Dissertation Research: Cultural Ecology of Customary Marine Tenure in Fiji

这篇论文的研究项目，由一个文化人类学的学生在科罗拉多大学将研究如何在斐济的传统生态知识的地方系统受到外部因素的影响，以及这一过程如何影响脆弱的海洋生态系统。来自国家和国际的外来经济和政治力量往往影响当地的资源管理制度。这些力量将在斐济目前正在建立的社区海洋保护区内的主要精英或传统捕鱼权所有者管理海洋资源的可变性的范围内加以审查。学生将比较三个沿海渔村之间的资源管理活动和传统生态知识的变化，每个都有一套不同的发展限制。 有待检验的假设将涉及土地开发商、潜水游客以及当地和非当地小型商业捕鱼企业之间的冲突，所有这些企业都在争夺传统的捕鱼权区。 随着外部压力的增加，学生们假设当地酋长之间的冲突会增加，因为他们无法从租赁传统区域中获得经济利益。该学生假设，随着外部商业捕鱼、旅游业和发展的影响增加，传统知识体系将受到侵蚀（另一种假设是，知识将通过向外界进行辩护和解释而得到发展）。该项目还将评估水下资源的各种用途可能造成的生态破坏。 这项研究很重要，因为它将促进我们对传统社会如何保护自然资源的理解，这些资源受到广泛的关注。

This dissertation research project by a cultural anthropology student at the University of Colorado will study how local systems of traditional ecological knowledge in Fiji are affected by external factors, and how this process impacts fragile marine ecosystems. Exogenous economic and political forces from national and international sources often influence local systems of resource management. These forces will be examined within the context of the variability in the management of marine resources by chiefly elites or traditional fishing rights owners within a community based marine reserve now being established in Fiji. The student will compare variability of resource management activities and of traditional ecological knowledge between three inshore fishing villages, each with a different set of development constraints. Hypotheses to be tested will deal with conflict between land developers, dive tourists, and local and non-local small-scale commercial fishing enterprises, all competing over traditional fishing right zones. As external pressure increases the student hypothesizes increased conflict over local chiefs over access to the economic benefits from leasing the traditional zones. The student hypothesizes that traditional knowledge systems will erode as the influence of external commercial fishing, tourism and development increases (the alternative hypothesis is that the knowledge will develop through being defended and explained to outsiders). The project will also assess the potential for ecological damage from the diverse uses of the underwater resources. The research is important because it will advance our understanding of how traditional societies can conserve natural resources which are valued by a wide range of interests.