The English language is taught for a variety of professional purposes, including business and medicine, yet to date there is no scholarly research investigating the potential necessity of teaching English for environmental purposes. Given that tourism constitutes one of the largest global industries, that ecotourism is the fasting growing segment of the field, that English is the lingua franca of tourism worldwide, that the majority of ecotourism operations are located in the developing world, and that significant levels of unemployment persist within many of these areas, the relationship between knowledge of the English language and employment opportunities within the field of ecotourism warrants consideration. Consequently, the present exploratory study of the relationship between English and ecotourism in Latin America is a first attempt to determine whether or not English language training programs for ecotourism guides in Latin America are a relevant endeavor worthy of further investigation and whether or not the field of teaching English for Professional Purposes (EPP) should consider this area a new sub-discipline. / text

This thesis analyzes the consequences of property confiscations and redistribution under the Sandinista (FSLN) government in Nicaragua of the 1980s. It covers the period from the overthrow of Anastasio Somoza Debayle in 1979 to the February 1990 FSLN electoral defeat and the following two months of the Piñata, when the outgoing Sandinista government quickly formalized possession of property by new owners, both formerly landless peasants and the elite. It also examines subsequent efforts to resolve outstanding property claims, with the focus on the Chamorro and later presidential administrations to 2007, when Sandinista leader Daniel Ortega and the FSLN returned to power. The main argument is that Sandinista leaders, largely from the same families that have dominated Nicaragua since the Colonial period, followed Nicaraguan traditions of using influence to distort the legal and political system to gain title to valuable properties. In contrast to partisan arguments in favor of one regime or another, here the methods of property transfer are analyzed by investigating in detail documentary evidence of illustrative cases that show the steps and individuals involved in these transactions, as well as more generally surveying other cases and the overall situation with property. The argument is tested by examining how the selected claimants’ properties were taken and who obtained them. The results indicate that Sandinista elites did obtain properties for their personal benefit, often in violation of their own legislation, but that this was largely consistent with the practice of other, non- Sandinista governments. After their electoral defeat, ongoing Sandinista influence in the organs of government influenced the restitution process, with claimants typically settling for compensation at a fraction of the market value, with the Nicaraguan state and people bearing the cost of paying for compensation bonds over the coming decades. Political influence undermined the restitution mechanism.

This thesis engages with representations of social crisis in Argentine fictional cinema during 1998-2005, a period when Argentina experienced a deep economic crisis that brought about significant changes in politics, culture, society and the arts. My emphasis is upon the ways in which cinema interpreted both present and long-established dialogues with national and social discourse, while re-assessing notions of national identity, culture and social class. The study contributes to a growing body of scholarship on Argentine film which has no precedent in history. In particular, works published in English over the last five years have offered fresh reflections upon a field that has remained dominated by narrative and aesthetic, rather than analytical, approaches By combining close textual analysis of films to the study of their cultural context my research argues that cinema addressed predominantly middle-class Argentine audiences with critical questions concerning the transformations they were experiencing over those years of crisis. As works of fiction, the films also offered ordinary people the possibility to identify with their own lives and values, stimulating critical reflection and emotional engagement, as well as enjoyment and laughter. The modes through which these films addressed Argentine audiences are themselves as rich and complex as their narrative representations of crisis. Amongst the most compelling achievements of recent Argentine cinema are the diversity of its modes of address, its strong themes, interesting styles and captivating narrative strategies. These films offered domestic audiences both reflective and divergent views on social reality that, without any doubt, enriched the cultural arena in which Argentineans could reflect on their past, their daily life, their values and their relationship with social minorities. In this sense cinema helped Argentine people to learn to live in democracy.

Conceptual practices developed in Colombia towards the end of the 1960s and into the 1970s. Even a cursory look at surveys of Colombian conceptual art shows that the collective El Sindicato, active between 1976 and 1979, secured its space in these accounts with its 1978 work Alacena con zapatos, which won the top prize at the XXVII Salón Nacional. However, Alacena con zapatos was neither the only, nor the most significant, contribution of El Sindicato to the development of conceptual practices. The collective’s rich oeuvre, while concise, was nonetheless remarkable in its interventions on public spaces as a means for social change. A number of factors have led to the critical misunderstanding and, ultimately, the historiographical neglect of these interventions. This thesis problematizes these factors in order to reframe and expand El Sindicato’s role within the narrative of Colombian art. To elucidate El Sindicato’s contributions, and taking into account that much of Colombian conceptual art remains unknown in the United States, this thesis also registers Colombia’s artistic field as it stood in the 1970s. In all, my project situates El Sindicato’s practices within the broader narrative of Conceptualism as a means to both enrich our understanding of contemporary art in Colombia and help expand the familiar boundaries of the map of conceptual art. / text

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This thesis is based on oral histories with Dora Cuidad, a paid domestic worker in Lima, Peru. Dora Cuidad's stories are a window into how relationships permeated with racial and class differences, may be negotiated by paid domestic workers and the families that employ them. Dora depicts a life in the Zwinkel household, filled with intimate moments and acts that create emotional bonds that extend across generations as well as over distance and time. Dora's vibrant narrative also reflects how a working-class individual in Lima, Peru imbues meaning to her life experiences, how such an individual engages with the world as she attempts to further the well-being of her children and fulfill her own dreams.

The world desperately seeks alternative fuels to eradicate its reliance upon unsustainable oil extraction; however, emerging biofuel technology is contingent on a more precious natural resource: water. Essential in all stages of biofuel production, including growing, processing, and refining oil feedstocks, water still represents a vital necessity for the surrounding population. This research assesses the immediate and long-term impacts of the expanding palm oil biodiesel industry on local water availability and privatized water management in San Pedro Sula, Honduras and the surrounding Sula Valley. Analyzing regional changes in water accessibility and quality caused by the palm oil commerce, the report also explores the reasons behind the impending water scarcity in San Pedo Sula. Finally, the study examines the potential consequences of these transforming water realities on future water provision as well as possible service adaptations required of the privatized company.

Despite the wide range of publications about Julio Cortázar, there is no study that specifically addresses the question: what does Cortázar mean by 'el hombre nuevo'? Based on a careful reading of two of his novels, Rayuela / Hopscotch and Libro de Manuel / A Manual for Manuel, my thesis defines 'el hombre nuevo' as Cortázar's attempt to establish a dialogue with the reader in order to invent together a new understanding of the human being. 'El hombre nuevo' involves an extended ontological search which is continued outside of the text, and the relationship author-reader goes beyond a dyadic model into the construction of a new community of new men and new women.

I propose and test a new model determining the choice of the exchange rate regime in Latin America and the Caribbean. The key insight is that systemic level instability plays an important role in choosing the exchange rate regime. Using new data from Reinhart and Rogoff (2004), a second insight is that countries do not always follow the type of exchange rate regime they claim. Testing the determinants of regime choice against both the traditional, official de jure and new, market de facto data, I find that policymakers are strategically using the observed gap between the measures. The evidence reveals that systemic level variables, namely instability in the US interest rate and the bilateral USD:DEM/Euro exchange rate, significantly impact the choice of the exchange rate regime.

The influence of globalization over legal systems has resulted in, among other effects, the emergence of transnational law and new international players, such as multinational corporations (MNEs), non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and numerous international entities. The dynamics of the new players within the new transnational legal order have generated a need for a new supranational system of dispute resolution. / The analysis focuses on the Latin American experience in adapting to judicial reform programs (sponsored by international organizations such as the World Bank and the International Development Bank) which promote the integration of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) methods into domestic legal systems, in order to integrate such systems into a supranational system of dispute resolution for the entire continent. / This study aims to explore various alternatives for preventing a continental supranational system of dispute resolution from undermining domestic democracies, while integrating developing countries into the process of commercial globalization.