Magister Philosophiae (Land and Agrarian Studies) - MPhil(LAS) / This dissertation aims at understanding the legal implications of a grazing dispute that was reported in the western Kavango Region a few years after Namibia’s Independence in 1990. This dispute which was between Ovawambo cattle owners and herders from the Ohangwena and Oshikoto regions and the local Vakwangali community members (represented by the UKTA) was reported in 1992 (other reports suggest that it might even have originated as early as the 1960s and 1980s), when it was said that the Ovawambo cattle owners and herders with their hundreds of cattle had entered into western Kavango “illegally” in search of grazing. The Ovawambo cattle owners and herders were first charged in 2005 and were eventually evicted in 2009. This dissertation looks at how legislation was used to deal with the conflict and investigates the impacts of the court order on all parties involved. The methodology employed during this study was predominantly qualitative, mainly utilising individual interviews and focus group discussions with the participants. This study found that the Government of Namibia had delayed acting on the grazing dispute for mainly political reasons. The study also found that many herders had indeed entered western Kavango Region illegally because they could not provide any letters of consent from the Ukwangali Traditional Authority (UKTA); many herders also admitted that there were no written agreements between themselves and the UKTA. The research also found that although the eviction orders were issued to all the herders, some still remained in the area; this selective application of the law rendered the eviction order somewhat ineffective. The study found that some local or affected community members were satisfied with the consequences of the eviction order and reported positive results regarding their farming activities such as better grazing and improved yields in their crop fields. Other community members, however, were disappointed by the refusal of certain herders to vacate the area, as well as by the failure of the government to ensure that all the herders had left the area.

Student Number : 9904953T - PhD thesis - School of Animal, Plant and Environmental Science - Faculty of Science / This study seeks to combine the knowledge of science and society to elicit the relationship between the harvesting of woody plant species and the local availability of woody species in South African savannas. Ten villages located in the former communal areas and homelands within three broad vegetation types (i.e., Mixed lowveld bushveld, Eastern thorn bushveld, and Natal lowveld bushveld) were studied. The study, conducted in the framework of the coupled human-environment system poses challenges to both scientists and managers (e.g., setting common goals). Data were collected using modified Whittaker plots (MWP) and focus group discussions (FGD), denoting ecology and society, respectively. There were nine 1000m² MWP plots sampled per village, each having nested 1m², 10m² and 100m² subplots. The FGD involved six groups of local people based on gender and age. The study revealed that the harvesting of woody plant species is a source of local disturbance to woody vegetation. Generally, there were more woody species in locations farther from settlements, having a mean of 41.97 ± 3.9, than for the intermediate (38.27 ± 5.6) and near locations (19.9 ± 4.2) within the 1000m² plots, the result of the reduction in species closer to settlements from higher harvesting levels. The larger sampling plot size of 1000m² of the MWP had the highest diversity, decreasing sequentially to the smallest scale (1m²). The density of the woody species was highest in the intermediate locations (517 ± 80 plants/ha), followed by the far and near, relative to the settlements. The Natal lowveld bushveld broad vegetation type had the highest mean density of trees (573 ± 71 trees/ha) compared to the Mixed lowveld bushveld (366 ± 64 trees/ha) and the Eastern thorn bushveld (312 ± 40 trees/ha). The stem diameters of trees were generally higher in the villages of the Mixed lowveld bushveld than the other two vegetation types. The study reaffirmed that anthropogenic disturbances within savannas impact vegetation and need to be studied concurrently with other disturbance factors (e.g., biotic and abiotic or environmental). The mean total coppice shoots of stumps within the 1000m² plots was relatively higher in the near locations (38.4%), than the far (33.0%) and intermediate (28.7%). This difference in coppicing shows that although near locations were less species rich, which is a result of disturbance, the growth of shoots may nevertheless be greater. Harvesting disturbance will possibly favour the regeneration of some species, as well as the maintenance of biodiversity. Whilst 135 woody species (from a total 191 from 42 plant families) sampled in the field were used by the local people, the community knowledge yielded almost twice as many (267 species, from 69 plant families). The ratio of mean useful woody species to total woody species remained relatively constant at about 1.0:1.1 from the near to far locations around the villages and accompanied by increased woody species diversity with distance from village. The MWP sampling yielded eight broad use categories (i.e., medicinal, wild edible fruits, fuelwood, housing and fencing poles, craft (e.g., carving), cultural, local beverages (e.g., alcohol)), and nine for the FGD (the eight for the MWP plus indigenous furniture). According to the local people, the highest number of species was used for medicine (27.8% of species), followed by fuelwood (19.2%) and wild edible fruits/seeds (19.1%). Over half of the species had multiple uses (i.e., three to eight uses), raising questions of possible threats to their persistence. Useful woody species were not restricted to any particular location or vegetation type. Large sized trees were subjected to even more uses than smaller trees, another source of conservation concern. Fifteen of the woody plant species are presently protected by law in South Africa (e.g., Adansonia digitata, Podocarpus latifolius, Mimusops caffra, Philenoptera violacea), while others are facing various forms of regional threats (e.g., Alberta magna, Catha edulis, Ocotea bullata). There is the need to popularise and make people (both local and outsiders) aware of the state of NTFP species, using local and village level information as an additional criterion for describing conservation threat (e.g., proposed “Locally Brown List” – Chapter 4). The older generation of local people were highly knowledgeable in terms of the woody species used for medicine, craft, fencing and housing poles, the middle aged in beverage making species, and the younger generation in fuelwood species. Overall, older males were highly knowledgeable of the useful species. The generally strong correlation (r = 0.99, p <0.0001) between the cumulative woody species diversity from field and community knowledge suggests the need to integrate data using multi-disciplinary approach and also to manage NTFP species. Although threat reduction assessments (TRA) and monitoring have previously been suggested, the participation of local people, harvesters and users will be crucial in making TRAs effective. In conclusion, the harvesting of NTFPs, and the impacts of the changes in the NTFP species on total diversity in savannas need to be understood in order to move towards a more holistic approach to conserving the woody species that may be at risk of extinction through harvesting. Disturbance criteria that describe harvesting levels should be set to guide research and management protocols. Finally, when discussing NTFPs and the species from which they are harvested, management should aim at incorporating all the factors that affect sustainability, such as land and resource tenure and local participation, the political economy, appropriate production and development cycles.

Esta dissertação trata a questão dos espaços comuns em alguns empreendimentos de habitação de interesse social em São Paulo. Resgata historicamente as diversas manifestações, nas cidades, de espaços comuns próprios de construções residenciais e de conjuntos habitacionais. Com estudos de caso específicos, recupera quatro experiências dos primeiros programas de construção de moradias por mutirão e autogestão realizados em São Paulo, entre os anos 1989 e 2004, em razão de suas peculiaridades e qualidades que os tornaram bons modelos de projetos de arquitetura habitacional de interesse social. Procura, a partir da análise das condicionantes dos projetos de arquitetura e urbanismo, avaliar como os espaços comuns são geridos, como foram apropriados pelos moradores, e em que medida tal apropriação se relaciona ou não com os usos pensados e propostos (ou não) nos projetos originais. / This dissertation covers the matter of communal areas in some public-funded housing projects in São Paulo. It recalls the historical and varied advent, throughout cities, of such communal areas that are usual to residential and housing project construction. Using studies of specific cases, this research analyzes four experiences from the first public occupant-run housing project construction programs carried out in São Paulo, between 1989 and 2004. They were selected because of the peculiarities and features that made them such good models for public-funded architectural housing projects. The aim is to assess, by analyzing the conditioning factors of the architectural and urbanization projects, how the communal areas were put together, how they were utilized by the occupants, and how such utilization is related, or not, to the possibilities previously planned or proposed in the original projects.

Esta dissertação trata a questão dos espaços comuns em alguns empreendimentos de habitação de interesse social em São Paulo. Resgata historicamente as diversas manifestações, nas cidades, de espaços comuns próprios de construções residenciais e de conjuntos habitacionais. Com estudos de caso específicos, recupera quatro experiências dos primeiros programas de construção de moradias por mutirão e autogestão realizados em São Paulo, entre os anos 1989 e 2004, em razão de suas peculiaridades e qualidades que os tornaram bons modelos de projetos de arquitetura habitacional de interesse social. Procura, a partir da análise das condicionantes dos projetos de arquitetura e urbanismo, avaliar como os espaços comuns são geridos, como foram apropriados pelos moradores, e em que medida tal apropriação se relaciona ou não com os usos pensados e propostos (ou não) nos projetos originais. / This dissertation covers the matter of communal areas in some public-funded housing projects in São Paulo. It recalls the historical and varied advent, throughout cities, of such communal areas that are usual to residential and housing project construction. Using studies of specific cases, this research analyzes four experiences from the first public occupant-run housing project construction programs carried out in São Paulo, between 1989 and 2004. They were selected because of the peculiarities and features that made them such good models for public-funded architectural housing projects. The aim is to assess, by analyzing the conditioning factors of the architectural and urbanization projects, how the communal areas were put together, how they were utilized by the occupants, and how such utilization is related, or not, to the possibilities previously planned or proposed in the original projects.

This study assessed the use of indigenous acaricides in Tsholotsho, Zimbabwe. An observational study design plus laboratory analysis were used in this study. Data on demographic profiles and tick control practices in 21 villages was collected using a questionnaire. Seven hundred and fifty nine (n=759) ticks were collected from cattle using systematic sampling at 15 dip tanks. Marula efficacy was assessed using pregnancy, repellence and mortality tests. Farmers used several tick control remedies (physical removal, chemicals, and plant and animal extracts), some of which have potential to harm the health of the public. Marula caused significant decrease in mass among pregnant ticks (p<0.05), had a significant kill percentage (p< 0.05), and also repelled, killed and hindered egg laying. The active ingredients in marula formulations should be investigated. The extra-label use of conventional acaricide, and the use of compounds with potential to harm the public health needs to be regulated. / Environmental Sciences / M. Sc. (Agriculture)

Detta projekt handlar om hur vi kan bo nära varandra i en stad och samtidigt ha tydliga gränser kring de ytor vi delar. Var möts vi i staden? Var är vi tillsammans i bostaden? När övergår den privata sfären till gemensam? Kommunikationen i dagens bostadshus har reducerats till minsta möjliga vilket helt tar över dess utformning. Att istället se denna som en social yta har potential att skapa ett levande atmosfär där mer privata funktioner delas med kommunikationen. Delandet handlar också om de saker vi har i hemmet, är delning av kökmaskiner och städredskap ett möjligt sätt att spara energi? Hur kan vi bygga för att främja detta? I processen har jag försökt definiera vad som skapar ett attraktivt boende i stadskontext och se hur detta går att applicera i morgondagens Stockholm. Jag har gjort detta genom att skissa i modell och analysera dessa i jämförelse med exempel på lyckade bostadshus. Utformning av kommunikation och vad vi kan dela i ett bostadshus är de två frågor jag har fokuserat på i detta projekt. Hur kan bostadshuset vara en förlängning av staden och samtidigt signalera en privathet? / This project is about how we can live near each other in the city, while having clear boundaries around the areas we share. Where do we meet in the city? Where does the private sphere become commune? Communication, such as stairs and corridors, in residential houses has been reduced to a minimum. The result of this is that the balance between architecture and function is very unstable. To instead see this as a social area has the potential to create a vibrant atmosphere where more private functions are shared with the communication. How can we share space? What can the house share with the city? What can the user share with each other? Sharing is a potential way to save energy. How can we build to promote this? In the process, I have tried to define what creates an attractive residential building in a city context. I have done this by model sketching and analyze these in relation to examples of successful residential buildings. The formation of the communication and what we can share in a residential building are the two main questions in this project. How can the dwelling house be an extension to the city while signal a private sphere?