Doctoral Dissertation Research: The Influence of Conservation Organizations on the Cultural Model of Swidden Agriculture in Eastern Madagascar

科学家和保护团体特别感兴趣的是狭幅农业，因为它对地方性动植物产生不利影响，但也因为在当代马达加斯加目前的人口密度下，这种农业在生态和经济上都是不可持续的。马达加斯加政府正试图通过采用湿田水稻农业和非土著养护做法来限制种植农业的做法。然而，与马达加斯加东部狭小的农业相关的仪式可能与保护团体提出的生存模式不相容，这种不相容可能导致对引入的生存做法的抵制。本论文的研究将检验这一假设，即随着对非土著保护实践的了解的增加，对斯威登的了解减少。这一假设检验了保护组织向当地居民提供的关于非土著农业做法的信息是否取代了对土著农业做法的知识。通过比较有无西方保护影响的社区的农业文化知识和保护实践，将更好地了解西方保护努力的影响，以指导未来的项目。这项研究的更广泛影响是，它解决了一个对人类学理论(文化模式和知识共享)和马达加斯加人民(社会文化变化)都有重大影响的问题，使该地区的保护团体有了更好的了解。此外，该项目的成果将有益于土著知识、习俗、农业做法和信仰可能与非土著保护做法不符的其他生物多样性保护关切地区。

Swidden agriculture is of particular interest to scientists and conservation groups because of its adverse effect on the endemic flora and fauna, but also because, as practiced with current human population densities in contemporary Madagascar, it is both ecologically and economically unsustainable. The Malagasy Government is trying to limit the practice of swidden agriculture by introducing wet field rice agriculture as well as non- indigenous conservation practices. However, the rituals associated with swidden agriculture in Eastern Madagascar may not be compatible with the subsistence pattern proposed by conservation groups and this incompatibility may result in resistance to the introduced subsistence practices. This dissertation research will test the hypothesis that as knowledge of non- indigenous conservation practices increases, knowledge of swidden decreases. The hypothesis tests whether the information conservation organizations are giving to the local populations on non-indigenous agricultural practices displaces knowledge of indigenous agricultural practices. By comparing the cultural knowledge of agriculture and conservation practices of communities with and without western conservation influences, the influences of western conservation efforts will be better understood so as to guide future programs. The broader impact of this research is that it addresses a problem that has significant influence to both anthropological theory (cultural models and sharedness of knowledge) and the Malagasy people (socio-cultural change) by providing a better understanding to the conservation groups in the area. In addition, the results of this project will be useful in other regions of biodiversity conservation concern where indigenous knowledge, rituals, agricultural practices and beliefs may not be compatible with non-indigenous conservation practices.