Family farms are central to both contemporary changes and contradictions in agriculture. They have been, and are still, the crucible for a whole host of agricultural innovations and major revolutions. They form the social basis of most Southern countries and contribute to supplying their local, national and international markets. Paradoxically, however, they constitute the vast majority of poor rural households which are also in a situation of food insecurity worldwide. They sometimes operate using specialised, and highly artificialised, intensified models (agrochemicals and mechanisation). In this respect, they do not escape the questions and criticism directed to agriculture and its capacity to meet the contemporary and widely globalised challenges of climate change, food security, the increasing scarcity of fossil fuels, and the prevention of emerging diseases. But family farms also provide alternative production models to conventional intensification – sustainable agriculture models or new energy sources – which differentiates them from corporate farms and can bring solutions to the world's food, social and environmental challenges.
This Socio-economic study has been conducted by a team of PROCAMED Project. This project falls within the framework of the promotion of the innovating camel systems and of the local camel value chains for a sustainable management of the Saharan territories. The socio-economic survey was conducted in four regions of southeast Tunisia (Medenine, Tataouine, Gabes and Kebeli). A total of 147 households were interviewed on the management, significance and constraints associated to the camel production in the area using a field diagnostic survey. According to the camel breeders' responses, the family living status of the camel herders has based on camels and small ruminant's livestock activities. Most of the camel herders were keeping areas occupied by natural vegetation which can provide a feed source for animals. For the most part of the areas have an average annual rainfall below 300 mm and either a Saharan or an arid Mediterranean bioclimate. Although the land ownership status may change, the rangelands are mostly subject to the system known as collective ownership. Major source of income of the camel herders at all zones were sale of milk and meat, sale of animals and crop cultivation. Majority of the herders kept their camels in open air system and take their camels for grazing from morning till evening at all the zones. But, because of rangelands degradation the trend of supplementation becoming more and more adopted. Camels play an important role in the socio-economics of the people in this area. In order to improve the camel production in the study area, Livestock and dairy development department and local public services, should take into consideration the importance of camel and the prevalent problems in the area.
Les agricultures familiales sont au coeur des transformations mais aussi des contradictions contemporaines de l'agriculture. Elles ont été et sont toujours le creuset d'innombrables innovations ainsi que des grandes révolutions agricoles. Elles forment la base sociale de la plupart des pays des Suds et contribuent à l'approvisionnement de leurs marchés locaux, nationaux et internationaux. Néanmoins, elles constituent, de manière paradoxale, la grande masse des ménages ruraux pauvres et en situation d'insécurité alimentaire à l'échelle mondiale. Elles opèrent parfois selon des modèles intensifiés (agrochimie et motorisation), spécialisés et très fortement artificialisés. À ce titre, elles n'échappent pas aux questions et critiques adressées à l'agriculture et à sa capacité à répondre aux défis contemporains et largement mondialisés du changement climatique, de la sécurité alimentaire, de la raréfaction des ressources fossiles, de la prévention des maladies émergentes. Mais, les agricultures familiales sont également porteuses de modèles de production alternatifs à l'intensification conventionnelle - modèles d'agriculture durable ou nouvelles sources énergétiques - qui les différencient des agricultures de firmes et qui peuvent apporter des solutions aux défis alimentaires, sociaux et environnementaux de la planète.
Élaborée à partir de l'étude croisée de deux cas de politiques de développement local, cette recherche doctorale porte sur les transformations du traitement spatialisé des problèmes sociaux dans les agglomérations de Lille et de Hambourg. Inscrite dans une démarche constructiviste, cette analyse socio-historique de la genèse des projets de l'Union, aux confins des communes de Roubaix, Tourcoing et Wattrelos et de l'Internationale Bauaustellung (IBA) Hamburg, sur l'île de Wilhelmsburg, traite de l'évolution des formes de catégorisation de ces « quartiers défavorisés » et du traitement politique qui en est fait. L'enquête ancrée entre sociologie de l'action publique et sociologie urbaine, recourt à des matériaux ethnographiques (observation de réunions, entretiens approfondis) et à des archives issues des fonds des différentes instances publiques engagées dans les projets étudiés de 1990 à 2014. Remettant en cause les approches de développement social traditionnelles articulées autour de systèmes de zonages – qu'il s'agisse de la « politique de la ville », ou du développement social des quartiers (soziale Stadtteilentwicklung) – l'Union et l'IBA font du traitement des « quartiers défavorisés », un enjeu d'« attractivité » et de « rayonnement métropolitain ». Alors que dans l'agglomération lilloise, le projet de l'Union repose sur un volet économique de soutien aux « filières d'excellence » de « l'image » et des « textiles innovants » et sur la construction d'un écoquartier (2007-2022), l'IBA Hamburg comporte des mesures de densification du peuplement, de construction d'infrastructures de production d'énergies renouvelables et un volet socio-éducatif ayant pour objectif d'améliorer l'offre scolaire des quartiers de Wilhelmsburg et Veddel (2007-2013). Après avoir contextualisé les rapports de pouvoir socio-économiques qui structurent chaque agglomération pour la période 1950-1990, cette étude retrace de manière détaillée la constitution des coalitions d'acteurs, des catégories et des instruments d'action publique qui caractérisent les processus de renouvellement urbain étudiés. De tels outils analytiques ont permis de dépasser les asymétries apparentes entre les deux cas, et de mettre en lumière les modalités économiques et symboliques du tournant « métropolitain » du problème des « quartiers » ainsi que les répercussions d'une telle métamorphose sur la sélection des acteurs considérés légitimes à prendre part à la décision. L'étude des réseaux de réformateurs contribuant à la construction des catégories de « quartier défavorisé » (benachteiligter Stadtteil) et d'« attractivité métropolitaine » (internationale Ausstrahlung) est menée au regard du contexte économique local des agglomérations de Lille et Hambourg. L'analyse de ce processus de catégorisation a également impliqué de prendre en compte les formes de circulations transnationales et infranationales qui ont contribué à le nourrir. Il est alors apparu que la spatialisation des problèmes sociaux puis la traduction du problème des « quartiers » en projet de réforme de l'administration et son articulation à la catégorie d'« attractivité métropolitaine », en amont du lancement de l'IBA et de l'Union, participent d'une même dynamique d'occultation progressive de la question sociale. Enfin, si une telle démonstration met en lumière les « possibles non-advenus » exclus au fil de la catégorisation du problème des « quartiers » comme enjeux d'« attractivité métropolitaine », elle illustre également les mécanismes de production du consensus mis en place une fois ces alternatives politiques écartées. En refaçonnant le concept de « mythe d'action publique », ce travail dégage quatre systèmes de justifications permettant de comprendre comment les différentes mesures portées par chaque projet ont pu être légitimées et effectivement mises en pratique. Attractivité, excellence, bonne gouvernance et justice spatiale sont les quatre mythes au carrefour desquels, les dispositifs de l'IBA et de l'Union sont conçus et mis en œuvre. Issus de l'étude en situation de l'instrumentation de chaque projet et des arènes de négociations qu'ils instaurent, ces systèmes de justifications sont un outil d'analyse privilégié pour l'étude des contradictions sous-jacentes à ces deux grands projets de renouvellement urbain. L'observation ethnographique des groupes de travail et des réunions de chargés de projets a permis d'appréhender ces instances à l'aune du concept de « rites » en mettant en lumière les jeux de rôles auxquels se prêtent les acteurs qui font l'apologie de ces mythes tout en prenant un recul critique en coulisses de ces cérémonies. L'Union et l'IBA Hamburg sont dès lors apparus comme les formes archétypales d'une nouvelle manière de traiter spatialement des problèmes sociaux, révélatrice d'évolutions socio-économiques et symboliques que l'on retrouve dans un nombre croissant de villes des économies capitalistes. ; This crossing of two case-studies (approche croisée) of urban development projects deals with the transformations of socio-spatial policies in the metropolis of Lille and Hamburg. Taking a constructivist approach, it focuses on the genesis of the Union-project between the municipalities of Roubaix, Tourcoing and Wattrelos, and of the « international building exhibition IBA Hamburg » (internationale Bauaustellung) on the Elbe island of Wilhelmsburg. The construction of « public problems » and the framing of "deprived neighborhood" (quartiers dévaforisés / benachteiligte Stadtteile) as categories of public action and the changes of the political treatment of these sociospatial problems are at the center of this socio-historical research. This sociological analysis of political processes relies on qualitative data-gathering (ethnographic observations of workinggroups, semi-structured and partly-standardized interviews) and on archives analysis of several institutions that took part in each urban development process between 1990 and 2014. Both, the IBA Hamburg and the Union-project can be considered as a new form of urban renewal projects to the extent that they challenge former programs of social urban policies that are based on smaller development areas. The projects combine goals of socio-spatial development with the ambition of fostering the attractiveness, the image and the international standing of their metropolis. While the Union-project (2007-2022) relies on economic development measures towards innovative enterprises in the sectors of technical textiles and IT-industries, as well as the construction of a sustainable neighborhood (ecoquartier), the IBA Hamburg (2007-2013) aims to promote the growth of Wilhelmsburg's population, the construction of renewable energy production infrastructures and the development of social- and educative institutions on the Elbe Island. Beyond these considerable divergences in content and the different scope of both projects – the development area in l'Union concerns 80 hectares whereas the IBA takes place on 42 square kilometers – these urban renewal processes proved to be typical forms of great projects of social urban development. Considering the most important political economical evolutions of the last decades (1950-1990), this PhD thesis analyses the emergence of constellations of actors, categories and tools of local government of both projects. By doing this, the commitment of reformer networks can be brought to light: experts, academics and senior civil servants actually contributed to the identification and framing of the problem of "deprived neighborhoods" and then to its articulation as a question of "international attractiveness". Such a categorization process, that turns a socio-spatial problem into a project of reform of public administration and then into a matter of "international competitiveness" finally nourishes the same depoliticization dynamic that leads to the concealment of the social question. Even if this study highlights the losers of both urban renewal processes, to the extent that it looks at the unsuccessful political alternatives, it also deals with the mechanisms of consensus production that are instituted after the framing of a first space of possibilities. Based on the concept of "myth of public action", this part of the thesis underlines the justification systems, which contribute to legitimate the different measures of both projects. Attractiveness, excellence, good governance and spatial justice are the four myths on which the IBA Hamburg and the Union- roject have been defined and implemented. This analytical pathway enabled to question the different contradictions of both projects, based on the observation of working groups in which these myths have been alternately glorified – on stage – or criticized – backstage. This analysis of the management of the projects' contradictions by their promoters through such role playing gives the occasion to highlight a specific way of dealing with socio-spatial problems that seems to become ever more significant for European urban policies.
"Examines what happened when the Chinese government encouraged millions of its citizens to read, listen to, and pose questions about drafts of new constitutions, and the implications of such constitutional talk for how we understand political legitimacy and the origins of constitutionalism. Drawing on multiple archival sources from the Maoist and reform eras, as well as insights from the philosophy of language, this book provides new interpretations of the role of law in China, popular constitutionalism, and the legitimacy of the Communist Revolution from the perspective of those who experienced it"--
This open access book traces the development of sociology in Germany from the late 19th century to the present day, providing a concise overview of the main actors, institutional processes, theories, methods, topics and controversies. Throughout the book, the author relates the discipline's history to its historical, economic, political and cultural contexts. The book begins with sociology in the German Reich, the Weimar Republic, National Socialism and exile, before exploring sociology after 1945 as a 'key discipline' of the young Federal Republic of Germany, and reconstructing the periods from 1945 to 1968 and from 1968 to 1990. The final chapters are devoted to sociology in the German Democratic Republic and the period from 1990 to the present day. This work will appeal to students and scholars of sociology, and to a general readership interested in the history of Germany.
"What is fueling rural America's outrage toward the federal government? Why did rural Americans vote overwhelmingly for Donald Trump? And, beyond economic and demographic decline, is there a more nuanced explanation for the growing rural-urban divide? Drawing on more than a decade of research and hundreds of interviews, Robert Wuthnow brings us into America's small towns, farms, and rural communities to paint a rich portrait of the moral order--the interactions, loyalties, obligations, and identities--underpinning this critical segment of the nation. Wuthnow demonstrates that to truly understand rural Americans' anger, their culture must be explored more fully. We hear from farmers who want government out of their business, factory workers who believe in working hard to support their families, town managers who find the federal government unresponsive to their communities' needs, and clergy who say the moral climate is being undermined. Wuthnow argues that rural America's fury stems less from specific economic concerns than from the perception that Washington is distant from and yet threatening to the social fabric of small towns. Rural dwellers are especially troubled by Washington's seeming lack of empathy for such small-town norms as personal responsibility, frugality, cooperation, and common sense. Wuthnow also shows that while these communities may not be as discriminatory as critics claim, racism and misogyny remain embedded in rural patterns of life. Moving beyond simplistic depictions of the residents of America's heartland, The Left Behind offers a clearer picture of how this important population will influence the nation's political future."--
Timeline of history -- Part 1: The cognitive revolution. An animal of no significance ; The tree of knowledge ; A day in the life of Adam and Eve ; The flood -- Part 2: The agricultural revolution. History's biggest fraud ; Building pyramids ; Memory overload ; There is no justice in history -- Part 3: The unification of humankind. The arrow of history ; The scent of money ; Imperial visions ; The law of religion ; The secret of success -- Part 4: The scientific revolution. The discovery of ignorance ; The marriage of science and empire ; The capitalist creed ; The wheels of industry ; A permanent revolution ; And they lived happily ever after ; The end of Homo sapiens -- Afterword: The animal that became a god
This unique book sheds new light on the most invisible members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community. Hidden from view by a combination of prevailing cultural assumptions and their own unwillingness to be seen, older lesbians have been consistently under-represented in both popular culture and research. This ground-breaking study, based on an unprecedentedly large research sample of nearly four hundred lesbian-identified women between the ages of 60 and 90, offers a fascinating insight into the lives of older lesbians in the UK. Drawing on data from a comprehensive questionnaire survey and illustrated with vivid personal testimonies, it explores both the diversity and the distinct collective identity of the older lesbian community, arguing that understanding their past experience is crucial to providing for their needs in the future. It is essential reading for scholars in the fields of women's studies and genders and sexualities, and will also appeal to sociologists, political scientists, anthropologists, social and cultural historians, and experts in ageing, gerontology, nursing and social work.
Based on years of careful ethnographic fieldwork in Hanoi, Haunting Images offers a frank and compassionate account of the moral quandaries that accompany innovations in biomedical technology. At the center of the book are case studies of thirty pregnant women whose fetuses were labeled ""abnormal"" after an ultrasound examination. By following these women and their relatives through painful processes of reproductive decision making, Tine M. Gammeltoft offers intimate ethnographic insights into everyday life in contemporary Vietnam and a sophisticated theoretical exploration of how subjectivit
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"The Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region is one of China's most strategically important, resource-rich and largest regions but also one of the country's most troublesome, the region now being synonymous with ethnic conflict and nationalist movements. This detailed and compelling study sets out to explore how the Chinese government has governed Xinjiang in light of growing tensions in the region exploring initiatives such as the partner assistance programme to understand the extent to which attempts to reverse the deteriorating situation have been effective. Furthermore, this study also provides compelling insights into how policies vary in different regions, focusing in particular on the role played by officials in interpreting and implementing these policies within their specific locale. It shows that Communist Party strategy and policy become messy when introduced at a micro-level as local governments interpret how these policies should work within their particular region. As such, this text is invaluable to students and scholars of policy-making and implementation in China"--
"Bringing together the experience, perspective and expertise of Paul Farmer, Jim Yong Kim, and Arthur Kleinman, Reimagining Global Health provides an original, compelling introduction to the field of global health. Drawn from a Harvard course developed by their student Matthew Basilico, this work provides an accessible and engaging framework for the study of global health. Insisting on an approach that is historically deep and geographically broad, the authors underline the importance of a transdisciplinary approach, and offer a highly readable distillation of several historical and ethnographic perspectives of contemporary global health problems. The case studies presented throughout Reimagining Global Health bring together ethnographic, theoretical, and historical perspectives into a wholly new and exciting investigation of global health. The interdisciplinary approach outlined in this text should prove useful not only in schools of public health, nursing, and medicine, but also in undergraduate and graduate classes in anthropology, sociology, political economy, and history, among others"--Provided by publisher
News stories provide an essential confirmation of our ideas about who we are, what we have to fear, and what to do about it: a marketplace of ideas, shopped by rational citizen decision makers but also a shared resource for grounding our contested narratives of identity in objective reality. News as a fundamental social process comes into being not when an event takes place or when a report of the event is created but when that report becomes news to someone. As it moves off the page into the community, news discovers through its interpretations its reality in the lives of the consumers. T
On February 13, 1982, the Guatemalan army stormed into the remote northern Guatemalan village of Santa Maria Tzeja. The villagers had already fled in terror, but over the next six days seventeen of them, mostly women and children, were caught and massacred, animals were slaughtered, and the entire village was burned to the ground. Twelve years later, utilizing terms of refugee agreements reached in 1982, villagers from Santa Maria who had fled to Mexico returned to their homes and lands to re-create their community with those who had stayed in Guatemala. Return of Guatemala's Refugees tells th
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