PRODUCTO CENTRO AMERICANO: MADE IN HONDURAS By Alma Leiva Master of Fine Arts A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Fine Arts at Virginia Commonwealth University. Virginia Commonwealth University, 2011. Thesis Director: Robert Paris, Professor Kinetic Imaging / Photography and Film I was born in 1973 in Honduras, a country under military regime. In 1982 after 20 years of military rule, Honduras finally had democratic elections. During that decade, and as a consequence of the cold war, the kidnapping, torturing, murder and disappearance of civilians became common practices among the Honduran military. Peasant activists, university leaders, union workers and intellectuals were among its favorite targets. In Producto Centroamericano: Made in Honduras I present the viewer with a "product" entrenched in Honduran history; the disappearance of almost two hundred civilians in the 1980's for political reasons. The work also presents the viewer with the imminent threat of the return of this practice after its military coup in 2009. By juxtaposing references of torturing tools such as knives, metal poles, chains and meat hooks, against more frail materials such as paper, wax and fabric, I make allusions to the vulnerability of the individual against such repressive forces. Through the elements presented in the installation, I try to take the viewer on a journey that will hopefully, confront one with one’s own humanity and ultimately with one’s own mortality.

This thesis describes the origins and development of the English mahogany trade from its origins to the beginning of the French Revolutionary War. It is based primarily on statistical and commercial information, most of which is drawn from government and other official sources. The bulk of the text is a chronological account, charting the growth of the trade from its small beginnings in Jamaica after 1700 to its late eighteenth century heyday. It considers the effect of economic conditions, shipping costs, government commercial policy and imperial colonial strategy, and shows how these had a direct bearing on the scale and direction of the trade. The various sources of mahogany are discussed, together with the characteristics and uses of the timber. Popular conceptions about the various types of mahogany used in 18th century furniture making are discussed in the light of statistical and other contemporary evidence. The thesis also considers the effects of the introduction of mahogany on furniture manufacturing in England. It investigates the cost of mahogany relative to other furniture woods, and suggests that its chief appeal in the initial years of importation was its low cost. This suggestion is born out by the early use of mahogany as a joinery rather than a cabinet wood. The thesis goes on to argue that the cost of mahogany was often a primary determinant of stylistic and technical development. As demand for the wood grew, so costs rose and inflation became at times a notable feature of the mahogany market. The effects of this inflation are recorded in the archives of contemporary furniture makers and are apparent in extant 18th century furniture. The most important single finding of the thesis is the paramont role of government in determining the scale and direction of the mahogany trade. In this respect mahogany reflects the historical development of British West Indian commercial policy. Mahogany was not merely an art-historical phenomenon, but a symbol of Britain's rise to commercial dominance in the 18th century.

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Research suggests that teaching in international settings fosters professional growth and promotes tolerance for working in multicultural and linguistically diverse classrooms for U.S. teachers upon returning to the U.S. to work in schools. These studies portray teaching abroad as an unproblematic and neutral project, and narrowly focus on the benefit to the individual teacher during their temporary stay in a foreign country and when returning home to the U.S. Absent from these studies are two groups: 1) teachers from the U.S. who work in non-governmental organizations and private school settings abroad, but have no pedagogical training, and 2) host country citizens (unless they serve a purpose for the U.S. teacher, such as providing growth, teaching cultural nuances, etc.) These studies also lack an analysis of how international teaching, especially in bilingual and English-language contexts, affect the local community outside the bounds of the study’s setting. Scholars of transnational feminist theory suggest consideration of how these relationships shape not just the people who travel across nation-state borders, but also those who are affected in the local context. Scholars of critical pedagogy remind teachers that education is not only pedagogical, but also political and ideological. Grounded in these two theoretical frameworks, as well as Critical Discourse Analysis, this study examines English-language education and teaching in the Central American country of Honduras. The findings suggest that host country citizens express reservations about these partnerships. Although U.S. and international teachers second-guess the utility of English-language education in Honduras, they justify their presence teaching there because of their ability to speak English, and they define what success means in the future of their students.

The purpose of this research was to determine the impact of the implementation of a territorial model of development in the Yeguare Region of Honduras. The research questions look to determine the impact of the territorial approach for each of its major components: (a) youth development, (b) gender roles (c) sustainable livelihoods and (d) territoriality. The purpose was achieved through the following research questions: (a) What has been the impact of the youth participation and vocational education for the youth in the Yeguare Region?; (b) What has been the impact of the territorial approach on the development of the Yeguare Region?; and (c) How has the sustainability of livelihoods of the Yeguare Region been impacted by the territorial approach?. This study used two methods. Quantitative and qualitative methods permitted the gathering and analyzing of different types of project data. The quantitative analysis included descriptive and inferential statistics. The qualitative analysis elaborated and expanded the quantitative analysis. Ten themes related to the impact of the territorial model of development in the Yeguare Region emerged during the research. Youth leadership and entrepreneurship, youth expectations and future plans, and occupational status and welfare of the families were the emergent themes for youth development. Territoriality had the following emergent themes: priorities for local development, design of policies based on the established priorities, inter-institutional alliances, and organizational capabilities in the region. Sustainable livelihoods considered association capabilities, financial services, and welfare of the families as its emergent themes. The contribution of this study to the field of sustainable development was to expand the knowledge about the impacts of a territorial model of development in rural Honduras. Also, policymakers and project stakeholders may use this information to plan, design and implement more effective development programs, and may decrease project expenditures, increase income, and benefit the communities.

Thesis (LL. M.)--Judge Advocate General's School, United States Army, 1991. / "April 1991." Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 82-100). Also issued in microfiche.

Thesis (D. Miss.)--Western Seminary, Portland, OR, 2002. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 296-309).

Thesis (D. Miss.)--Western Seminary, Portland, OR, 2002. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 296-309).

Thesis (D. Miss.)--Western Seminary, Portland, OR, 2002. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 296-309).

Thesis (Psy. D.)--Wheaton College Graduate School, Wheaton, IL, 2003. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 63-69).