Thesis (M.A.) in History--University of Maine, 2006. / Includes vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 156-164).

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This thesis examines local transitional justice programmes and processes in Sierra Leone. I will examine both recognised mechanisms – official institutions with preconceived goals and processes that are already recognised as part of the transitional justice ‘toolkit’ and unrecognised mechanisms – processes outside the institutional transitional justice scope and discourse. Much research and analysis of these processes often prioritise organisations and their programmes as the starting point of investigation and fail to recognise the various individual actors involved, both within the organisational structures and the groups for whom these programmes are designed. Moving beyond discussions of impact and effectiveness, this thesis examines the actual activity of Sierra Leonean individuals in both recognised and unrecognised processes. Fambul Tok is an example of a recognised local transitional justice programme, which seeks to facilitate justice and reconciliation through bonfire ceremonies to make the programmes more contextually relevant for rural communities. I will look at the various individuals involved in constructing and shaping how Fambul Tok operates and is represented to different audiences to better understand dynamics amongst different Sierra Leoneans with attachments to different places, all of whom theoretically constitute the local. My thesis will demonstrate how transitional justice processes are not only institutional, but also individual. I move away from discussions about ‘societies,’ normative questions of institutional effectiveness, the underlying assumptions that propel transitional justice programmes and mechanisms and look more specifically at the activities and appropriation of individual actors within these transitional justice processes to better illustrate the diverse means through which individuals construct as well as engage with local transitional justice programmes and the unique unrecognised ways individuals move past their war-related experiences.

The current study analyses the media strategies used by Sierra Leone to repair their destination image during and after crisis to attract international tourism. There is an academic study written by Avraham and Ketter (2017) that appears on this topic as well, but focusing on many Sub-Saharan African countries where Sierra Leone is mentioned. Therefore, it was chosen to study this country in more depth, to confirm or disregard Avraham and Ketters (2017) conclusions about this particular country and their media-strategies. The framework used in this research is the multi-step model for altering place image. The study was based on qualitative content analysis of online posts from two sources, which are two Sierra Leonian tourism webpages. The data was located between the years 2015-2017. The study’s conclusion shows that Sierra Leone’s marketers and policy makers used source-focused strategies to handle the crisis, which are (1) disregard for/partial acknowledgement of the crisis, (2) full acknowledgement of the crisis and moderate coping measures, (3) full acknowledgement of the crisis and extreme coping measures and (4) disengagement from the place’s main characteristics.

Memoria para optar al título profesional de Ingeniero Agrónomo Mención Sanidad Vegetal / Callisphyris apicornis Fairmaire & Germain (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) es una especie xilófaga nativa y polífaga, que ataca: manzanos, membrillero, feijoa, y zarzaparrilla. Para incrementar el conocimiento acerca de la biología sexual de esta especie, información relevante para desarrollar estrategias de control de plagas basadas en semioquímicos. Se analizó comportamiento de cortejo y cópula en 31 secuencias exitosas (terminaron en cópula), grabadas en video en el campo. Los pasos observables, homogéneos y discretos realizados por machos y hembras fueron identificados. Las frecuencias de individuos que realizaron los pasos fueron colocadas en celdas (en una tabla de contingencia) indicando el número de individuos que, habiendo realizado un paso previo, realizaron el paso siguiente (cadenas de primer orden de Markov). La prueba exacta de Fisher fue utilizada para identificar dependencia entre pasos. Las frecuencias de la transición fueron calculadas y las que fueron significativas se utilizaron para construir un etograma que muestra la secuencia, las frecuencias, y las rutas seguidas por insectos. El índice de estereotipia fue utilizado para identificar la variabilidad dentro de la secuencia. Se utilizó la regresión logística binaria para identificar si la temperatura ambiente, velocidad de viento, y hora del día fueron variables significativas. Las secuencias del comportamiento fueron altamente aeterotipadas y no azarozas. La secuencia del comportamiento en machos fue caracterizada por: "aproximacion", "monta", "aproximación de genitalias", "cópula", "desacople", "guardia", y "vuelo". Las hembras tienden a permanecer inmóvil durante la cópula. El primer contacto ocurre entre las antenas y patas del macho con diferentes partes del cuerpo de la hembra. El cortejo es breve e imperceptible. La hembra acepta o rechaza a los machos escapando o pateándolos con su tercer par de patas. Solo la temperatura ambiente fue significativa para la ocurrencia del comportamiento, mayoritariamente entre los 19 y 23º C. En términos generales, los resultados sugieren que el comportamiento sexual en machos de Callisphyris apicicornis es compatible con el desarrollo de técnicas de control mediante feromonas. / Callisphyris apicornis Fairmaire & Germain (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) is a native xylophagous, and polyphagous species, affecting apples, quincy, feijoa, and zarzaparrilla (Ribes spp). In order to increase the knowledge about this species sexual biology, information relevant to develop semiochemical-based pest control strategies, courtship and mating behaviors were analyzed in 31 successful sequences (ending in mating), videotaped in the field. Observable, homogeneous, and discrete steps performed by males and females were identified. Frequencies of individuals performing the steps were placed in cells (in a contingency table) indicating the number of individuals that, having performed a previous step, were performing the current one (first order Markov chains). Fisher test was used to identify dependency between steps. Transition frequencies were calculated and significant ones were used to build an ethogram showing the sequence, frequencies, and routes followed by insects. A stereotypy index was used to identify the variability within the sequence. Binary logistic regression was used to identify whether ambient temperature, wind speed, or the time of the day were significant variables. The behavioral sequences were non random and highly stereotyped. The sequence in males was characterized by “approaching”, “riding”, “genitalia approaching”, “mating”, “uncoupling”, “guarding”, and “flight”. Females tend to stay stationary during mating. First contact used to occur between antennae and legs males with different parts of the female body. Courtship was brief and unconspicuous. Females either accepted/rejected males by walking away or by kicking them with their last pair of legs. Only ambient temperature was significant for the occurrence of the behavioral sequence, mostly between 19º to 23º C. Overall, results suggest that sexual behavior in Callisphyris apicicornis males is compatible with the development of pheromone-based management and control techniques.

This study set out to examine the interplay of negotiations and military intervention in the resolution of the conflict in Sierra Leone between 1991 and 2002, and to draw lessons from this process for the resolution of intrastate conflicts in Africa. To achieve this, a more detailed analysis was undertaken on: the evolution and progress of the conflict in Sierra Leone (Chapter two); the various military interventions (Chapter three); and the various peace agreements (Chapter four). What has come to light is that it is important to distinguish between the triggers to the conflict and the drivers of the conflict. In the case of Sierra Leone, the trigger was ECOMOG’s entry into Liberia – an event that was mistakenly seen as the main cause of the conflict and leading to wrong decisions on how to end the conflict. It is also clear that greed was at the centre of the conflict in Sierra Leone since control of natural resources appear to be the main push factors behind most of the fighting. Control of these resources gave the holders an advantage. Progress in negotiations was determined by demands and concessions by those in control of the resources. An additional dimension that was common to many conflicts in Africa was control of the country’s capital city. Possession of this bestowed visible power to the holders. It is because of this that Freetown became the centre of many bouts of conflict. The study highlighted a number of issues that impact on the duration and outcome of intrastate conflicts. The first concerns the risks of sidelining the army that had played a significant role in governing the country. To do so, in favour of a civilian militia, was inviting trouble. This mistake extended the conflict by at least another two years. Also important was the issue of the over-militarisation of society. As the state structures failed, patronage and resources acted as drivers for the formation of other armed factions. The proliferation of armed factions made finding a solution more problematic. Increasing militarisation was further driven by the role of by neighbouring countries. This complicated the search for a political solution, as members of the regional group, ECOWAS, actively supported various sides in the conflict. While it was encouraging to see ECOWAS attempting to resolve the conflict, it could not sustain the role of being both a player and referee at the same time. As a result of this, ECOWAS itself contributed to the prolonging of the conflict. The intervention by the United Kingdom demonstrated that actors with superior force are in a position to make decisive interventions to help end conflicts. At the international level, the question on leaving conflict management to regional bodies is not a panacea for solving intrastate conflicts. The United Nations Security Council initially relied on ECOWAS to manage the conflict, but was later forced to take over the active peacekeeping role. It was also only when the United Nations began reflecting on earlier peacekeeping failures, such as Rwanda and Somalia, that new peacekeeping approaches began to emerge. This reflection also generated the continuing debate on the “Responsibility to Protect” vulnerable populations in intrastate conflict. / Dissertation (MDiplomatic Studies)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Political Sciences / unrestricted

ABSTRACT EFFECTS OF WILDLAND-URBAN INTERFACE FUEL TREATMENTS ON POTENTIAL FIRE BEHAVIOR AND ECOSYSTEM SERVICES IN THE CENTRAL SIERRA NEVADA MOUNTAINS OF CALIFORNIA Christopher C. Hamma For the past several decades, the wildland-urban interface (WUI) has been expanding in the low- to mid-elevation mixed-conifer belt of California’s Sierra Nevada mountain range. Concurrently, the effects of fire exclusion and shifting climatic patterns in this region have led to increases in wildfire size and severity, posing an ever-greater risk to life and property. As a result, the need for implementation of fuel treatments to reduce fire hazard is generally recognized to be urgent. However, by removing vegetation, these treatments may also diminish the ability of forest ecosystems to provide valuable ecosystem services to society. Forest managers, landowners, and other WUI stakeholders would therefore benefit from a better understanding of the effects of various fuel treatment types on both fire hazard reduction and ecosystem benefits. The present study examined the effects of four commonly-used fuel treatment types on stand-level forest structural characteristics, surface and canopy fuel loading, potential fire behavior, air pollution removal, and carbon sequestration and storage. Fuel treatments involving thinning and/or prescribed burning were largely successful at reducing live and dead fuel loading, with corresponding reductions in predicted fire behavior. The little-studied but increasingly popular practice of mastication (chipping or shredding small trees and brush and leaving the debris on the ground) was associated with significantly increased surface fuel loading, although deleterious effects on potential fire behavior were not found. Overall, the findings from the fire and fuels portion of the present research largely match those reported in other, similar studies in Sierra Nevada mixed-conifer forest. However, the current analysis found little in the way of significant treatment effects on stand-level air pollution removal or carbon dynamics. This study was affected by challenges including small sample size and high variability in the data; nonetheless, the results underscore the general validity of fuel treatment implementation in central Sierra Nevada WUI areas for moderating wildfire severity and effects, with the recognition that the efficacy of such treatments may be limited under extreme weather conditions.

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The purpose of this study is to understand the causes of the Sierra Leonean conflict and to analyse the reconstruction programmes that followed it. Post-war reconstruction programmes must not be limited to the re-joining of families or reintegration of communities. It must also go a long way in providing an improved situation for all those affected by the war. Notably, where post-war reconstruction programmes fail to focus on the original causes of the conflict, it may result in reinforcement of the original social structures and prejudices and in continued marginalisation of certain groups. Using post-conflict Sierra Leone as a case study, the study attempts to examine the notion that ¿post-war reconstruction programmes tend to reinforce earlier social structures and prejudices rather than create opportunities for the previously marginalised¿. The work focuses on the role of the Department for International Development (DfID)-funded Community Reintegration Programme (CRP). Considering the Sierra Leone post-war scenarios, the causes and political resolution of the conflict and the situation in 2001 when the conflict officially came to an end, the thesis reviews the philosophy, planning, policies, practices and activities of donor agencies in general and CRP in particular before assessing impact on the process of rebuilding communities in Sierra Leone.

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