scholarly journals Land Deals, Labour and Everyday Politics

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adwoa Yeboah Gyapong
Keyword(s):  
Oil Palm ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Food Sovereignty ◽  
Scale Production ◽  
Land Grab ◽  
The North ◽  
The Everyday ◽  
Everyday Politics ◽  
Settler Society ◽  
Context Specific

This study presents empirical evidence on the nature of the political struggles for inclusion on an oil palm land deal in Ghana. It examines the employment dynamics and the everyday politics of workers on an oil palm plantation in a predominantly migrant and settler society of the north-eastern part of Ghana, where large-scale production has only been introduced within the past decade. It shows that by the nature of labour organization, as well as other structural issues, workers do not benefit equally from the land deals and therefore express everyday forms of resistance against exploitation, and for better terms of incorporation. Particularly, they express agency through absenteeism and non-compliance, which especially, enables them to maintain their basic food sovereignty/security. Nonetheless, these everyday politics is not necessarily liberating in confronting the everyday peasant problems and unfavourable agrarian transitions associated with capitalist agriculture. Overall, this paper contributes to the land grab literature by providing context-specific dynamics of impacts and politics and how are they are shaped by a multiplicity of factors- beyond class.

scholarly journals Land Deals, Wage Labour, and Everyday Politics

Land ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (6) ◽  
pp. 94 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adwoa Yeboah Gyapong
Keyword(s):  
Social Relations ◽  
Oil Palm ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Food Sovereignty ◽  
Land Grab ◽  
Political Struggles ◽  
The Everyday ◽  
Everyday Politics ◽  
Settler Society ◽  
Context Specific

This article explores the question of political struggles for inclusion on an oil palm land deal in Ghana. It examines the employment dynamics and the everyday politics of rural wage workers on a transnational oil palm plantation which is located in a predominantly migrant and settler society where large-scale agricultural production has only been introduced within the past decade. It shows that, by the nature of labour organization, as well as other structural issues, workers do not benefit equally from their work on plantations. The main form of farmworkers’ political struggles in the studied case has been the ‘everyday forms of resistance’ against exploitation and for better terms of incorporation. Particularly, they express agency through acts such as absenteeism and non-compliance, as well as engaging in other productive activities which enable them to maintain their basic food sovereignty/security. Nonetheless, their multiple and individualized everyday politics are not necessarily changing the structure of social relations associated with capitalist agriculture. Overall, this paper contributes to the land grab literature by providing context specific dynamics of the impacts of, and politics around land deals, and how they are shaped by a multiplicity of factors-beyond class.

“Community Interests” and the Role of International Law in the Creation of a Global Market for Agricultural Land

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jochen von Bernstorff
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Agricultural Land ◽  
Food Sovereignty ◽  
Global Market ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Cultural Rights ◽  
Land Grab ◽  
Large Scale Land ◽  
The One

The chapter explores the notion of “community interests” with regard to the global “land-grab” phenomenon. Over the last decade, a dramatic increase of foreign investment in agricultural land could be observed. Bilateral investment treaties protect around 75 per cent of these large-scale land acquisitions, many of which came with associated social problems, such as displaced local populations and negative consequences for food security in Third World countries receiving these large-scale foreign investments. Hence, two potentially conflicting areas of international law are relevant in this context: Economic, social, and cultural rights and the principles of permanent sovereignty over natural resources and “food sovereignty” challenging large-scale investments on the one hand, and specific norms of international economic law stabilizing them on the other. The contribution discusses the usefulness of the concept of “community interests” in cases where the two colliding sets of norms are both considered to protect such interests.

Strength and Impotence. The Developing Countries and the Development in New Territories

1974 ◽  
Vol 9 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 167-177
Author(s):  
Willy Østreng
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Raw Materials ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Economic Effects ◽  
Scale Production ◽  
Underdeveloped Countries ◽  
The North ◽  
Large Scale Production ◽  
The Developed Countries ◽  
The Third World

This article examines the possible political and economic effects of large-scale mineral extraction from the seabed. The findings presented indicate that development in new territories may conceivably serve to exacerbate existing conflict dimensions, notably the North/South dimension in global politics. Because of the developed countries' monopoly on know-how and economic capability, exploration and exploitation of the inorganic resources of the ocean floor has de facto been the exclusive domain of these countries. On the basis of this the author shows that if large-scale production of seabed resources should become a reality in the near future, the underdeveloped countries will be forced to watch it from the sidelines. As a consequence, the exploitation of offshore raw materials will probably contribute to the further widening of the gap between developed and underdeveloped countries. Further commenting on the fact that the latter today are the main producers of the most promising seabed resources, the author expresses the view that exploitation will have a detrimental effect on the economics of the Third World countries, since it might lead to overproduction and price reductions.

scholarly journals Impacts of near-future cultivation of biofuel feedstocks on atmospheric composition and local air quality

2011 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 24857-24881 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Ashworth ◽  
G. Folberth ◽  
C. N. Hewitt ◽  
O. Wild
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Oil Palm ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
Land Use Changes ◽  
Regional Scale ◽  
Atmospheric Composition ◽  
Scale Production ◽  
Reactive Trace Gases

Abstract. Large-scale production of feedstock crops for biofuels will lead to land-use changes. We quantify the effects of realistic land use change scenarios for biofuel feedstock production on isoprene emissions and hence atmospheric composition and chemistry using the HadGEM2 model. Two feedstocks are considered: oil palm for biodiesel in the tropics and short rotation coppice (SRC) in the mid-latitudes. In total, 69 Mha of oil palm and 92 Mha of SRC are planted, each sufficient to replace just over 1 % of projected global fossil fuel demand in 2020. Both planting scenarios result in increases in total global annual isoprene emissions of about 1 %. In each case, changes in surface concentrations of ozone and biogenic secondary organic aerosol (bSOA) are significant at the regional scale and are detectable even at a global scale with implications for air quality standards. However, the changes in tropospheric burden of ozone and the OH radical, and hence effects on global climate, are negligible. The oil palm plantations and processing plants result in global average annual mean increases in ozone and bSOA of 38 pptv and 2 ng m−3 respectively. Over SE Asia, one region of planting, increases reach over 2 ppbv and 300 ng m−3 for large parts of Borneo. Planting of SRC causes global annual mean changes of 46 pptv and 3 ng m−3. Europe experiences peak monthly mean changes of almost 0.6 ppbv and 90 ng m−3 in June and July. Large areas of Central and Eastern Europe see changes of over 1.5 ppbv and 200 ng m−3 in the summer. That such significant atmospheric impacts from low level planting scenarios are discernible globally clearly demonstrates the need to include changes in emissions of reactive trace gases such as isoprene in life cycle assessments performed on potential biofuel feedstocks.

scholarly journals Smallholder-Based Oil Palm and Rubber Production in the Forest Region of Guinea: An Exploratory Analysis of Household Food Security Outcomes

Agriculture ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 41 ◽  
Author(s):  
Boubacar Balde ◽  
Mamady Diawara ◽  
Cristiano Rossignoli ◽  
Alexandros Gasparatos
Keyword(s):  
Food Security ◽  
Oil Palm ◽  
Exploratory Study ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Household Food Security ◽  
Scale Production ◽  
Diet Diversity ◽  
Rubber Production ◽  
Household Level

The Guinean government has promoted the large-scale production of industrial crops such as oil palm and rubber through the Guinean Oil Palm and Rubber Company (SOGUIPAH). Smallholder-based production of these crops has also been promoted to boost rural development but the food security outcomes are unclear. This exploratory study assesses the food security outcomes of smallholder-based oil palm and rubber production at the household level using six standardized metrics of food security. We compare households involved in industrial crop production and households that only grow food crops under subsistence conditions through statistical tools such as Propensity Score Matching (PSM) and Endogenous Treatment Effect Regression (ETER). Overall, results suggest that oil palm and rubber smallholders perform better than subsistence farmers on metrics that capture perceptions of hunger and coping behaviors but perform worse for food diversity metrics. We hypothesize that this discrepancy can possibly be explained by the strong sense of security that steady income provides across time, which outweighs the shortcomings of diet diversity. The results of this exploratory study can inform the development of more detailed assessments of the food security outcomes of interventions implemented by SOGUIPAH in the area (and the mechanism through which these impacts emerge).

An Analysis of Urban Initiatives in Cairo: Locality, Everyday Politics and Relational Space in Cairo’s Unplanned Neighbourhoods

2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 63-87
Author(s):  
Azzurra Sarnataro
Keyword(s):  
Social Background ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
North East ◽  
The North ◽  
The Everyday ◽  
Relational Space ◽  
Everyday Politics ◽  
Institutional Actors ◽  
Research Period ◽  
Capacity To Aspire

Abstract This article focuses on urban activism and social movements that emerged in Cairo between 2011 and 2014 and argues that in unplanned areas these initiatives shape patterns of agency and social encounter. This contribution therefore investigates the transformative potential activated by the encounters between women of different social background in a small association (ǧamā‘iyya) in the unplanned area of Ezbet al-Haggana, in the north-east periphery of Cairo. Through analytical categories such as the “everyday politics”, “informality”, “relational space” and “capacity to aspire”, the article analyses how the everyday interactions, even within apparently non-politicized actions, reveal features of social change and mobility. The materials presented have been collected during a three-year research period conducted between 2012 and 2015. The fieldwork included 10 semi-structured interviews with local activists and institutional actors as well as an ethnographic account, which will be reported in the text.

scholarly journals Sustainability

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dickson Osei Darkwah ◽  
Meilina Ong-Abdullah
Keyword(s):  
Oil Palm ◽  
Precision Agriculture ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Biodiversity Loss ◽  
Scale Production ◽  
Oil Crops ◽  
Sustainability Strategies ◽  
Large Scale Production ◽  
Agriculture Sustainability ◽  
Negative Impacts

The oil palm (Elaies guineensis Jacq) is the largest produced and highly traded vegetable oil globally yet has the lowest cost of production and significantly higher productivity compared to other oil crops. The crop has the potential of alleviating poverty for smallholders and lifting the economies of countries with large scale production notably, Malaysia and Indonesia and currently on high demand for use as biofuel feedstock. Irrespective of these advantages of the oil palm, there is a global concern on the devastating impact of the crop on the environment and ecosystem during plantation developments and expansions. Deforestation, biodiversity loss, water and air pollution and toxic compounds from palm oil mill effluents (POME) are some of the negative impacts of the oil palm. For the industry to be more beneficial and impactful globally, sustainability strategies becomes urgent need. Sustainability strategies such as increasing the yield of oil palm, precision agriculture, sustainability certification, support for smallholders and circular economy have been put across to curtail the negative impacts of oil palm expansion.

scholarly journals Disease suppression in Ganoderma-infected oil palm seedlings treated with Trichoderma harzianum

2008 ◽  
Vol 44 (No. 3) ◽  
pp. 101-107 ◽  
Author(s):  
M.Z. Nur Ain Izzati ◽  
F. Abdullah
Keyword(s):  
Oil Palm ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Biocontrol Agent ◽  
Severity Index ◽  
Disease Suppression ◽  
Scale Production ◽  
Conidial Suspension ◽  
Disease Severity Index ◽  
Artificial Infection ◽  
Large Scale Production

Disease suppression in <I>Ganoderma</I>-infected oil palm seedlings treated with a conidial suspension of <I>Trichoder-ma harzianum</I> FA 1132 was tested in plant house conditions to determine the effectiveness of the fungus as a biocontrol agent. The highest efficacy of control was achieved by treatment right after artificial infection; the total number of infected plants was reduced to give the lowest disease severity index (DSI) value of 5.0%, compared to the infected and non-treated control that had the highest DSI of 70.0%. After conidia suspension of FA 1132 was applied, the colony forming ability by <I>Trichoderma</I> in the soil was dramatically increased, but decreased after some time. Results of the present study are a useful reference basis for further tests in the field and large scale production trials.

scholarly journals The everyday politics of India’s “land wars” in rural eastern India

Focaal ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 2016 (75) ◽  
pp. 105-118 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kenneth Bo Nielsen
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
The Political ◽  
Life Domains ◽  
Eastern India ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
The Everyday ◽  
Development Trajectory ◽  
Everyday Politics ◽  
Private Corporations

The large-scale transfer of land from rural communities to private corporations has become a defining feature of India’s development trajectory. These land transfers have given rise to a multitude of new “land wars” as dispossessed groups have struggled to retain their land. Yet while much has been written about the political economy of development that underpins this new form of dispossession, the ways in which those threatened with dispossession have sought to mobilize have to a lesser extent been subject to close ethnographic scrutiny. This article argues that an “everyday politics” perspective can enhance our understanding of India’s new land wars, using a case from Singur as the starting point. The agenda is twofold. I show how everyday life domains and sociopolitical relations pertaining to caste, class, gender, and party political loyalty were crucial to the making of the Singur movement and its politics. Second, by analyzing the movement in processual terms, I show how struggles over land can be home to a multitude of political meanings and aspirations as participants seek to use new political forums to resculpt everyday sociopolitical relations.

scholarly journals Improving the perpetual raspberry assortment for the North Caucasian region of the Russian Federation by drawing on the biological potential of VIR collections

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
V. N. Podorozhnyi ◽  
N. A. Piyanina
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Complex Analysis ◽  
Plant Genetic Resources ◽  
Rubus Idaeus ◽  
High Tech ◽  
Scale Production ◽  
North Caucasus ◽  
Marketable Yield ◽  
The North ◽  
Biological Potential

For raspberries (Rubus idaeus Focke), one of the most valuable and popular berry crops in Russia, it is important to study the genotypeenvironment interaction. The complex genomic composition of modern varieties of this crop, the modifying influence of climatic growing conditions on the manifestation of variable traits that affect the marketable fruit yield, necessitate an assessment of the varieties available in the collection in order to identify the most optimal ones for specific agrobiological conditions of the region chosen for crop cultivation. During a three-year (2017-2019) study of ten accessions of perpetual and semi- perpetual raspberries of domestic and foreign breeding accumulated at the Krymsk EBS, a branch of VIR, biological features of the phenophases of raspberries seasonal growth and development were observed concerning the following characters: the number of berries; average, minimum and maximum berry weight, as well as the total and marketable yield. The purpose of this work was to select high-tech varieties of perpetual raspberries for commercial plantations in the North Caucasus region of Russia by selecting the optimal ones with a complex of economically important traits, from those available in the VIR collection of plant genetic resources. A quantitative assessment of the influence of the variety genotype, of the conditions of the year of cultivation and their combined effect on the studied characters was carried out using the two-factor analysis of variance. It was shown that varietal characters have the greatest effect on the commercial productivity of the bush (the share of the “variety” factor influence is 68%), while weather conditions influence it to a lesser extent (the share of the “year” factor influence is 7.5%). Generalization and complex analysis of the data obtained in the course of this work showed that a combination of economically important traits was exhibited by the studied varieties ʻBryanskoe Divoʼ, ʻHerculesʼ, ʻNikaʼ and ʻAnteyʼ, which can be recommended for large-scale production trials. The use of the rapid clonal micropropagation of raspberries of perpetual fruiting type makes it possible to obtain a sufficient number of plantlets for laying out industrial variety trials for one to two years after the introduction into the culture, which, as a result, accelerates the introduction of new varieties into production.

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