Palmiet peatlands in the agricultural landscape are viewed by farmers as problematic. They obstruct the effective passage of water along watercourses and therefore promote localized flooding of lands and infrastructure, and they trap sediment delivered along watercourses that drowns fields and infrastructure with sedimentary deposits. These events are problematic for farmers trying to make a living off the land. Wetlands are also often viewed as wastelands that should be put to more productive use. The obvious thing to do is to bring in machinery to drain the wetlands and improve the flow of water and sediment through these wetlands.

Peatlands in Southern South America (SSA), in the path of the Southern Westerly Wind belt (SWW), offer the potential of reliable palaeoclimate archives. This investigation aimed to test the late-Holocene climate signal related to variability of the SWW. Three sites were investigated: San Juan and Karukinka bog, southernmost Chile and San Carlos, a Sphagnum dominated bog, discovered in the Falkland Islands, to form a regional comparison. A multi-proxy approach was used, combining both palaeoecological and stable isotopic methods. At one site, Karukinka, intra-site replicability was tested across three profiles located along a microtopographical gradient. A low number of statistically significant correlations between proxies were evident. KAR-EM-1, the low-hummock profile, displayed the highest number of significant correlations, suggesting an optimal coring location. Chronological uncertainty in the high-hummock profile, KAR-EM-3, was the focus of discussion. Intra-site replicability between the palaeoecological records was improved by plotting the records against a ‘master chronology’, from the mid-hummock profile, KAR-EM-2, assuming a synchronous acrotelm-catotelm boundary across the profiles. The testate amoeba inferred depth to water table (WTD) reconstructions offered the highest intra-site coherence, while the stable isotope records suggested generally poor intra-site replicability. A semi-quantitative method of intra-site comparison was carried out which resulted in a number of climate scenarios. The inter-site comparison assessed correlations between the records from the three sites. A lack of significant correlations between the sites may have been due to regional climate variations and differences in the temporal resolution of the records. Robust climatic inferences were limited to the last 300 years. The WTD reconstructions displayed the highest inter-site coherence and suggested a drying trend after AD 1930 due to a southerly shift of the SWW. Late-Holocene climate variability was inferred from the palaeoecological records from Karukinka. Two periods were identified: a MCA period of generally wetter conditions (AD 750-1100) and a LIA period of overall drier conditions (~AD 1100-1900) during a southerly and northerly shifted SWW respectively, driven by solar variability and polar cell strengthening.

In sub-Saharan African countries that have made democratic transition from military rule and military-backed authoritarian regimes, state elites have embarked upon strategies aimed at demilitarising the new democratic political process. Demilitarisation of the state and politics has become an imperative because it is decisive for consolidating democratic politics and for ensuring improvements in public safety and security. Yet the process of such demilitarisation in these countries has often generated a paradox, whereby the reduction of the political influence of state institutions of violence has been associatedw ith rising civil militarism and the prevalenceo f organised violence in the wider society. In these circumstances, taking cognisance of the dangers of civil militarism and other forms of private violence is a priority for designing and implementing demilitarisation strategies and other security reforms in post-authoritarian African states. Reformminded political elites and external supporters need to be sensitive to these dangers or risk perpetuating the shell of electoral democracy that cannot deliver the goal of human security in the region. This dissertation explored how the current approach to demilitarisation is related to the problem of civil militarism by examining the case studies of Nigeria and South Africa. It explains that given the condition of the state in Africa, demilitarisation of politics after transition from military or military-backed authoritarianism contributes to the emergence of civil militarism. Based on this finding, it argues for a comprehensive approach to demilitarisation as a strategy that caters to both state and societal violence in order to mitigate the risks of civil militarism in the process.

This aim of this study was to explore the mediatory role of the Rhodes University (RU) / Southern African Development Community (SADC) International Certificate in Environmental Education course in developing capacity for reflexive mainstreaming of environment and sustainability education in teacher education in southern Africa. This course was a change-oriented intervention to support capacity and agency for mainstreaming environmental education across many sectors of education. The discourse of the course included environmental education and education for sustainable development and for this study this was referred to as environment and sustainability education (ESE). Environment and sustainability education is a developing notion in southern Africa and the SADC Regional Environmental Education Programme (REEP) was set up to support capacity for mainstreaming ESE. ESE was one of the responses taken by the SADC region to respond to prevalent environment and sustainability issues across the region. This study focused, in general, on establishing the mediatory roles of the reflexive mediatory tool, the change project in the course. More specifically, the research explores the mediatory role of course interventions and activities that were used to develop understanding of and to frame the change project in fostering agentially motivated changed practice in the teacher education sector. Drawing on realist social theory, which is a form of critical realism, especially the work of Margaret Archer, the study used the principle of emergence to interpret changes in the course participants' practices. The study was framed using the research question: How do mediated actions in a regional professional development programme and the workplace influence Environment and Sustainability (ESE) competencies, practice, learning and agency in Teacher Education for Sustainable Development (TESD) change projects? The following sub-questions refined the study: • What mediated actions on the course influence ESE competences, practice, learning and agency on the professional development programme? • How do these identified mediated actions influence ESE competences, practice and learning on the professional development programme? • What mediated actions in workplaces influence ESE competences, practice, learning and agency in the change projects in teacher education institutions? • How do these identified mediated actions in workplaces influence ESE competences, practices and mediated actions in the workplace? Notions of practice, agency, reflexivity, competences and capabilities were used to sensitise explanations of features emergent from course interactions; the process of analysis was under-laboured by the theoretical lens of critical realism and realist social theory. Mediation theory was used to explain the role of interventions across the course. The study used a case study approach with three cases of teacher educators from two institutions in two southern African countries. Data were generated through document analysis of course portfolios, semi-structured interviews with research participants, observations of participants during their teaching and through group discussions in a change management workshop to establish features that emerged from the course and change project interactions. The principle of emergence recognises that any interactions result in new features of characteristics that are different from the original. In this case, the study investigated those features shown by participants after being exposed to the course's mediatory tools. In order to describe the cases, a narrative approach was used. The study was conducted at the interface of the United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (UNDESD) and the Global Action Plan for Education for Sustainable Development, therefore the outcomes have implications for capacity development for ESE during and beyond the Global Action Plan for Education for Sustainable Development. The key finding is that capacity development for ESE needs to foreground reflexive engagement with one's own practice for it to be meaningful and relevant. The change project provided course participants with the opportunity to engage with their own practice and particularly their competences and capabilities through its mediatory tools. Course participants showed emergent properties that were evidence of expanded zones of proximal development (ZPD) in competences, capabilities and agency. The study illustrates that meaningful learning happens when immersed in context and when learners are able to make connections between concepts, practices and experiences (their praxis). The study also illustrates that capacity building creates opportunities for practitioners to expand their repertoire through the course activities. Some of the course activities stimulated, enhanced and gave impetus to their agency or double morphogenesis for them to continue to expand that repertoire by trying and retrying changes in practice that they value on their own and in communities of practice. Capacity development courses need to be structured to involve a variety of mediatory activities as some of these are relevant and are valued for different teacher education contexts. The study also shows how knowledge and understanding of classical Vygotskian mediation can be used to frame and structure courses for developing the ZPD retrospectively and how the repertoire which forms the ZPD has potential to be expanded and to keep expanding, whether at individual level or in community with others, as an object in the post-Vygotskian mediation process. The change project provides the starting point, the vehicle and momentum to teacher educators to critique and to reflexively transform competences or aspects of their practice that they value. The study showed that capacity development through the change project generated momentum for potentially morphogenetic changes in teacher education practice. The course initiated interactions at the phase T2-T3 that disrupted teacher educators' habitus. On-course phase activities such as assignments, lectures, discussions, practical tasks, excursions and regional knowledge exchange groups contributed smaller morphogenetic cycles to the main cycle. Reflexive engagement with one's own practice becomes a useful tool for building capacity for scaling capacity for mainstreaming ESE during and after the Global Action programme for ESD. Contributions of the study therefore go beyond the SADC region to contribute insights into capacity development for ESD in similar conditions of teacher education across the world.

This dissertation argues that the pulpit rhetoric of the Pastors’ Conference and SBC Forum portrays the Conservative Resurgence as a competition between conservative and moderate visions for Baptist identity as differentiated by the mutually exclusive manner in which each group perceived of doctrine and the constitution of denominational fellowship. That conservatives and moderates both construed of the conflict in this way is revealed with remarkable consistency by their respective preaching at the annual pre-convention gatherings. Regardless of what conservatives and moderates may have said during the battle or since, their preaching revealed that they both viewed the Resurgence as a competition of visions for Baptist identity. Conservatives pursued the vision of a well-defined and well defended Baptist orthodoxy, while moderates pursued a vision of Baptist freedom. Chapter 1 presents the primary research problem and main argument of this work. Chapter 2 introduces the preaching of the Pastors’ Conference and SBC Forum, giving special attention to those sermons that best exemplified the disagreements that fueled the controversy. Chapter 3 analyzes the preaching of the events using a variety of complementary theories from within the field of social movement rhetorical criticism. Chapter 4 applies Richard Weaver’s theory of ultimate terms to the discourse of the two preaching meetings, revealing what were the most rhetorically potent words and/or phrases among competing conservative and moderate rhetorics. Chapter 5 administers Ernest Bormann’s theory of fantasy theme analysis to the most relevant sermons in order to determine the dramatic motifs to which conservative and moderate rhetor-leaders most often appealed when they invited their hearers to support their vision for Southern Baptists. Chapter 6 provides a synopsis of the main discoveries of this work by describing the issues, the people, the setting, the values, and the visions contained in the pulpit rhetoric of the Conservative Resurgence. The differences between conservative and moderate Southern Baptists as revealed by the rhetorical analysis contained in this work were so profound that a conflict of the nature and significance of the Resurgence was essentially inevitable.

Submitted by (lucia.rodrigues@ufrpe.br) on 2017-03-23T13:42:02Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Robson Jose do Nascimento.pdf: 504518 bytes, checksum: c6daea872bbe37b1f317f4658b6ff1ab (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-03-23T13:42:02Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Robson Jose do Nascimento.pdf: 504518 bytes, checksum: c6daea872bbe37b1f317f4658b6ff1ab (MD5) Previous issue date: 2006-02-21 / Garlic is a monocotyledon belonging to the family Aliaceae, originating in Central Asia. In Brazil, it was introduced by the Portuguese, at the time of discovery, being widely used in cooking until the present day. Botanically, it is an agrarian herbaceous, with approximately 50 cm of height, propagated by bulbilho, which allows the maintenance of the agronomic characteristics. This method of propagation allows an efficient dissemination of pathogens, mainly viruses, which are one of the main groups of pathogens of this culture, which can cause a reduction of productive potential between 20 and 80%. Garlic is a natural host of viral species belonging to the genera Potyvirus, Carlavirus and Allexivirus. The latter was recently established as a member of the Flexiviridae family and groups Garlic mite-borne filamentous virus (GarMbFV), Garlic virus A (GarV-A), Garlic virus B (GarV-B), Garlic virus C Garlic virus D (GarV-D), Garlic virus E (GarV-E), Garlic virus X (GarV-X) and Shallot virus X (ShV-X). In Brazil, imported garlic has been used for planting, which constitutes a risk of introduction of exotic viral species in the country. Currently, the detection of allexivirus in bulbs can be performed by serological and / or molecular tests, and planting is necessary to obtain foliar tissue with high concentration of viral particles, which requires, on average, 30 days. Serological tests are efficient, however, because of the difficulty in producing high quality antisera, are currently less indicated than molecular methods. Aiming to reduce the time for analysis of detection of allexivirus in garlic, a methodological adjustment for nucleic acid extraction was sought directly from the leaf primordia of bulbilhos. Samples of garlic, from Rio Grande do Sul and imported from Argentina were analyzed using foliar primordia obtained by dissecting the bulbiles to extract total RNA using the Trizol reagent. Amplifications of the target genomic fragment were performed via RT-PCR. A band at the time corresponding to 500 bp was observed on agarose gel in the two samples studied. PCR products were transferred to membranes for Southern blot testing, for which a cold probe capable of detecting Allexivirus species was used, from which testing the presence of allexivirus was confirmed. Another allexivirus detection analysis was carried out on samples of garlic consumption imported from Argentina, China and Spain, following the same methodology, being verified a band corresponding to 500 bp in samples from Argentina and China. Southern Blot test, in which a specific cold probe was used to detect GarV-C, confirmed viral infection by the aforementioned species. According to the results obtained, it was found that the extraction of total RNA directly from leaf primordia, combined with the use of molecular techniques, presents itself as a fast and efficient method for detection of allexivirus. It was also verified that most of the analyzed samples are infected with allexivirus, evidencing a sanitary pattern that contraindicates the use of this type of material as seed, with the risk of introduction of exotic viral species. / O alho é uma monocotiledônea pertencente à família Aliaceae, originário da Ásia Central. No Brasil, foi introduzido pelos portugueses, na época do descobrimento, sendo amplamente utilizado na culinária até os dias atuais. Botanicamente, trata-se de uma herbácea agâmica, com aproximadamente 50 cm de altura, propagada via bulbilho, o que permite a manutenção das características agronômicas. Este método de propagação possibilita uma eficiente disseminação de patógenos, principalmente vírus, que são um dos principais grupos de patógenos desta cultura, podendo causar uma redução do potencial produtivo entre 20 e 80%. O alho é hospedeiro natural de espécies virais pertencentes aos gêneros Potyvirus, Carlavirus e Allexivirus. Este último foi recentemente estabelecido como membro da família Flexiviridae e agrupa as espécies Garlic mite-borne filamentousvirus (GarMbFV), Garlic virus A (GarV-A), Garlic virus B (GarV-B), Garlic virus C (GarV-C), Garlic virus D (GarV-D), Garlic virus E (GarV-E), Garlic virus X (GarV-X) e Shallot virus X (ShV-X). No Brasil, o alho consumo importado tem sido empregado para o plantio, o que se constitui um risco de introdução de espécies virais exóticas no país. Atualmente, a detecção de allexivírus em bulbos pode ser realizada por testes sorológicos e/ou moleculares, sendo necessário plantio para obtenção de tecido foliar com alta concentração de partículas virais, o que requer, em média, 30 dias. Os testes sorológicos são eficientes, no entanto, em razão da dificuldade para produção de anti-soros de alta qualidade, atualmente são menos indicados que os métodos moleculares. Objetivando reduzir o tempo para análise de detecção de allexivírus em alho, buscou-se um ajustemetodológico para extração de ácido nucléico diretamente dos primórdios foliares de bulbilhos. Amostras de alho consumo, oriundos do Rio Grande do Sul e importado daArgentina foram analisadas, empregando-se primórdios foliares obtidos por dissecação dos bulbilhos para extração de RNA total com uso do reagente Trizol. As amplificações do fragmento genômico alvo foram realizadas via RT-PCR. Uma banda na altura correspondente a 500 pb foi observada, em gel de agarose, nas duas amostras estudadas. Os produtos de PCR foram transferidos para membranas para teste de Southern Blot, para o qual empregou-se uma sonda fria capaz de detectar espécies de Allexivirus, de cujo teste foi confirmado a presença de allexivírus. Outra análise de detecção de allexivírus foi realizada em amostras de alho consumo importado da Argentina, China e Espanha, seguindo a mesma metodologia, sendo verificada, uma banda na altura correspondente a 500 pb em amostras oriundas da Argentina e da China. Teste de Southern Blot, no qual empregou-se uma sonda fria específica para detectar GarV-C, confirmou infecção viral pela espécie citada. De acordo com os resultados obtidos constatou-se que a extração de RNA total diretamente de primórdios foliares, aliada ao uso de técnicas moleculares apresenta-se como um método rápido e eficiente para detecção de allexivírus. Constatou-se também, que a maior parte das amostras analisadas encontra-se infectada por allexivírus, evidenciando um padrão sanitário que contra-indica o uso deste tipo de material como semente, com o risco de introdução de espécies virais exóticas.

In sub-Saharan African countries that have made democratic transition from military rule and military-backed authoritarian regimes, state elites have embarked upon strategies aimed at demilitarising the new democratic political process. Demilitarisation of the state and politics has become an imperative because it is decisive for consolidating democratic politics and for ensuring improvements in public safety and security. Yet the process of such demilitarisation in these countries has often generated a paradox, whereby the reduction of the political influence of state institutions of violence has been associatedw ith rising civil militarism and the prevalenceo f organised violence in the wider society. In these circumstances, taking cognisance of the dangers of civil militarism and other forms of private violence is a priority for designing and implementing demilitarisation strategies and other security reforms in post-authoritarian African states. Reformminded political elites and external supporters need to be sensitive to these dangers or risk perpetuating the shell of electoral democracy that cannot deliver the goal of human security in the region. This dissertation explored how the current approach to demilitarisation is related to the problem of civil militarism by examining the case studies of Nigeria and South Africa. It explains that given the condition of the state in Africa, demilitarisation of politics after transition from military or military-backed authoritarianism contributes to the emergence of civil militarism. Based on this finding, it argues for a comprehensive approach to demilitarisation as a strategy that caters to both state and societal violence in order to mitigate the risks of civil militarism in the process.

This study was prompted by the need to remedy the situation that existed with respect to the poor status of our knowledge regarding the ichthyoplankton assemblage of the nearshore region along the south-east Cape coast of South Africa. The first chapter provides a brief introduction to the field of ichthyoplankton research and includes a summary of the status of research in southern Africa and an explanation of early life history terminology. The selection of all sample sites, times and strategies is also outlined. The study area along the south-east Cape coast with respect to its location, climate and physical oceanography is described in the second chapter, as is the gear used, bongo nets and an RMT1x6. A sampling protocol for the use of bongos from a small ski-boat, and the RMT from the research vessels, and for the handling and processing of samples was established. The selection of Middlebank as the main monthly sampling site within the Tsitsikamma National Park (TNP) was based on taxonomic diversity as well as logistical and safety constraints. The effect of mesh size and time of sampling with bongo nets on the catchability of ichthyoplankton was investigated in chapter three. Most data was accumulated during Sea Fisheries research cruises, with additional collections coming from the National Parks vessel. Although the differences were not significant, the 505 μ mesh nets captured larger larvae, with catches comprising higher percentages of flexion and postflexion larvae. Larval concentration and size were consistently greater in samples from periods of reduced light intensity, but significant differences were the exception. It was decided that sampling with 505 μ mesh nets during daylight would provide a representative sample of the available ichthyoplankton assemblage, while at the same time being the most practical and least time consuming with respect to handling, clogging and backflushing. In chapter four, the early life history stages of thiny of the seventy-five taxa sampled are described, reflecting the paucity of information which existed on the ichthyoplankton of the nearshore zone in the south-east Cape. These descriptions are seen as an important contribution towards any future research efforts in the region, but as many of these descriptions are based on few or single specimens, it is realised that the description of egg and larval stages will be an ongoing process. Based upon the data collected during this study, an ichthyoplankton species checklist was established in chapter five. Seventy-five taxa of fish larvae were identified to either family, genus or species level. A number of squid para-larvae were also encountered. Similarities and discrepancies with a previous survey in the region are presented. The temporal distribution of eggs and larvae between August 1993 and October 1996 was established, and the spatial distribution of ichthyoplankton along an offshore transect was determined between January 1995 and May 1996. Only 7 species from Middlebank and twelve from all stations combined displayed seasonal trends, with most of these being prevalent during winter months. Egg production, both over Middlebank and from all stations combined, appeared to be consistent, with no seasonal trends. Based upon the results from the offshore transect samples, it would appear that a single ichthyoplankton assemblage exists from Storms River out to fifteen nautical miles. Although a variety of statistical methods were applied to the data during this study, low egg and larval concentrations and a low sampling frequency meant that results had to be interpreted carefully. Chapter six describes the preliminary investigation into the vertical distribution of eggs and larvae. During two research cruises, discrete depth sampling using an RMT1x6 net was performed, with the majority of samples being accompanied by physical data provided by a CTD rosette sampler. No definite patterns could be seen as larval concentrations were low, and the short time scale did not allow for the identification of any diel migratory patterns. The relationship between total larvae and the physical environment was poor. The only possible relationship was that between plankton volume and total egg and total larval concentrations. The TNP may play an important role in the conservation of reef fish and the seeding of nearby fishing grounds through the export of pelagic eggs and larvae. Chapter seven describes a preliminary investigation into the dispersal potential of ichthyoplankton from the TNP. Based upon longshore currents determined from drogues, ADCP vectors and current meter readings, it was clear that if larvae were passive drifters, the potential for their dispersal from the TNP did exist. This pilot study showed that future work should concentrate not only on the oceanographic aspects, but on behavioural aspects of larvae which may enhance or retard dispersal. In the final discussion, it is emphasised that while this study went a long way to increasing our knowledge of the nearshore ichthyoplankton community, the true picture of the temporal and spatial dynamics of the species assemblage may only be revealed once more intensive sampling has been performed. The resolution of the early life history stages of the sparids and the identification of eggs to species level are seen as priorities for the near future. A complete species checklist for the TNP is provided based upon previous surveys (both on adult and larval fishes), this work and personal observations. A total of 171 species of fish from 70 families were identified, illustrating that the eggs and larvae of many species in the TNP have yet to be sampled. A brief description of the collaborative effort which is envisaged for the TNP over the next few years is provided.

M.A. (Politics) / This study examines the four democratic elections that have been held in Malawi, Zambia, South Africa and Madagascar in order to establish whether there has been an improvement in the quality of elections over the years, to ascertain the challenges faced in each country, and to determine the possible implications for the future of democracy in each of the countries. The criteria according to which elections are assessed in the SADC region guided the investigation. These are the PEMMO standards which, in contrast to a reliance on generalised terms such as „free and fair‟, offer practical guidelines on establishing progress in the electoral process, as well as the SADC-PF and SADC standards. The discussion has been structured along the lines of the three phases of the electoral process, namely, the pre-election period, the election period, and the post-election period, each with its own set of indicators to be met. The study finds that despite the minimal achievements, the overall management of the electoral processes in Malawi, Zambia and Madagascar has stagnated over the years. The institutional and legal framework is one of the major areas that need improvement in Malawi. The Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC), which was charged with the responsibility of organising the various elections, experienced enormous difficulties in establishing a level playing field as well as in exercising its full mandate. Other problem areas include the voter registration process, the use of state resources by the incumbent party, and the acceptance of the electoral outcome by some opposition leaders. In the case of Zambia, the procedure for the appointment of members of the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) undermines the independence of this body. The other difficult aspects (as in the case of Malawi) are the lack of public funding of political parties, the use of state resources by the ruling party, biased media access and coverage for the ruling party, and the acceptance of election results by some of the opposition parties. The inadequate training of the electoral staff has also been a major contributing factor to these challenges. In contrast to the abovementioned countries (including South Africa), the legal framework in Madagascar did not provide for the establishment of an independent electoral management body. Consequently, the various elections resulted in recurrent shortcomings in the voter registration process, the use of state resources, and the management of election material. However, despite the above bleak picture regarding the elections in Malawi, Zambia and Madagascar, there were some marginal improvements in the conduct of the elections over the years. The polling and counting exercises in Malawi, for instance, proved to be generally well-managed by the fourth election. Similarly, the Zambian elections over the years have improved in terms of the voter registration process, and the decrease in acts of political violence and intimidation. In Madagascar the campaign periods were generally peaceful. However, the government has since been overthrown in a coup d’état in 2009. In contrast with Malawi, Zambia and Madagascar, the four elections in South Africa have been of a high standard, notwithstanding the few flaws, particularly during the first elections in 1994. The independence and credibility of the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) over the years, as well as its continuation of members for all the elections, have among other reasons, contributed to the high standard of elections in the country. The continuous significant flaws in the elections in Malawi and Zambia pose a serious problem for the advancement of democracy in these countries. In other words, if the basic requirements of democracy – that is "free and fair" elections – are not met it does not bode well for the democratic future of these countries. The legitimacy of the elections and that of the resultant governments can be undermined, as has since been illustrated in the instance of Madagascar. The case of South Africa demonstrates the direct link between the "freeness" and "fairness" of elections and the extent to which its political system is labelled a democracy.

Magister Legum - LLM / This study focussed on the transformation of the institutions of local government from deconcentration, delegation to devolution. This transformation can be looked at starting with the institutions inherited from the colonial era, which started after the Berlin Conference of 1884, which divided Africa among the western powers. Then the transformation, which took place immediately after independence; that is the period of 1960s, the changes made in the 1980s and finally the transformation taking place following the multiparty democracy in the 1990s. The study looked at decentralisation during the colonial period; decentralisation after independence, with a particular focus on the institutions under a single party system; transformation of local government under multiparty system. It also examined the challenges facing decentralisation in the SADC region. / South Africa