Growth and Development Commons^™

El Arte Ngöbe De La Chácara: Su Significado Cultural Y Potenciál Financiero En Una Asociación De Artesanas, Danica Taber

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study investigates the role played by traditional, plant-derived bags known as “chácaras” or “kra” in the Ngöbe indigenous culture of Panamá, with a focus on the market for chácaras as experencied by a Ngöbe women’s artesanal association.

Chácaras have played an integral and versatile part in the lives of the Ngöbe for centuries, functioning to carry heavy loads of bananas, cradle babies while they sleep, and everything in between. However, in recent decades the previously isolated Ngöbe culture has experienced exposure to mainstream Latino culture, resulting in a dwindling cultural regard for chácaras and traditional Ngöbe culture as a …

Los Impactos Socio-Económicos Del Proyecto De Desarrollo Sostenible En La Entrada Norte Del Canal De Panamá En La Comunidad De Cativá, Carey Pulverman

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

El Proyecto desarrollo sostenible en la entrada Norte del Canal de Panamá ha sido desarrollado por la Doctora Gloria Batista de Vega desde 1992, con el apoyo de ChevronTexaco como parte de su Plan de Manejo Costera de la Costa Caribe en el distrito de Colón, provincia de Colón. Gracilarias de Panamá, S.A., Acelerador Tecnológico fue establecido en el Tecnoparque de la Ciudad del Saber para desarrollar una innovadora industria de biotecnología no contaminante cuya materia prima es renovable y que utiliza como fuente de energía la luz solar. Gracilarias de Panamá, S.A. es la manifestación comercial del Proyecto desarrollo …

Casa Da Mulher Do Nordeste: Feminist Visions Of Development, Sarah Frazer

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study presents the unique approach of Casa da Mulher do Nordeste to rural women’s empowerment and sustainable development. Their approach focuses on three main areas: 1) raising collective consciousness about unequal gender relations; 2) providing technical skills and assistance to in the areas of production and commercialization; 3) providing institutional support to the networks created in the occupation of economic and political spaces. CASA intimately links women’s empowerment to movements of agroecology and economic solidarity, thus extending the vision of equality between women and men to equality between human beings and the Earth—an ultimate definition of sustainable development. Their …

La Economía Solidaria: Ayudando A Las Mujeres A Cambiar Su Destino De Pobreza, Michele Frix

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In the last two decades in Latin America many social movements have arisen in response to the permeation of neo-liberalism throughout. These movements have many different labels (economía solidaria, economía comunitaria, economía social, solidaridad social, etc) but are all centered around the objective of forming a network of groups in the fight for economic justice, joining in solidarity, cooperation and mutual support. The idea of “economía solidaria” has become an alternative method of development in Latin America on the micro level, alleviating the effects of poverty that result from neo-liberal policies. Many non-governmental organizations have adopted the beliefs of “economía …

Viviendo Sin Bosques: Perspectivas En Disputa Sobre El Desarrollo Y Su Impacto En El Pueblo Mbya Guaraní, Maya Politis

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The indigenous populations all over the world have been and continue to experience drastic transformations in these past decades, each at its own pace and in its own form. Although throughout history all cultures and societies experience transformations, for the most part the recent transformations have been forced on these communities to a degree more brutal than ever. The powerful effects of the modern capitalistic system are quickly displacing and endangering indigenous populations. Practically every square foot of land and air has been privatized, sold to big corporations and exploited to benefit productivity without even the consideration of sustainability. This …

The Role Of Tibetan Buddhism And Culture In Sustainable Development (A Case Study Of Yubeng Village), Frazer Lanier

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

During a lecture by Li Bo, of CBIK (the Center for Biodiversity and Indigenous Knowledge a Chinese NGO), I was given a glimpse into the role that culture plays within poverty alleviation and environmental conservation. While poverty alleviation aims to develop community economies, this goal is usually seen as being in conflict with environmental conservation because it requires the use of environmental resources. This is a common misperception. According to Gou Jing’s article Gateway between Culture and Nature， “man’s touch bestows nature with culture” (Guo Jing 12). The interaction between nature and humans is the foundation for culture and the …

The Road To Recovery: Economic And Social Development In Srebrenica, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Erinn Lachner

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Srebrenica, Bosnia-Herzegovina is recreating itself. This municipality, located in the Republic of Srpska, is the setting of the 1995 genocide, which murdered 8,000 Muslim men and boys. Destroyed by the war, this municipality is rebuilding its economy, infrastructure and civil society from scratch. Srebrenica has made a large amount of progress in the past ten years, with the help of international and local donors. These donors have contributed millions of dollars to the effort. However, Srebrenica still faces many obstacles, namely, high unemployment, lack of physical infrastructure and poor attention to social welfare. While slow, progress is made everyday in …

Coral Reef Tourism And Conservation In Bocas Del Toro: An Analysis Of Ecotourism And Its Tour Guide-Based Components, Rebecca Kayes

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Tourism of the coral reefs in Bocas del Toro is an important economic activity but also potentially harmful to the environment, creating an ecologically and economically unsustainable situation and doubts that the region engages in “ecotourism.” Coral reef tourism was analyzed with a specific emphasis on tours, tour guides, tourist motivations, tourist education and conservation-related activities. Research methods included participant observation in the tourism world in Bocas, interviews with guides, tourists and community members, and a tourist survey. Though local popular opinion disagrees, data collected shows tourism in Bocas does not emphasize reefs or reef conservation, a potentially catastrophic situation …

The Super Market: Examining The Bangladesh Market As A Model For Local Economic Development, Sally K. Smyth

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

No abstract provided.

The Role Of Malagasy Women In Community Development: Analyzing The Potential For The Creation Of A Women’S Association For Alternative Livelihoods In Ifaty, Amanda Fencl

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Integrated Conservation and development projects (ICDPs) have increased in number worldwide as conservation organizations have to come to terms with the importance of involving and addressing the needs of local human populations to order to achieve their conservation goals. Madagascar’s unique biodiversity, environmental degradation, and plaguing poverty has made ICDPs crucial in achieving national goals of tripling the area of natural heritage conserved and poverty reduction through socially, economically, and ecologically sustainable development. In order to understand how such sustainable development can be achieved, it is essential to spend time enhancing one’s understanding of the local mentality and worldview. On …

El Papel Del Café En La Economía De Nicaragua: Desafíos, Estrategias, Y El Futuro, Matt Shuman

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Este programa, SIT en Nicaragua, atrae a estudiantes que les interesan en (muy obviamente) revolución, transformación político, y la sociedad civil. Aunque, estos temas me interesan mucho, una gran parte del porque yo vine a Nicaragua fue para conocer en lo intimo las complejidades de una economía de un país en desarrollo. Un aspecto de muchos países en desarrollo es una economía basado en unos pocos productos de exportación. Algunas veces son: el oro, el algodón, o la gasolina, pero con frecuencia el café es el producto que da de comer a países con su moneda extranjero y mantiene sus …

The Political Economy Of Giving: Legitimacy, Welfare, And The Influence Of Foreign Ngos In China, Nathan Wallace

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Since the death of Mao and the rise of reformers in China, the world has eagerly awaited the results of changes sweeping through the developing nation. Deng Xiaoping and his successors have promised reform, which has come in the form of market liberalization. Now, after 20 years of reform, the Chinese people have seen a boom of economic prosperity. Their nation has joined the WTO and taken a central role in the world economy. Reform has also reduced political oversight of people’s daily lives and allowed the economy and society to exist in a less regulated environment. That being said, …