Beyond the Biophysical doc

[...]... means to sketch the scope of these themes in the wider literature and to provide an introduction to key theories for those biophysical 1 Agriculture, Natural Resource Management, and “Development” 3 scientists and nonspecialists who have welcomed the opportunity to learn more about how factors that lie beyond the biophysical shape their practice Following an introduction to these theoretical underpinnings,... criteria, successful projects have been the exception rather than the rule” (1981, p 16–17) The reasons for these failures are many and sometimes lie far beyond the scope of scientists and practitioners Indeed, the most important political effects of a planned intervention may occur unconsciously, behind the backs or against the wills of ‘planners’ who may seem to be running the show” (Ferguson 1994, p 20,... brings all of these together It is worth emphasizing that everyone who “manages” or engages with natural resources does so on the basis of their own particular understanding of those resources and their rights or abilities to use or shape them This is true whether that person be the woman hoeing her western Kenyan farm or gathering fuelwood in Nepal, the owner of a fleet of fishing boats, the district... to the different sections of the book and to the unique contributions made by individual chapters Theoretical Considerations: The Critical Nexus of Knowledge, Culture, and Power in Development Knowledge The starting point for any “management” of natural resources is knowledge itself: the identification of problems and patterns, an understanding of processes and their outcomes, and the framework of theories,... some of the issues and challenges it raised Having travelled such a long way from its roots, the volume therefore also reflects the collaborative efforts, support, and learning of many people and institutions The editors in particular want to acknowledge the institutional and intellectual support of their current and previous institutions for this project: the World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF) and the. .. Initiative (AHI), the Tropical Soil Biology and Fertility Institute (TSBF-CIAT) and the International Centre for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), the Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies at the University of the Western Cape, the Centre for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), Out of the Box Research and Action, the School of Global Studies and Department of Anthropology at the University... (and their very real implications for women and men in the global South), highlighting the challenges and “mis-adventures” associated with past and current development approaches and practices It also presents strands of theory that can help to make sense of these realities, and provides concrete recommendations for moving beyond them The volume’s case studies, introduced in this chapter, demonstrate the. .. and necessity of reaching out beyond the borders of anthropological and social scientific disciplines in ways that are meaningful and valuable to others The case studies also articulate the challenges faced by sociocultural scientists working in arenas dominated by other disciplines The chapter argues for the importance of rigorous social science, and for understanding the dynamics of knowledge, culture,... We would argue that ultimately it is more useful to move beyond these terms and the dichotomies they imply and to consider instead the practices and the products of given knowledges (Agrawal 1995; Antweiler 1998; Purcell 1998; Chapter 5) As the case studies in this volume show, knowledge is intimately associated with the positions of power of the people who know it (Chapter 12) Indeed, “local” knowledge... whom This symbolic force combines with the political and economic power of dominant groups to create and maintain the “naturalness” of a prevailing order (Hayward 2004; Chapter 8) If biophysical science, therefore, has difficulty addressing or incorporating the products of “local” knowledges, these knowledges and the women and men who hold them are excluded from the scientific discourse of NRM and from . Management, and “Development” Beyond the Biophysical 1 Laura German, Ritu Verma, and Joshua J. Ramisch Part I Beyond Biophysical Assumptions 2 Beyond the Invisible: Finding the Social Relevance of. dialogue within the more established fields. With reference to the biophysical, this volume explores some fun- damental themes in the dialogue – e.g. how to promote awareness of the political. invited to move Beyond the Biophysical through analytical fine-tuning, but they are also encouraged to become more responsible in their social and ecological interactions. The volume’s recommendations