Aspects of customary land tenure may survive even where formal rules in a society supersede custom. This thesis is about persisting custom for Maori Freehold land (MFL) in New Zealand, and the Communal Areas (CAs) of Zimbabwe. Three questions are addressed: what unwritten land tenure custom still persists for Ngai Tahu, Shona and Ndebele, what key historical processes and events in New Zealand and Zimbabwe shaped the relationship between people and land into the form it displays today, and how do we explain differences between surviving customary tenure practices in the two countries? The research was based on in-depth interviews. A key difference between the two countries was found to lie in the type and degree of security available over the years to Maori and Shona/Ndebele. Roots of security were found in the substance of the founding treaties and concessions, and thereafter in a variety of other factors including the help (or lack of it) offered by the law in redressing grievances, the level of intermarriage between settler and autochthon, the differing security of land rights offered in urban centres in the respective countries, demographic factors and the availability of state benefits. This research finds that greater security was offered to Maori than to Shona and Ndebele, and that this has reduced the centrality of customary practices with regard to land. The research found that, in Zimbabwe, tenure security in the CAs is still underwritten by communities and that significant investment is still made in both living and dead members of those communities. Another finding is that land custom has adapted dynamically to meet new challenges, such as urban land and CA land sales. In New Zealand, investment in groups that jointly hold rights in MFL has, to some extent been eclipsed by the payment of rates and the availability of services (e.g. state-maintained boundary records and law enforcement mechanisms) and of benefits (e.g. superannuation, disability and unemployment). Land and community are not as closely linked to survival as they were in the past and, for many, they have come to hold largely symbolic value and less practical significance. Overall, it is the pursuit of security and �belonging� that have been the greatest influences on customary land tenure practices in the long term.

New Zealand forests have been reduced and degraded by gross removal, logging, and the effects of mammals introduced by Polynesian and European settlers. These changes increase the value of the remaining forests, so information on the effects of these disturbances will be useful to inform the management of forest protection. Integrated measurements of C and N cycling within forests can be obtained using foliar stable isotope ratios, which may detect differences between forests resulting from natural or anthropogenic disturbances. This thesis characterises the stable isotopic composition distribution and likely drivers of isotopic variation of vegetation in several central South Island forests, and provides a baseline for future ecological New Zealand studies of present and pre-human vegetation. The largest detected stable isotope variation in modern leaf material was that of δ15N values between the eastern and western podocarp-broadleaf forests. This variation was probably controlled by the lower soil N availability associated with the high rainfall of western forests causing low δ15N values (-8.5 ± 3.5 ‰) relative to an eastern forest (+1.6 ± 1.3 ‰) and global temperate forests (average -2.8 ± 2.0 ‰ (Martinelli et al. 1999)). The significant but slightly higher mean δ15N (0.6 ‰) of a historically selectively logged forest (Saltwater Forest) in comparison to the mean in an unlogged forest (Okarito Forest), on the West Coast, could be attributed to either alteration to N cycling from logging, site differences in topography, or local soil N differences between the forests. Although δ13C showed no significant geographical variation, the well-described ‘canopy effect’ was observed in all modern forests, manifested as a positive covariation between δ13C and vegetation height. Similarly, large taxon-specific differences were observed between δ15N and δ13C values in both modern and fossil leaves. Well-preserved fossil leaves, from sediments c. 4500 years B.P in Pyramid Valley, North Canterbury, had higher δ13C (4.2 ‰) and δ15N (2.5 ‰) values than modern vegetation from Riccarton Bush, Christchurch. The difference between ecosystems spanning several millennia probably reflects ecosystem-scale changes in C and N cycling within New Zealand forests following human arrival, particularly from the degradation caused by invasive animals.

Aspects of customary land tenure may survive even where formal rules in a society supersede custom. This thesis is about persisting custom for Maori Freehold land (MFL) in New Zealand, and the Communal Areas (CAs) of Zimbabwe. Three questions are addressed: what unwritten land tenure custom still persists for Ngai Tahu, Shona and Ndebele, what key historical processes and events in New Zealand and Zimbabwe shaped the relationship between people and land into the form it displays today, and how do we explain differences between surviving customary tenure practices in the two countries? The research was based on in-depth interviews. A key difference between the two countries was found to lie in the type and degree of security available over the years to Maori and Shona/Ndebele. Roots of security were found in the substance of the founding treaties and concessions, and thereafter in a variety of other factors including the help (or lack of it) offered by the law in redressing grievances, the level of intermarriage between settler and autochthon, the differing security of land rights offered in urban centres in the respective countries, demographic factors and the availability of state benefits. This research finds that greater security was offered to Maori than to Shona and Ndebele, and that this has reduced the centrality of customary practices with regard to land. The research found that, in Zimbabwe, tenure security in the CAs is still underwritten by communities and that significant investment is still made in both living and dead members of those communities. Another finding is that land custom has adapted dynamically to meet new challenges, such as urban land and CA land sales. In New Zealand, investment in groups that jointly hold rights in MFL has, to some extent been eclipsed by the payment of rates and the availability of services (e.g. state-maintained boundary records and law enforcement mechanisms) and of benefits (e.g. superannuation, disability and unemployment). Land and community are not as closely linked to survival as they were in the past and, for many, they have come to hold largely symbolic value and less practical significance. Overall, it is the pursuit of security and �belonging� that have been the greatest influences on customary land tenure practices in the long term.

The focus of this study is on a rural South Island community and how it managed the dramatic social changes over the past fifty years. Government policies, changes in international trade and markets, environmental policies, globalisation, change in the structure of local and regional government and legislative changes impacted on all New Zealanders during this period but the rural hinterland of New Zealand was affected in particular ways. The township which is the focus of this study is Tuatapere on the south west corner of southern New Zealand. The researcher grew up in the district and witnessed the changes from a flourishing timber and farming service centre to a quaint tourist town. The residents and how these changes impacted on their lives are explored in this thesis through the eyes of eight long term residents. This is a qualitative study in which four men and four women were interviewed using a semi-structured questionnaire exploring their views on social change, the way the community has responded to changes in service provision, how they have managed the move from being a vibrant rural service community to a tourist town. This thesis celebrates their successes, tells of their hardships, explores their attitudes to change, records their life work choices and decision making. Five themes were identified from the literature and provide a framework for this study: historical influences and cultural expectations, impact of Government decisions on their lives, sense of community, sense of self and access to services. The population in rural communities has been slowly decreasing over the years as urbanisation has been a reality in New Zealand. Services within the area have diminished and younger families have moved away to seek employment elsewhere. The remaining residents are an ageing population. This brings with it a range of interesting issues for the community. The elderly have to travel for their health and other service needs and the unavailability of regular daily transport services makes it difficult for them to meet appointments. They have to rely on family and friends for transport and many no longer have the family available to support them locally. This older population also provides the pool of volunteers for recreational and social functions. The elderly feel burdened with this responsibility. The geographical isolation provides a sense of wellbeing and attraction for the residents but it also has its disadvantages. The remoteness is a deterrent for access for tourists that would bring financial advantages to the community. The isolation is also a deterrent for new inhabitants who would provide the much needed contribution to the social functioning of the community. In spite of the aforementioned difficulties with living in a remote rural corner of New Zealand the participants expressed a determination and stoicism that can only be admired. Their life stories are presented in this research