Sociology of Culture Commons^™

Tension And Contradiction In Agrarian Reform And Rural Reconstruction In Post-Monarch Nepal, Arjun Karki

South South Forum 南南論壇

Agrarian reform and land reform are usually understood synonymously as they are embedded with the unequal agrarian structure in Nepal. A widespread objective of agrarian reform is to promote social justice by equitable distribution of land and resources. Agrarian reform includes the restructuring of land tenure, the means of production, and the provision of support services to the farmers and rural inhabitants.

In Nepal land is the principle determinant for classifying people into distinct classes. Due to the various state-led land grants, unequal socio-economic relations and growing population density, little ‘free’ land is available these days (Karki, 2001). More than …

Peasant Movement To Constitute Life-Affirming Communities In Bangladesh = 孟加拉國重視生命的農民運動, Farhad Mazhar Muzharul Hug

South South Forum 南南論壇

Led by small scale farming communities of Bangladesh, biodiversity-based ecological agriculture, known as Nayakrishi Andolon (New Agricultural Movement), has become popular as a peasant movement. It is not a 'traditional' farming practice in a static sense but aims at enhancing capacity of the farming communities to absorb advances in environmental, ecological and biological sciences and recent knowledge of increasing climatic variability. It is done without compromising the life affirming wisdom of popular culture of rural Bangladesh and without displacing the historical experience and capacity of the agrarian civilisation. The movement envisions an ecological civilization and by its agrarian practice intends …

Aboriginal Andean Cosmic Vision And Rights Of Nature Challenges For "Good-Living" = 安第斯原住民的宇宙觀, 自然權及美好生活的挑戰, Victor Hugo Jijon

South South Forum 南南論壇

In the Andean countries of South America, the current political situation is determined by the need to find a new model of development, different and alternative to that imposed by neoliberal policies. This new situation includes the recognition by States of the cultural and ethnic diversity of population and, as an element of that, the need to guarantee specific rights to indigenous peoples effectively, with new public institutions and adequate resources, among the proposals that some authors call the new "multicultural constitutionalism".

This official recognition is a result of the struggles and demands of the indigenous movement, in their process …

Alternative Medical Care And Livelihood In Latin America = 拉丁美洲另類醫療與人民生計實踐, Aleida Guevara

South South Forum 南南論壇

No abstract provided.

Community Autonomy Of The Zapatistas = 墨西哥薩帕斯塔的社區自治, Jorge Santiago

South South Forum 南南論壇

No abstract provided.

Protecting The Body Of Mother Earth : Global Climate Justice Post Cochabamba Movement = 保護 "大地母親的身體" : 科城會議之後全球氣候正義運動, Ariel Salleh Prof.

South South Forum 南南論壇

No abstract provided.

Fukushima Nuclear Disaster And People's Battle Lines, Masaaki Ohashi

South South Forum 南南論壇

No abstract provided.

Decentralization And Local Participatory Development : Experiences From Cambodia And The Philippines = 去中心化與本土參與式發展 : 以柬埔寨與菲律賓為例, Maria Dolores Alicias

South South Forum 南南論壇

No abstract provided.

Participatory Approach In Rural Poverty-Alleviation And Women's Empowerment In Indonesia = 印度尼西亞參與式農村扶貧與婦女賦權計劃, Mayling Oey-Gardiner

South South Forum 南南論壇

Indonesian Society – In spite of the general observation that women in Indonesia remain subordinate to men in the public domain, due to development efforts promoting participatory approaches and women’s empowerment in Indonesia’s democratizing society there have been some notable success stories of women-led economic activities and of women reaching high positions in their communities and the wider society as well. Here, one result of the Asian financial-turned economic crisis which started in Indonesia in mid-1997 was a period of severe socio-economic-political turmoil (a situation known locally as kristal for total crisis) leading to a revitalized democratic movement, giving greater …

Solidarity Economy And Alternative Currency In Latin America = 中美洲互助經濟與另類貨幣, Maria Eugenia Santana

South South Forum 南南論壇

From the very beginning of the millennium the call of the World Social Forum has gathered each year thousands of social organizations and movements of all kinds imaginable under the motto “Another world is possible!”. This way tens of thousands civil organizations gather in search of alternatives to the current world, to the current system, to the current way of life.

This need of Another World –better yet: of Other Worlds- is the certainty of the depletion of the hegemonic neoliberal system: if more than half of the world population is suffering of hunger and sickness this is due to …

The Global Crisis As A Global Opportunity : The Barcelona Consensus Process = 全球危機作為全球機會 : 巴塞羅那共識, Marti Olivella

South South Forum 南南論壇

The global crisis demands global answers; answers that cannot come from those who provoked, accepted or took advantage of its causes.

The world architecture built upon the ashes of the World War II is collapsing. The great foundations that granted America its hegemony, shared in part with all the other winners, 64 years later can no longer answer the necessities of a world undergoing deep transformations of various kinds. Neither Bretton Woods (America's pillar in the economic-financial network in the IMF and the WB) nor the UN (political pillar in the Security Council) or the atom bomb(military pillar), which sealed …

Grassroots Democracy And Non-State Approaches Toward Popular Empowerment And Rural Sustainbility In The Philippines = 菲律賓的草根民主實戰, Eduardo Tadem

South South Forum 南南論壇

Grassroots democracy is often equated with “popular participation” and is seen as both a goal and a method of change. As Kaufman (1997: 7) puts it:

As a goal, popular participation refers to a society where there no longer exists a monopoly of the means of political, economic, cultural, and social power in the hands of a particular class, sex, social stratum, or bureaucratic elite. As a method of change, participation is a means to develop the voice and organizational capacity of those previously excluded; it is a means for the majority of the population to identify and express their …

African Economy And Land Policy, Ebrima Sall

South South Forum 南南論壇

Thandika Mkandawire reminded us during the 13th CODESRIA GA that land and the agrarian question were present in some way in all the nationalist movements, and liberation struggles the Mau Mau in Kenya, the FLN’s struggles in Algeria, the PAIGC in Guinea Bissau, other struggles in Zimbabwe, South Africa, etc. We know that apartheid South Africa was the story of dispossession—(Pheko)—the reverse
movement in South Africa—re-distribution—is extremely slow.

So, land has been a very strategic issue, and it is still a very strategic issue.

There is currently what some have called a “grain rush”, as “wealthy, foodimporting countries and private …

The Impacts Of Neo-Liberal Policy On Indian Peasantry = 非洲經濟及土地政策, Arindam Banerjee

South South Forum 南南論壇

The sustainability of small-scale cultivation, which largely characterizes Indian agriculture, though not in a homogeneous or undifferentiated manner, has been one of the important casualties of the trajectory of neo-liberal policies into which the country embarked upon in the early nineties. Driven by fiscal fundamentalism, this amounted to a veritable withdrawal of the state from economic operations, more so from agriculture. A host of policies adopted like the rationalization of input subsidies, downsizing of incentive pricing, decline in public investments, shrinking public extension services and contraction of institutional credit availability in rural areas all precipitated a widespread agrarian crisis with …

The Limits Of Agrarian Reform In Brazil = 巴西土地改革的局限, Rogério Faleiros, Rogério Naques Faleiros, Neide César Vargas

South South Forum 南南論壇

Brazil is probably the only country that experienced a deep and complex process of growth and promote economic development without substantial change on the issue of land ownership. Since the Portuguese colonization, through the Land Act of 1850 and throughout the process of industrialization experienced in the twentieth century and still in progress, the land question remained almost unchanged, despite the advances resulting from the growing social and economic contradictions and the related violence observed in the field. Western Europe and countries like the United States (Homestead Act of 1862), China (the Great Leap Forward of 1959) and USSR (after …

Challenge Of Inclusive Growth : Global Capitalization : Institutional Cost Transferring And The Economic Of Being Poor = 包容性增長的挑戰: 全球資本化: 制度成本轉嫁與貧困經濟學, Tiejun Wen

South South Forum 南南論壇

My empirical research started with China’s experiment of rural reform during the 1980s-90s. According to the principle of experiment, only through a process of incessant falsification can we approach the truth. In the process my preliminary conclusion was the theory of institutional costs. However in later comparative studies on different countries, I found that institutional cost was not my innovation. Instead my theoretical innovation should be the discovery that the vested interest groups which appropriate the returns of an institutional transition constantly transfer the institutional costs to disadvantaged groups located at a less privileged position in the institutional structure. Therefore …

A Foreigner’S Gaze On The Micro-Culture Of The Car-Rapide—Senegalese Values Vs. Monetary Lust, Merrill Pierce

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The vibrant, chaotic, and interactive Car Rapide, a poignant micro-culture in Dakar, is a visually communicative entity and social space in Senegal’s transportation system. From an outsider’s gaze, this project addresses the history, artistic and religious significance, inner-workings of the system of employees, and present day implications of the car-rapide. The car-rapide emerges as the embodiment of both valuable and challenging aspects of Senegalese culture.

A Berber In Agadir: Exploring The Urban/Rural Shift In Amazigh Identity, Thiago Lima

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The Arab Spring has seen North African and Middle Eastern youth organizing against the status quo and challenging what they perceive as political, economic, and social injustices. In Morocco, while the Arab Spring may not have been as substantial as in neighboring countries, demonstrations are still occurring nearly everyday in major cities like Rabat as individuals protest issues including government transparency, high unemployment, and, for specific interest of this paper, the marginalization of the Amazigh people. The Amazigh, also popularly referred to as Berbers in most Western academia and literature, are regarded as the original inhabitants of Morocco and the …

Democratic Nationalistic Privilege And The Exclusion Of Europe's "Gypsy", Eli E. Roth

Senior Honors Projects

Europe is the world’s best example of a group of countries offering similar levels of political freedom, tolerance, and economic prosperity and security. Following the fall of Communism, Europe began to outpace the rest of the planet on aggregated indicators of development, and, according to Freedomhouse.org, only two of the world’s forty seven “not free” countries, Belarus and Russia, can be found on this continent. The Roma, frequently mislabeled as “Gypsies,” are among the few troubled populations residing in Europe. In the comprehensive 2006 Final Report on the Human Rights Situation of the Roma in Europe, one Romani man describes …

Ka’Aba Under Communism: Muslim, Regional, And Clan Identity In Soviet Literature Of The Caucasus And Central Asia, Kate Pickering '11

Honor Scholar Theses

No abstract provided.

Cultural Tourism Products: A Case Study In The Xi’An City, Yining Zhang

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Nowadays, culture has been a major driver of tourism. Cultural tourism is another form of tourism by involving cultural elements. Some people traveled specifically to gain a deeper understanding of the culture or heritage of a destination. In order to satisfy tourists’ cultural needs and wants, cultural tourism products typically attracts consumers by the cultural attributes. A cultural attest is not a cultural tourism product unless it transforms itself into products that could be consumed by tourists. The market value of cultural tourism can be realized by cultural tourism products. This paper is to explore the development and evaluation of …

El Papel De La Raza En Latinoamérica, Grant Louis Olaf Siracusa

World Languages and Cultures

My project aims to address the ideas, perceptions, and roles of race in Latin America.  Latin America is a vast and diverse region that is often misunderstood by those unfamiliar with the culture.  By researching the notions of race in this particular region, I aim to provide a clearer understanding on the various topics that stem from race, including racism, discrimination, racial whitening, and racial transformation.

First, I intend on examining the origins and implications of race, relating these topics to the Spanish Conquests.  I will then identify and discuss the predominant races found within the region, giving a brief …

Body Politics Within The Body Politic: Ghanaian Disabled Communities And Their Relationships To Power, Conner Chivone Spinks

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

I chose as my research topic disabled communities within Ghana and their relationships with different sources of power in Ghanaian society. To begin my analysis, I deconstructed the „disabled body‟ and established disability as an axis of identity that has bearing on social positioning. I explored the power dynamics that dictate the lives of minorities, particularly the lives of those with non-normative bodies. Using my interviews of disabled Ghanaians and my observations of disabled Ghanaians in public spaces, I analyzed how systems are felt in everyday life.

The Evolution Of Javanese Kingship, Ganda Upaya

Masyarakat: Jurnal Sosiologi

No abstract provided.

Ketahanan Toleransi Orang Jawa: Studi Tentang Yogyakarta Kontemporer, Zaenal Abidin Eko Putro

Masyarakat: Jurnal Sosiologi

This paper aims to elaborate the tolerance discourse in Yogyakarta through restricted research pertaining that issue within the society of Yogyakarta. Since the beginning, the society of Yogyakarta has been practiced brotherhood, fraternity and tolerance in many ways. In early 1990s, however, some Islamist group has been growing at the city in which a number of Islamic schools and hospitals were built in some area in Yogyakarta. Religious mass organizations that have existed previously, for instance Muhammadiyah, in some cases, distressed by Islamist group movements. The organizations seem to be victimized by the militants and they were vulnerable from recent …

Tradisi, Ekonomi-Politik, Dan Toleransi Yogyakarta, Diatyka Widya

Masyarakat: Jurnal Sosiologi

This article aims to illustrate that cultural reproduction is always in the interplay with politic and economic system within societal structure. Therefore, the effort to understand the meaning of cultural symbol has to be accompanied by the attempt to explore the political and economic interests that shape the cultural practices. The Yogyakarta people undoubtedly perceive religion practices as more than cultural practices. The article will demonstrate that dispute in religious matters have never become the main trigger of conflict between religious groups. In most cases, the tension is driven by the clash of political and economic interests between the dominant …

Redefining Nairobi's Streets: Study Of Slang, Marginalization, And Identity, Mungai Mutonya

Journal of Global Initiatives: Policy, Pedagogy, Perspective

This study attempts an analysis of a restructured Swahili variety spoken by Nairobi's street community: Kinoki. Adapting tools of sociolinguistic inquiry and focusing on Kinoki's divergence from the dominant urban slang, Sheng, the study discusses attitudes toward divergent terms referencing the street community, street activities, and law enforcement officials. Results indicate that street children, unlike their school-going peers living in the city's low-income neighborhoods, redefine pejoratives that devalue and stigmatize street people and their lifestyle. Instead, Kinoki empowers the marginalized community to construct a positive identity, to ameliorate representations of street lifestyle, and to redefine neologisms that reference in-group ( …

Globalization And The Unending Frontier: An Overview, Olutayo C. Adesina

Journal of Global Initiatives: Policy, Pedagogy, Perspective

The decisive events and the determining forces unleashed by globalization hold on the one hand, the potential for expanding the scope of political, social and economic processes, and on the other, erode people's connection to the way they live, the people they live with and the places they live in. They also intensify alienation and disengagement. The essays, themes, arguments and macro-level analysis in this volume try to make sense of the dynamics of globalization. They survey the potentials of the phenomenon and forces of globalization, and the capacity of these highly disruptive and contentious change processes to direct, affect …

Diaspora In Global Development: First Generation Immigrants From Kenya, Transnational Ties, And Emerging Alternatives, Maria M. Kioko

Journal of Global Initiatives: Policy, Pedagogy, Perspective

Transnational ties form an important aspect of immigrants' experiences. Using ethnographic accounts of 38 first generation immigrants from Kenya this study analyzed (a) why and how participants maintain ties, (b) characteristics of the ties, and (c) the degree to which ties influence immigrants' experiences. Findings revealed that participants connected to Kenya through social, economic, and political transnational practices. Ties took on a U-shaped curve with the highest intensity at points of arrival and after extended stay in the United States. While participants had moved spatially, their values and attitudes remained static resulting in "particularistic" development efforts. This demonstrated how ethnicity, …

The Emerging National Culture Of Kenya: Decolonizing Modernity, Olubayi Olubayi

Journal of Global Initiatives: Policy, Pedagogy, Perspective

Kenya exists as a legitimate nation state that is recognized by the United Nations and by other countries. This paper is an exploration of, and a response to, the following two questions: "Is there a national culture of Kenya?" and "what is the relationship between the national culture of Kenya and the 50 ethnic cultures of Kenya?" The evidence indicates that a distinct national culture of Kenya has emerged and continues to grow stronger as it simultaneously borrows from, reorganizes, and lends to, the 50 ancient ethnic cultures of Kenya. The emerging national culture of Kenya has several strong dimensions …