Olivia Smith
Pronouns: she/they
Research Mentor(s): Brian Klein
Co-Presenter: Moyer, Tate
Research Mentor School/College/Department: Afroamerican and African Studies / LSA
Presentation Date: April 20
Presentation Type: Poster
Session: Session 3 – 1:40pm – 2:30 pm
Room: League Ballroom
Authors: Olivia Smith, Brian Klein
Presenter: 5
Abstract
Given its status as a “biodiversity hotspot” and one of the world’s poorest countries, Madagascar has long attracted the attention of both scholars and conservation and development actors. Despite the strong interest in improving environmental outcomes on the island, little research has examined the role(s) of customary institutions in community-level governance of natural resources. This project aims to address this deficiency by compiling existing knowledge–in the form of scholarship, project reports, media articles, and archival materials–and further investigating the extent to which conservation actors, government initiatives, and/or communities themselves are using particular kinds of customary institutions for purposes of local level natural resource management. We are particularly interested in generating a greater interdisciplinary understanding of Malagasy dina–customary codes used for maintaining social order–including their histories, contemporary deployments, and potential future applications. We plan to use the information gathered to produce an authoritative account of the dina form in order to highlight existing practice, reveal related political struggles, and inform ongoing academic and policy debates over community-based natural resources management on the island.
Arts and Humanities
