This dissertation examines the efforts and motives of conservation actors on Bonaire, Saba, and Sint Eustatius, and situates these actors within the larger context of the Caribbean Netherlands. The... Show moreThis dissertation examines the efforts and motives of conservation actors on Bonaire, Saba, and Sint Eustatius, and situates these actors within the larger context of the Caribbean Netherlands. The main research question addressed is: How are the efforts of conservation actors to protect the environment of the Caribbean Netherlands affected by the recent social and political changes and their (post) colonial context? To get at these issues, this dissertation combines insights and approaches from environmental psychology, anthropology, and Caribbean studies to investigate how and why residents of the Caribbean Netherlands engage in conservation actions. Situated in social history, cultural and environmental anthropology, public administration, and environmental science, this research aims to create a broader, less compartmentalized, picture and also addresses societal concerns. Because of its multidisciplinary and multi-method character, this dissertation produces information that will be useful in engaging more people in environmental conservation In the (Dutch) Caribbean. Show less
Focus of the study is the potential role of local institutions in fisheries management. As world-wide marine resources deteriorate, the call for better management urges national governments to... Show moreFocus of the study is the potential role of local institutions in fisheries management. As world-wide marine resources deteriorate, the call for better management urges national governments to decentralise management authority to local and lower government levels. Ownership and long-term access to resources are important incentives to manage resources for sustainability, while proximity to the resource, relevant local knowledge and local management institutions allow for effective and more equitable management that is both adaptive and resilient. Sasi in Maluku, Indonesia, is such an institution and has often been heralded as an example of successful local resource management. The extent to which it was still active and functional, however, was not known. This thesis contains an inventory of sasi and an analysis of its performance in terms of equity, efficiency, biological and social sustainability, and is illustrated by an elaborate description of sasi in Nolloth village. The study of sasi has been put in the wider context of decentralisation in Indonesia which is compared to the process in the Philippines. The results have also been used to identify the factors that enhance success of co-management in Southeast Asia. Finally a methodology is proposed to measure this success in an appropriate way. Show less
