Place and Environment Commons^™

Agrarian Reform In Sumber Klampok, Emma Trainor

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Agrarian reform in Indonesia is part of a movement beginning after independence was gained in 1945. Farmers have been fighting to obtain rights to their land from a government that has a history of violence, repression, and corruption for decades. Environmental, indigenous peoples’, peasant, and agrarian movements were given a legitimate, legal framework to work within after 1960 when the Basic Agrarian Law was passed, protecting the rights of the people to their land. However, during both the Old Order and especially New Order regimes, the law was often ignored by the government, and many grassroots organizations had to work …

Conservation As Mutualism: A Case Study Of Thulo Syafru, Jennifer S. Brady

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study examined the opinions, perceptions, and knowledge of residents of Thulo Syafru, a small village in the buffer zone of Langtang National Park, Nepal, regarding conservation efforts spearheaded by the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation and the World Wide Fund for Nature. 26 community members were interviewed along with key figures in community leadership and the two aforementioned organizations. Thulo Syafru is an essential location for red panda conservation, leading to many conservation efforts being focused in the area. Overall, people expressed very positive opinions regarding red pandas and their protection, positive attitudes about conservation, and appreciation …

Water Resource Change And Management: Implications Of Climate Change And Water Resource Management For Pastoral Herders In Bayan Ulgii, Rachel Ryan

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Mongolia is the 8th most vulnerable country in the world to climate change. The water regime of Mongolia is therefore experiencing intensive change with significant effects in the availability, distribution, and security of water resources. The implications of this change are exacerbated when aligned with poor water resource management, an issue that is prevalent as water regime change challenges current water management systems. These implications specifically affect the vulnerable rural population of Mongolian herders who maintain the practice of nomadic pastoralism. In the western province of Bayan Ulgii, the change in the numerous glaciers and other water resources that are …

Welcome To The Streets: Tracing The Development Of Street Art In Nepal Since 2010, Malik Earle

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Graffiti is a process. There really is no beginning or ending to a piece. Graffiti art is practicing a design, bringing it to a wall, letting it take shape, and allowing it to interact with the environment. What makes graffiti unique, among other things, is its interaction with the environment. When international graffiti influences and local conditions drove inspired artists to bring their art to the streets, a new art form emerged in Nepal. “Local conditions” labels the forces ranging from personal drive to the history of public art in Nepal, which fuel the movement. The present study aims at …

Relocation, Resistance And Resilience: Squatter Community Responses To Government Intervention For Urban Development In Kathmandu, Reilly Brooks

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

“Squatting,” or residing on public land illegally, is a modern urban phenomenon in developing countries. This phenomenon is attributed to rapid urbanization due to rural-to-urban migration, which leads to rising costs of living, exclusionary housing markets, a lack of affordable housing and urban inequality. Ultimately, unplanned urban growth encourages the formation and expansion of squatter settlements. These settlements are commonly characterized as slum due to the impoverished living conditions, highly congested spaces and lack of public services (water, sanitation, education, etc.) Without land certificates, squatters are denied their right to adequate housing and land security, which should be protected by …

Continuing Efforts To Alleviate "Orange Pain" An Internship With The Da Nang Association Of Victims Of Agent Orange/Dioxin, Loan Heilner

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This year marked the 55th anniversary of Vietnam’s Agent Orange Disaster. Decades after the end of the war, Vietnamese people are still largely being affected by the remnants of the United States’ Agent Orange herbicide sprays. Dioxin chemical has now been confirmed detrimental to human and environmental well-being, but unfortunately it still remains in high concentrations in certain areas of Vietnam. Dioxin chemical is passed on through genetics to new generations, but one of the leading causes of dioxin-related health defects today are due to environmental residue. In Da Nang, Agent Orange was stored and loaded at the local airbase …

When The Hunt Is Over: Culture And Conservation In Kazakh Eagle Falconry, Nolan R. Ebner

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The last large scale practice of falconry that uses Golden Eagles takes place in Bayan- Ulgii, Mongolia. Recent media exposure allowed for the development of a tourism industry in the region that culminates in two annual festivals celebrating the cultural heritage. Modern eagle falconry practices have been shown to deviate from traditional hunting and training methods. While Golden Eagles are listed with a regional conservation status of Least Concern by the Mongolian Red List, these new practices place the health of Golden Eagle populations in the region at risk, especially as tourism continues to grow. Furthermore, a changing environmental climate …

Escaping The Concrete Jungle: An Exploration Of Ecotourism Development In Dzongu, North Sikkim, Katrina Kniss

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The state of Sikkim in northeastern India is a place imbued with a sense of mystery. It is partially this spirit, as well as its pristine Himalayan landscapes and vibrant cultural diversity, that has established Sikkim as a major tourist destination in the region. In the Northern district of the state, the Dzongu reserve is inhabited by the indigenous Lepcha group, who hold the status of “Most Primitive Tribe”. Over the past decade, however, this primitive tribe has shown their strength in staging large-scale protests and hunger strikes in a movement against mega-hydropower development along the Teesta River. Employing their …

Working With Locals To Restore Biodiversity To A Rubber Dominated Landscape, Francis Commercon

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Xishuangbanna, in Yunnan,China, contains the country’s highest concentration of biodiversity. Since the 1980s,rubber plantations have replaced a significant portion of the prefecture’s lowland Seasonal Tropical Rainforest, leading to wildlife habitat loss and other environmental issues.Monoculture farming practices also leave farmers economically vulnerable to market fluctuations. To learn the best solutions for increasing ecosystem services and income stability in rubber-dominated areas, the World Agroforestry Center (ICRAF) project Green Rubber engages smallholders directly in establishing and maintaining scientifically rigorous intercropping experiments in their villages.

Using Man’e village and the Green Rubber project as a case study, I asked to what degree and …

Magnetic Island Marine Park Zones: Effects Of Fishing Restrictions On Predatory Reef Fish Populations, Casey Wilson

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Over the past several decades industrialized fishing practices have decimated fish stocks worldwide. Top-down trophic cascades have occurred within many marine ecosystems as top predators are removed. Numerous regions world wide are being designated as marine park “no-take” zones in order to aid in the recovery of these species and with the hope that surplus population will spillover into unprotected zones..

This study aimed to determine if there were significant differences in abundances of three major families of predatory reef fish (Serranidae, Lutjanidae, and Lethrinidae) between fringing reefs located in four bays of various zones around Magnetic Island, QLD. Data …

Non-Compliance In Marine Reserves: Measuring The Drivers Of Behavior Among Recreational Fishermen Within The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, Nick Manning

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park (GBRMP) provides outstanding ecological, cultural, social, and economic services to the number of communities that use it. Most of the park is regulated via a zoning system designed to protect its biodiversity and ensure the sustainable use of its resources (GBRMPA, 2004). Like any social institution, zoning regulations rely heavily on compliance in order to be effective. Recreational fishing on the GBRMP accounts for most of the noncompliance behavior associated with zoning (Arias and Sutton, 2013). Thus, understanding fishers compliance behavior is central to understanding how to best manage these areas. Using results from …

Herbs, Home Medicine, And Self-Reliance: A Study On The Current Status Of Traditional Home Medicine In Idukki District, Kerala, Richard Gaunt

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Home medical knowledge, or knowledge of how one’s surroundings can be used to maintain and restore health, can be an important tool for health self-sufficiency in rural places as well as for the ecological conservation of important plants and natural materials. The Indian state of Kerala has a rich heritage of traditional medicine, found in the historically inter-related forms of codified Ayurveda and folk knowledge. In Idukki district, a region of Kerala nestled in the hills of the Western Ghats, rural households engage in small-scale home-gardening and agroforestry, which in addition to providing nutritionally diverse food is a source of …

Existential Avalanche The Lived Experience Of Climate Change In Dolpo And Mustang, Nepal, Keegan Mcchesney

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Himalayan communities stand precariously in an era of phenomenological uncertainty. Climate change is merely a lens through which we may observe and begin to understand such localized modern complexities. The people of the Tarap Valley in Dolpo, Nepal have experienced an increase in avalanches, snow leopard attacks and unpredictable precipitation patterns in recent years. In upper Mustang, Nepal, people have endured the harshest winter in generations and suffered from reduced water access. Environmental, climatic and weather related changes in both Himalayan districts have severely impacted traditional livelihoods and led some to adopt modern means of adaptation. Despite the scientific evidence …

The Curious Case Of Solu Khumbu: A Study Of The Effects Of Tourism In The Town Of Junbesi, Hannah Cho

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Before 1953, the year that Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay summited Everest, almost all Sherpas were subsistence farmers, traders, and herders. But ever since the 1980’s, Sherpas have taken over the trekking industry in this region. The increase of tourism and the monopolization of this industry have altered the livelihoods of Sherpas in Solu Khumbu. However, most tourism related research on Solu Khumbu has been done primarily on upper Khumbu, which has been affected by tourism drastically differently than Solu. I will be doing a case study of how the changes in tourism have affected Junbesi, a popular agriculture based …

Urban Gardening Practices In Bangalore: Towards A More Localized Food System?, Delfina Grinspan

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Localized Food Systems (LFS) have garnered much attention in recent years among civil society, research, and policy circles, among others. Increased attention and efforts to build more localized food systems are principally motivated by the awareness of the pressures exerted by increasing urbanization on food security and access, and concern for the ecological and social costs of the dominant globalized food system. In their varying purpose to address these two issues, LFS tend to be characterized by certain patterns of (localized) land, water, and other resource use; by direct marketing and distribution arrangements; and by the presence of extensive linkages …

The Lucrative Business Of Children: A Study Of Child Trafficking In Nepalese Orphanages, Mira Saxe-Smith

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The purpose of this research paper is to shed light on and explore the detrimental effects orphanage volunteer tourism has on communities in Nepal, especially the orphans themselves and their families who become subject to different degrees of manipulation, deceit and abuse due to the industry. This study will also delve into the Nepal Civil War’s effect on orphan trafficking in Nepal, the effects of institutionalization, media and campaigns launched against voluntourism, and other related topics. The paper particularly focuses on orphanage voluntourism in the tourist heavy and capital of Nepal, Kathmandu.

The information in this report was attained through …

Mind Within The Body The Presence And Importance Of Mental Health Within Traditional Tibetan Medicine, Reta Flynt

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The purpose of this Independent Study Project was to identify aspects of mental health within the traditional Tibetan medical system that are both taught in the classroom and carried out in clinical practice, with a primary focus on the importance of maintaining mental health. Throughout the research process, aspects of illness etiology, diagnosis, treatment processes, and influence from Tibetan Buddhism were found to be deeply connected in maintaining mental health within patients of Traditional Tibetan medicine. As well, much emphasis was found on the mind's influence on the physical wellbeing of an individual, suggesting that mental and physical health are …

Western Farmers’ Markets In Kathmandu: Vendor Perspectives, Caroline Saunders

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study seeks to understand Western farmers’ markets (FMs) in Kathmandu by understanding vendors’ motivations for attending FMs; and further, their perspectives on the purpose and potential for expansion of FMs in Kathmandu’s food economy. In the US and Europe, FMs are often seen in the literature as a component of a social movement (SM) called the ‘alternative food movement’ (AFM) concerned with environmental sustainability and social justice within the processes of food production and consumption (Isenhour 2012). FMs, a type of direct market that offer face-to-face interaction between producers and consumers, are a site for the transmission of values …

Identity, Movement And Belonging In A Land Of Tradition: A Critical Examination Of The Nepali Workforce In Leh, Ladakh, Teresa Langseth-Depaolis

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In recent years, Nepal has emerged at the forefront of the international labor market with a growing and continuous out-flow of migrant laborers. Such migratory patterns have landed people from Nepal in jobs all over the world; from power plants in Dubai to coffee shops in Toronto. This study situates the phenomenon of Nepali migrant labor in the rapidly urbanizing capital of Leh, Ladakh, and examines the experiences of identity and complexities of belonging within the transnational system of migration.

I was prompted to conduct research in Leh after having heard from a local man that there was a small …

Placeness: Mongolia A Call For The Creation Of A Human Impact Assessment, C. Winston Kies

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Sense of place, place-­‐based identities, and “placeness” are fundamental ways through which human beings understand their physical place in the world. The means by which most Mongolians—and indeed most human beings—strive for placeness is fairly simple. First, one decides what location will become their place. Their place may be predetermined (i.e. a birthplace) or chosen (based on the wildlife, the scenery, the neighborhood, etc.). Once one has a place, sense of place necessarily follows. One’s place becomes the standard by which locations are understood, and by which one understands oneself. The latter process constitutes the formation of place-­‐based identities, which …

The Himalayan Gold Rush The Untold Consequences Of Yartsa Gunbu In The Tarap Valley, Noah Stone

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Despite the fact that it has been used in tradition medicine for centuries, the caterpillar fungus known as yartsa gunbu (Othiocordyceps sinensis), has only become a popular medical supplement in the last fifteen years. Demand in China has driven what has been dubbed ‘the Himalayan gold rush’, a scramble for the fungus that has utterly transformed the agro-pastoral economies of the remote Himalayan regions where cordyceps is found. In many cases, the locals have prospered economically from the commodification of yartsa gunbu. In one such region of Nepal, the Tarap valley of the Dolpa district, while the villagers have benefitted …

The Power Of Peace: A Reflection On The Shifting Methods, Strategies, And Philosophies Of Peaceful Protest Within Dharamsala’S Community Of Activists Post-2008, Christian Bormann Paris

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In the words of Chinese military philosopher, Sun Tzu, “The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting.”1 Since the renewal of the Tibetan socio-political movement within Tibet during 2008 and its eventual subdual by Chinese security forces, the community of activists operating outside of Tibet are now faced with the challenge of invigorating a refugee population stricken with complacency to join their brothers and sister up north. However, the community must accomplish this utilizing the tools of peace rather than the weapons of war and oppression. This document will serve as a reflection on the current …

Meditating On Mountain Bikes, Sam Bowen

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

For a long time, Nepal has been an exotic destination for adventurers and spiritual wanderers. Geographically, there are no comparisons. “The country is vertical,” said Jagan Biswarka as he pointed across Phewa Lake to the snow-capped mountains. “You can see the 8000 meter from 800 meter. This will be one of the best playgrounds in the world. Nowhere in Nepal. Nowhere in the world.” Mads Mathiasen, a Danish expatriate agrees. “I think very few people realizes how big a contrast there is in Nepal from seventy-one meters above sea level – the lowest place in Nepal – to eight-thousand eight-hundred …

The Role Of Productive Uses Of Electricity In Rural Development: A Case Study Of XẻO Trâm And HòA ĐứC Hamlets Of HòA An Village, Vietnam, Gabrielle Short

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Vietnam’s economy has grown extensively over the past twenty years; however, 68% of the population still lives in rural areas. The government of Vietnam has taken huge steps in the growth of rural infrastructure, specifically electricity. According to the World Bank 95% of the rural population had access to electricity as of 2010. This paper discusses how this electricity is being used in rural areas and whether the uses are aiding in the national growth of Vietnam. Productive uses, those which result in production of income, or value, are compared with solely economic uses. A case study comprised of surveys, …

Exploring The Preservation Of Pastoralism And The Natural World In Western Mongolia , Josephine Brownell

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

At a time when Mongolia is experiencing the intense effects of land degradation, human activity, and climate change, it is crucial that a new land management framework is developed with conservation in mind. Pastoralism’s unique relationship with the land serves as a method of protecting the natural world for the future. This study focuses on a pastoral community in Western Mongolia while considering a main research question: Is a herder’s historically deep connection with the land enough to protect the modern pastoral lifestyle in Mongolia for years to come? In answering this question, a review of related previous studies on …

Livelihood Strategies Of People In The Himalayan Region Of Nepal: A Study In The Villages Of Eastern Manang, Prashanta Chhetri

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This is a study on the changing livelihood strategies of people in Manang -a district that lies on the northern side of Annapurna Himals. I have focused my study on the villages in the eastern part of lower Manang. Primarily, my study has been done in these villages: Besisahar, Khotro, Nachai, Tachai, Tilche, Dharapani, Yak Kharka, Surki Khola and Bhimthang. As defined locally, these villages fall under the region of Nyishang and Gyasumdo in the Manang district. In this paper I talk about the shifts made by the people in their livestock keeping/raising from yaks to dzhopas to mules, depending …

Limits To Literacy: The Perceived Relationship Between Functional Literacy And Political Empowerment Amongst The Forest-Dwelling Van Gujjars, Nicola Soekoe

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The failure of countrywide basic literacy campaigns to enhance social mobility has led to the promotion and development of localized, comprehensive functional literacy campaigns. These campaigns are particularly applicable to marginalized groups; as they aim to empower communities by providing them with the necessary skills to navigate their socioeconomic and political environments. This qualitative study examines the long-term impact of one such functional literacy campaign on the semi-nomadic pastoral Van Gujjar community. I use the Assets, Opportunity Structure, and Degrees of Empowerment (DOE) method to investigate community members’ perceptions of the level of political empowerment that followed their participation in …

Nationalism And Painting In Colonial Bengal, Jasmin Cohen

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

What began as a general inquiry into the nature of nationalism in the paintings of “the Bengal School” turned into a project focused on tracing the pulse of nationalism between two distinct yet related groups in Bengal roughly between the years 1895 and 1920. The bulk of this paper deals with existing scholarship on the painter Abanindranath Tagore, whose name is most often mentioned in the discourse regarding nationalism and painting in Bengal; in addressing this scholarship, I deliver a critical analysis on the relationship between Abanindranath, his paintings, and the idea of nationalism. I then follow that discussion with …

Vietnam To Việt Kiều And Back: An In‐Depth Look At The Relationship Between Overseas Vietnamese And Vietnamese In Ho Chi Minh City, Minh Le

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This independent study project explores the relationship between overseas Vietnamese and local Vietnamese in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC). The primary research methods included surveys, interviews, an experiment, and personal observations. The survey provided general knowledge on what Vietnamese people in HCMC thought about overseas Vietnamese. This survey was given to 200 participants in various locations in District 1, Thu Duc District, and District 9. The interviewees included university students, war veterans, Vietnamese with relatives in a foreign country, Vietnamese who tried leaving but could not, and overseas Vietnamese. The experiment was to see vendors’ treatment of overseas Vietnamese. It …

Nomadic Knowledge Of The Yak: A Case Study In The Khangai Mountains, Mongolia, Jesse Geary

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

It is extremely important to probe and preserve the knowledge of nomadic herders of Mongolia. There is no formal piece of literature that dictates how these clever humans survive. Their lifestyle requires a vast skill set spanning from construction knowledge, to navigational skills, to a deep understanding of their animals. One attains this knowledge through years of observation, listening, and attempting to mimic their parents. In this way, knowledge is passed on from one generation to the next. Investigating herder’s knowledge of the yak provides a window into the animal husbandry practices of Mongolian nomads. The herders in the central …