Torben Birch-Thomsen

A Livelihood Perspective on Natural Resource Management and Environmental Change in Semiarid Tanzania

Abstract The aim of this paper is to explore how social relations influence land use and natural resource management at the local level. Through empirical analysis that tracks changes in land use and environment over 40 years, we present evidence of a process of agrarianization based on commercialization of crops and expansion of cultivated land. With the concept of livelihood strategies as an analytical framework, subcommunity processes are analyzed for their impact on intensification and degradation. Accumulating strategies are linked to expansion, commercial crop production, and selective intensification through high-value inputs, while at the other end of the scale, peasant-labor households endure exhausted or marginal potential land resources combined with lack of flexibility in input consumption. The article shows how degradation and intensification occur simultaneously and how incomes may increase even during processes of land degradation. We argue that a livelihood approach can be useful in uncovering and explaining these processes.

Transitional rural landscapes: The role of small-scale commercial farming in former homelands of Post-Apartheid KwaZulu-Natal

Abstract Geografisk Tidsskrift, Danish Journal of Geography 106(2): 87–102, 2006 The paper presents trends in past and present land use patterns in parts of a former homeland of KwaZulu-Natal, and discusses the changing role of farming. It suggests that an understanding of the transition in rural land must take into account the impact of rural-urban relations and the Colonial and Apartheid socio-spatial policies. A sequence of map data is analysed and compared with interviews with residents of the studied area and official data concerning actual and prospected development. The data demonstrate how population pressures and changing sources of income during the Apartheid period have resulted in a land use system dominated by home gardens and some attempts to develop small-scale commercial farming, while traditional subsistence farming has gradually decreased. On this background the prospects for small-scale commercial farming are discussed. It is argued that at least four aspects may explain why commercial farming is still marginal: the troubled land allocation system, the continued dependency on cash income for successful farming, the institutional obstacles to farmers from the homeland who wish to develop market relations, and the changing territorial logics that have characterized demarcation and land use in the post-Apartheid period.

The role of credit facilities and investment practices in rural Tanzania: a comparative study of Igowole and Ilula emerging urban centres

Small urban settlements or small towns in rural areas represent the fastest urban growth in most of the African continent. Along with a renewed political interest in African agriculture, the role of urban settlements has gained a prominent position in poverty reduction in rural areas and as an alternative to out-migration. Based on data collected between 2010 and 2012 covering more than 60 business operators in two emerging urban centres (EUCs) and their rural hinterlands, the article explores development trajectories in two EUCs in Tanzania, both of which have experienced rapid population growth and attracted new investments in business by both migrants and the indigenous population in an effort to exploit new opportunities in the centres. The initial urbanization has not been driven by the state or by new institutional interventions such as microfinance but rather by ‘the market’. This paper argues that microfinance plays a role in facilitating possibilities for some businesses to sustain, expand or diversify their businesses once the business is well-established in the EUCs. Migrants play a pivotal role for the early development and later diversification of business activities within both EUCs. They have been attracted by new investment opportunities and bring capital and knowledge from previous experiences with economic activities.

PROBLEM-BASED, INTERDISCIPLINARY FIELD-BASED COURSES: REFLECTIONS FROM SOUTH AFRICAN EXPERIENCES

ABSTRACT Student field courses at Universities are increasingly incorporating problem-based interdisciplinary approaches to enhance learning opportunities. This paper reports upon seven field-based, problem-oriented, interdisciplinary courses held within southern Africa concerning natural resource management and sustainable land use. The SLUSE (Sustainable Land Use and Natural Resource Management) project, under which these courses were devised, is introduced and the process of field-course implementation is described. The SLUSE approach is discussed in terms of management issues, levels of responsibility, staff and student development and the benefits to rural host communities. The courses are very intense experiences and students encounter difficulties working across traditional academic disciplines and in cross-cultural groups. Through critical thinking and self-reflection students understand the context of their learning better and have a greater appreciation of their own personal development. The process calls for long-term commitment to the communities with whom one works closely, the recognition of sometimes having to ‘think on ones feet’, being prepared to make mistakes and use frustration in a positive manner and a strong respectful working relationship from the staff. We advocate this process as worthwhile as classroom theory becomes real in an applied and complex environment.

Changes within Small-Scale Agriculture. A Case-Study from the Southwestern Tanzania

Abstract Danish Journal of Geography 96: 60–69, 1996. The objective of this paper is through a case study from the southern highlands of Tanzania, to illustrate how the agricultural system has changed within a period from the mid-1950s to the early 1990s in response to both endogenous and exogenous forces. The focus is primarily on the latest response at village level to the liberalization process within the agricultural sector in the early 1990s. New methods, by which remote sensing data from high resolution sensors are used as primary input, are analysed in relation to monitoring and to evaluate rapid land use changes.

Clear the Mind of Pre-conceived Ideas and Get Your Hands Dirty! An Approach to Field-based Courses: The SLUSE-southern Africa Experience

This paper explores an approach to problem-oriented, interdisciplinary field-based courses devised by university consortia in southern Africa and Denmark. The SLUSE (Sustainable Land Use and Natural Resource Management) model has been applied on six three-week field courses within southern Africa and trained over 200 students. Student groups composed of individuals from different academic disciplines that investigated problems specifically devised to integrate social and natural science approaches set the stage for an interdisciplinary approach. The field locations are in rural areas that have a legacy of marginalization, poverty and reliance on natural resources for at least part of their livelihoods thus allowing for environmental and natural resource issues to be investigated. Course evaluations show that students feel they gain invaluable exposure to the innovative field-based learning environment created by the SLUSE approach. The main benefit perceived by hosting local communities was an increase in their self-esteem and to harness the knowledge and experience gained from the courses to further enrich their own communities. On reflection, the students value the opportunity to work cross-culturally, and trying new techniques on ‘real’ issues. To many students the personal challenges they face adjusting to the demands of the field course are as important as the academic outputs.

The sustainability of cassava-based bioethanol production in southern Mali

The demand for biofuels has been rising, which has led developing countries to focus on production of feedstocks for biodiesel and bioethanol production. This has caused concerns for the impacts on food security, food prices and environmental sustainability. This paper examines a hypothetical case of cassava-based bioethanol production in southern Mali, assessing its environmental, economic and social sustainability. Results demonstrate that environmental sustainability of cassava-based bioethanol production depends on the ‘baseline’ chosen: Compared to the situation before the decline in cotton production 10 years ago, the carbon stocks will increase. However, if compared to the current situation, where considerable carbon stocks have accumulated in fallow fields, the loss of carbon will be substantial. Increased cassava production will create greater incomes and better temporal distribution of labour input. Analysis of the significance of current cassava production for food security shows that bioethanol production should be based on the attiéké variety of cassava, thereby avoiding interference with the important role of the bonouma in assuring food security in northern Mali. The key factor determining the economic feasibility is whether local farmers will be willing to supply cassava at a realistic price. The results indicate that this is likely to be the case.

The Dwindling Role of Population Pressure in Land Use Change—a Case from the South West Pacific

In this article, we will explore a contemporary coupled human-environmental system on a small island in the South West Pacific with the aim of portraying historical changes in the resource management strategies, notably the agricultural land use, in this former subsistence system.