages - Guquka and Koloni in the former Ciskei homeland. Taking an... Show moreThis book analyses changes in the use of the landscape and the nature of rural livelihoods in two South African villages - Guquka and Koloni in the former Ciskei homeland. Taking an interdisciplinary approach on how livelihoods and landscapes in the Eastern Cape link the book provides a study of the patterns of land use over time. It depicts the steady deterioration in agricultural production and the corresponding increase in dependence on social grants and wages. It shows that despite this trend remnants of a peasantry do exist. Contributions: Investigating rural livelihoods and landscapes in Guquka and Koloni: an introduction (Paul Hebinck); Rural transformation in the Eastern Cape (Paul Hebinck and Wim van Averbeke); Agro-ecology, land use and smallholder farming in the central Eastern Cape (Wim van Averbeke and James Bennett); A social history of Guquka and Koloni: settlement and resources (Paul Hebinck and Lothar Smith); Natural resource base and agricultural potentials (Peter C. Lent); Local governance and institutions (Wim van Averbeke and James Bennett); The view from above: a history of land use in Guquka and Koloni, 1938-1996) (Peter C. Lent and Guilty Mupakati); Production of crops in arable fields and home gardens (Paul Hebinck and Nomakaya Monde); Livestock production and forage resources (James Bennett and Peter C. Lent); Gathering from the land (Peter C. Lent); Mobility and population dynamics (Lothar Smith and Paul Hebinck); Contemporary livelihoods (Wim van Averbeke and Paul Hebinck); Life histories and livelihood trajectories (Paul Hebinck et al.); Livelihoods and landscapes: people, resources and land use (Paul Hebinck and Wim van Averbeke). [ASC Leiden abstract] Show less
