Assessing the Potential of Participatory Modeling for Decolonial Restoration of an Agro-Pastoral System in Rural Zimbabwe

"Shepherding on Argeș Valley – spatial coordinates This paper presents the essential elements that define the spatial coordinate characteristic of shepherding which is practised in the sub-Carpathian villages on the Argeș Valley, following the documentary attestations of the villages, the genesis and evolution of the village boundaries, the evolution of land ownership and the right to use lands (in condominium or individually). Also within the spatial coordinate, there are researched the traditional ways in which the potential of the rural land fund is highlighted, as a result of its geomorphological, pedological, climatic qualities, etc., the study taking into consideration all the areal types with pastoral potential, not only those on the administrative territory of the villages, but also those in the mountain area destined for summer grazing. If for the presentation of origins, attestations, borderline fixation of the villages from the studied areal, documents, monographic studies and other categories of specialized works have been used, for the understanding of the manner of pastoral, individual and especially collective exploitation of the land fund by the village communities, of valorizing the fodder qualities of the different types of surfaces, it was necessary to carry out field research in the three targeted villages: Albeștii de Argeș, Corbeni and Arefu, all in the Argeș County. The visit of sheepfolds from Lespezi, Lipitoarea, Ciocanu, Podeanu, Oticu, in the alpine hollow of the Făgăraș Mountains, were necessary both for studying some elements related to the spatial coordinate (sheepfold location, daily travel routes, travel routes from the village hearth to the mountains, etc.) as well as for conducting interviews, based on an elaborate questionnaire, interviews generating unique and extremely useful information also for researching the other coordinates of the pastoral system practiced in the area. Keywords: shepherding, Argeș Valley, spatial coordinate, pastoral system, field research "

Download Full-text

Factors influencing migration and settlement of pastoralists in Nairobi City, Kenya

Pastoralism Research Policy and Practice ◽

10.1186/s13570-021-00204-6 ◽

2022 ◽

Vol 12 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Walter Magero Wafula ◽

Oliver Vivian Wasonga ◽

Oscar Kipchirchir Koech ◽

Staline Kibet

Keyword(s):

Land Tenure ◽

Binary Logistic Regression ◽

Policy Formulation ◽

Snowball Sampling ◽

Binary Logistic Regression Model ◽

Grazing Land ◽

Pastoral System ◽

Pastoral Production ◽

Alternative Markets ◽

The City

AbstractPastoralism is globally recognized as the backbone of the economy in the vast arid and semi-arid rangelands. Despite its enormous economic contribution, the system is facing a myriad of challenges, among them, land use and land tenure changes, resulting in diminished grazing land. Accompanying such changes is the conversion of traditional grazing lands into other uses such as settlements, with urbanization being one of the key drivers of pastoral system dynamics. Understanding such dynamics in the face of compounding factors such as frequent droughts linked to climate change is key in guiding policy formulation and interventions aimed at achieving a sustainable pastoral production system. This study investigated factors determining migration and settlement of pastoralists in Nairobi City of Kenya. Data was collected through a snowball sampling approach using semi-structured household questionnaires, focus group discussions (FGDs) and key informant interviews (KIIs) in five Sub-counties of Nairobi City County. A total of 144 household interviews, 6 FGDs and 16 KIIs were conducted to elucidate drivers of urban pastoralism, opportunities and challenges encountered by pastoralists in the city. A binary logistic regression model was used to analyse the determinants of their migration. Results show that search for pasture and water resources, and alternative markets especially during droughts, are the main reasons for pastoralists’ migration to the city. In addition, educated herders were found to be more likely to migrate to the city as they pursue wage employment. Whereas these findings revealed that migration to the city exposes pastoralists to diverse livelihood opportunities, they are equally faced by a number of challenges - mainly road accidents involving livestock, frequent land displacements to pave way for development of real estates, and livestock poisoning from sewage and garbage wastes. There is a need for policy and regulatory interventions to recognize pastoralism alongside other forms of urban farming and addressing challenges facing sustainable pastoral production.

Download Full-text

Once We Were Shepherds: Górale Ethnic Identity in Celebrations Revived and Reinterpreted

Ethnologia Actualis ◽

10.2478/eas-2019-0002 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 18 (2) ◽

pp. 37-53

Author(s):

Pawel Sendyka

Keyword(s):

Ethnic Identity ◽

National Parks ◽

Social System ◽

Winter Season ◽

Second World War ◽

World War ◽

Pastoral System ◽

The Social ◽

Alpine Pastures ◽

Second World

Abstract The Górale of the Polish highlands are seen as a people apart from the rest of Poles. They are afforded this special status through the romanticisation as Poland’s very own “noble savages” by the writers and travellers of the 19th century. This was the time of Poland’s search for nationhood (when its territory was occupied by Russia, Prussia and Austria). The Górale have always been described, even in those early accounts, as pastoralists. During the season, when the sheep went up to the alpine pastures, the villages were almost deserted. In the 20th century the pastoral system dissolution took place starting with the establishment of national parks after the Second World War. Further unfavourable developments decimated what was left of it since the late 1980s. As a result of the dissolution of the pastoral system the Górale chose to amplify their internal unity by strengthening the ethnic identity. The revival of pastoralism as it currently presents itself today, may be seen as yet another rallying call around Górale identity. It is a come back to the pastoralist “core” of the highland culture, while changing and re-inventing the tradition to suit new economic, social and political circumstances. In the Polish pastoralist tradition there have always been two seminal community events which bracketed the winter season. There was the autumn event of “Redyk Jesienny” when the sheep brought back from the summer alpine pastures were given back to their owners and there was also a spring event of “Mieszanie Owiec” which literally means the Mixing of Sheep. Historically, they were very important events of the pastoral calendar, while the pastoral system itself has been crucial fixture and backbone of the social system of the Górale people. The paper examines how these traditions changed from old ethnographic descriptions and how they are being re-invented in the context of reaffirming the Górale identity today.

Download Full-text

Maintenance and development of agro-forestry-pastoral system from the perspective of biodiversity—Taking Zhagana in Diebu County as an example

IOP Conference Series Earth and Environmental Science ◽

10.1088/1755-1315/836/1/012024 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 836 (1) ◽

pp. 012024

Author(s):

Xiaoling Xie ◽

Shiwen Zhang

Keyword(s):

Pastoral System ◽

Agro Forestry

Download Full-text