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Human interaction greatly influences the behavior and distribution of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus). This project focuses on the distribution and behavior of bottlenose dolphins in the Drowned Cayes, Belize. Prior to the 2000s, the area was relatively undeveloped and undisturbed and had minimal human activity. Since the turn of the millennium, development and ecotourism activity has flourished in the area, increasing by more than 800,000 visitors from 1998-2006. Boat-based surveys were conducted in 2015 and were combined with previous survey data collected from 2005-2012 and compared to behavioral survey results from 1999-2000. Total dolphin observation time as a percent of total survey time and average number of dolphins per sighting were 17.2% and 2.7 in 1999-2000 and 10.8% and 1.6 for 2005-2015. The low number of dolphins and the low observation times suggest that the dolphin population in the Drowned Cayes have decreased since the 1990s. Eighty-nine percent of the total observation time for 2015 occurred on days in which there were zero cruise ships in the area suggesting that this decline may be in relation to increased human activity. Furthermore, foraging was the main behavior observed for both 1999-2000 and 2005-2015 data sets, suggesting that the Drowned Cayes area is used as a foraging ground. However, in 1999-2000 the foraging percentage was significantly higher than the 2005-2015 data set, dropping 28.9% and there was a 23.6% increase in traveling behavior between the two data sets. This could be a result of increased human activity. Additionally, survey photographs and results were used in the creation of the first dolphin photo identification database for the country. The guidelines used for photo analysis for photo quality and fin distinctiveness were tested to determine if they are easy to use and give consistent and reliable results regardless of judge. An intraclass correlation model calculated substantial agreement (ICC = 0.7) between judges’ scores, demonstrating consistent results, regardless of experience level. Therefore, the guideline can be used as a standard among multiple researchers.

This study examined the leadership roles of secondary schools department heads at two government schools in Belize. Seven participants participated in the study and data regarding their perceptions of their leadership roles were collected through open-ended semi-structured interviews. Relevant sections from Belizean education documents were purposefully selected based on their relevance to the study. Documents were used to enrich the interview data. Three data analysis strategies—content analysis (Patton, 2002), inductive analysis (Hatch, 2002), and educational criticism (Eisner, 1998)—were used in the study. Discussion of the analysis was based on the following three themes: (a) build instructional capacity, (b) increase learning opportunities for students, and (c) provide technical and vocational teachers access to professional training and development in technical and vocational education. The themes are perspectives from which to view and understand the leadership roles of secondary school department heads at two government schools in Belize. Three major conclusions resulted from this study. One, secondary school department heads at the two government schools in Belize are school leaders whose multifaceted role includes myriad duties, responsibilities, and obligations. Two, department heads are street-level bureaucrats who implement and enforce policies and regulations through their classroom routines and the decisions they make. Three, policymakers, school management, and department heads need to invest in sustained professional training and development activities that are specifically designed for department heads. Implications for policy and practice include the need to establish minimum professional selection criteria for the role of department heads, expand the capacity of teacher training institutions, and foster a culture that supports and nurtures shared instructional leadership and learning among department heads.

Le tourisme de croisière se démarque du tourisme ayant des assises terrestres par sa nature mobile et extraterritoriale. Ces facteurs favorisent un rapport de force en faveur de l’industrie lorsque vient le temps de négocier ses conditions d’opération lors de la mise en place d’une nouvelle destination. Le but de ce projet de recherche est de mettre en évidence les dynamiques sociospatiales inhérentes aux relations de pouvoir entre les groupes d’acteurs liés au tourisme de croisières dans l’espace caribéen. Notre attention a été portée sur les processus de territorialisation induits par le déploiement d’une destination à travers l’étude de cas de la création d’une enclave de croisière à Harvest Caye dans le Sud Belize. Pour ce faire, nous avons développé un cadre conceptuel qui s’appuie d’abord sur la notion de production d’un espace de tourisme de croisière où sont pris en compte les mécanismes néolibéraux de production de l’espace ayant conduit à la mise en place de l’enclave. Ensuite, il porte sur les processus de territorialisation qui ont transformé le Sud Belize en conséquence au déploiement territorial de ce tourisme dans l’espace de vie des communautés réceptrices. Nos résultats, basés sur de l’analyse de contenu, de l’observation participante et de 42 entretiens semi-directifs, montrent que les relations de pouvoir d’abord favorables à l’industrie du tourisme de croisière peuvent être contrées et permettre aux différents acteurs de l’espace de vie de prendre en charge les processus de territorialisation dans un contexte d’imposition d’un espace de tourisme de croisière. Les processus de territorialisation apparus lors de la rencontre entre l’espace de tourisme de croisière et l’espace de vie témoignent des actions stratégiques simultanées entre les différents groupes d’acteurs. D’une part, celles liées à la tentative d’appropriation territoriale de la part de l’industrie, et ensuite celles associées aux différentes résistances des groupes d’acteurs locaux notamment ceux issus de l’industrie de l’écotourisme. Néanmoins, de part et d’autre, nous avons assisté, directement ou indirectement, à des actions d’adaptations et de coopérations qui ont érodé la vision conflictuelle des dynamiques territoriales qui caractérisent souvent l’implantation du tourisme de croisière. Enfin, nous soulevons l’hypothèse qu’il existe une phase de territorialisation parallèle au tourisme de croisière, liée à des dynamiques d’appropriation territoriales par le foncier qui s’est exacerbée lors de la mise en place de l’île enclave.| / Cruise tourism is distinct from land-based tourism because of its mobile, derogatory and extraterritorial nature. These factors allow the industry to dominate in the power struggle that plays out when the operating conditions for a new destination are being negotiated. The purpose of this research project is to highlight the socio-spatial dynamics inherent to the power relations between stakeholders in cruise tourism in the space of the Caribbean. We use the case study of the creation of a cruise enclave at Harvest Caye in South Belize to explore the territorialization processes that result when a new destination is established. To do this, we have developed a conceptual framework that is based, first of all, on the idea of the production of a cruise tourism space considering the neoliberal mechanisms of space production when a new enclave is established. The framework then focuses on the processes of territorialization that have transformed South Belize as a consequence of the territorial deployment of this kind of tourism in the lived space of the receiving communities. Our results are based on content analysis, participant observation and 42 semi-structured interviews, and show that the power relations that initially favor the cruise tourism industry can be countered, allowing lived space actors to take charge of territorialization processes in the context of the imposition of a cruise tourism space. The processes of territorialization that emerged when the cruise tourism space and the lived space met are evidence of strategic actions the different stakeholders have taken simultaneously—those related to the industry’s attempt at territorial appropriation and those associated with local stakeholders’ various resistance strategies, especially those evolving in the ecotourism industry. Nevertheless, we have witnessed, directly or indirectly, adaptation and cooperation on both sides that have eroded the conflictual vision of the territorial dynamics that often characterize the implementation of cruise tourism. Finally, we suggest that there is a phase of territorialization that runs parallel to cruise tourism and that is linked to the dynamics of territorial appropriation brought about by the real estate industry that has been exacerbated as the enclave island was established.

<p>The thesis analyses relationships between ecological and social systems in the context of coastal ecosystems. It examines human impacts from resource extraction and addresses management and governance behind resource exploitation. The main premises are that a lack of ecological knowledge leads to poor ecosystem management and that the dichotomy between social and natural systems is an artificial one. The thesis illustrates the importance of basing resource management on the ecological conditions of the resource and its ecosystem. It also demonstrates the necessity of accounting for the human dimension in ecosystem management and the challenges of organising human actions for sustainable use of ecosystem services in the face of economic incentives that push users towards short-term extraction.</p><p>Many Caribbean coral reefs have undergone a shift from coral to macroalgal domination. An experiment on Glovers Reef Atoll in Belize manually cleared patch reefs in a no-take zone and a fished zone (Papers I and II). The study hypothesised that overfishing has reduced herbivorous fish populations that control macroalgae growth. Overall, management had no significant effect on fish abundance and the impacts of the algal reduction were short-lived. This illustrated that the benefits of setting aside marine reserves in impacted environments should not be taken for granted. </p><p>Papers III and IV studied the development of the lobster and conch fisheries in Belize, and the shrimp farming industry in Thailand respectively. These studies found that environmental feedback can be masked to give the impression of resource abundance through sequential exploitation. In both cases inadequate property rights contributed to this unsustainable resource use. </p><p>The final paper (V) compared the responses to changes in the resource by the lobster fisheries in Belize and Maine in terms of institutions, organisations and their role in management. In contrast to Maine’s, the Belize system seems to lack social mechanisms for responding effectively to environmental feedback. The results illustrate the importance of organisational and institutional diversity that incorporate ecological knowledge, respond to ecosystem feedback and provide a social context for learning from and adapting to change.</p>

The thesis analyses relationships between ecological and social systems in the context of coastal ecosystems. It examines human impacts from resource extraction and addresses management and governance behind resource exploitation. The main premises are that a lack of ecological knowledge leads to poor ecosystem management and that the dichotomy between social and natural systems is an artificial one. The thesis illustrates the importance of basing resource management on the ecological conditions of the resource and its ecosystem. It also demonstrates the necessity of accounting for the human dimension in ecosystem management and the challenges of organising human actions for sustainable use of ecosystem services in the face of economic incentives that push users towards short-term extraction. Many Caribbean coral reefs have undergone a shift from coral to macroalgal domination. An experiment on Glovers Reef Atoll in Belize manually cleared patch reefs in a no-take zone and a fished zone (Papers I and II). The study hypothesised that overfishing has reduced herbivorous fish populations that control macroalgae growth. Overall, management had no significant effect on fish abundance and the impacts of the algal reduction were short-lived. This illustrated that the benefits of setting aside marine reserves in impacted environments should not be taken for granted. Papers III and IV studied the development of the lobster and conch fisheries in Belize, and the shrimp farming industry in Thailand respectively. These studies found that environmental feedback can be masked to give the impression of resource abundance through sequential exploitation. In both cases inadequate property rights contributed to this unsustainable resource use. The final paper (V) compared the responses to changes in the resource by the lobster fisheries in Belize and Maine in terms of institutions, organisations and their role in management. In contrast to Maine’s, the Belize system seems to lack social mechanisms for responding effectively to environmental feedback. The results illustrate the importance of organisational and institutional diversity that incorporate ecological knowledge, respond to ecosystem feedback and provide a social context for learning from and adapting to change.

Le Territoire de Quintana Roo, au sud-est du Mexique, à la frontière avec le Belize, naît en 1902. Confrontées à une population très peu nombreuse, les autorités locales et nationales mettent en œuvre des mesures pour attirer de nouveaux habitants. Et pour les définir. Dans cette région périphérique, le peuplement constitue un enjeu stratégique d'affirmation de la souveraineté et de l'identité nationales. Il manifeste l'affirmation d'un biopouvoir - et de ses limites - amenant à imposer les caractéristiques raciales et nationales de la population. Cette recherche mène une sociologie historique portant à la fois sur la racialisation des politiques migratoires, l'instauration de mesures d'intégration et de développement de la région (expéditions scientifiques, accès aux terres, type d'exploitation foncière) et les négociations entre administrations du centre (Mexico) et de la périphérie (Payo Obispo - Chetumal). En s'intéressant à l'émergence d'une nouvelle entité politico-administrative à la marge de la nation et en inscrivant le Mexique au sein des sociétés post-esclavagistes marquées par les migrations de travailleurs afrodescendants, il s'agit ainsi d'introduire une altérité autre qu'indienne dans les réflexions sur la nation, le métissage et la race, à partir du cas de l'étranger noir. Ce manuscrit revient sur les logiques d'inclusion et d'exclusion propres aux politiques de métissage dans le Mexique post-révolutionnaire, en proposant un double décalage : étudier la place des populations noires plus que celle des indiens ; se centrer sur l'immigration plus que sur l'autochtonie.

This article explores the beginnings of Mesoamerican civilization (meaning the origins of institutionalized, hereditary inequality, rank societies, and chiefdoms) during the Early Formative period (1900-100 BC). Before one can identify the processes of socio-political evolution it is first necessary to identify concrete examples of societies, and their attributes, which underwent this transformation. I outline data for six Mesoamerican cases of the shift from egalitarian societies to chiefdoms. Four of them are from the Tropical lowlands (Paso de la Amada, San Lorenzo, Puerto Escondido, and Cahal Pech), and two are from the Mexican Highlands (Tlapacoya and San José Mogote). / Este artículo trata acerca de los inicios de la civilización en Mesoamérica, es decir, los orígenes de la complejidad social, las desigualdades hereditarias institucionalizadas, las sociedades diferenciadas por rangos y las jefaturas durante el Periodo Formativo Temprano (c. 1900-100 a.C.). Antes de que se puedan discernir los procesos de evolución sociopolítica, primero es necesario identificar ejemplos concretos de sociedades, y sus atributos correspondientes, que experimentaron esa transformación. Aquí se resaltan los datos de seis casos del cambio de sociedades igualitarias a jefaturas de Mesoamérica: cuatro de tierras bajas tropicales (Paso de la Amada, San Lorenzo, Puerto Escondido y Cahal Pech) y dos de la sierra de México (Tlapacoya y San José Mogote).

A study was undertaken of plants used for treatment of diabetic symptoms by traditional healers of the Eeyou Istchee Cree (Canada), Lukomir Highlanders (Bosnia & Herzegovina), and Q’eqchi’ Maya (Belize). All antidiabetic plants were ranked by syndromic importance value (SIV) based on 15 symptoms, all of which were recognized by the Cree and Maya and 8 by the Highlanders. The Cree used only 18 species, the Highlanders 41, and the Maya 150, numbers which reflect the diversity of flora in their region. Vaccinium (Ericaceae) was one of the few genera in all three regions and the only consensus genus between the Cree and Highlander study sites. The Q’eqchi’ Maya ethnobotany did not present any cross-cultural consensus genera with Cree or Highlander medicinal plants, perhaps due to major biogeographic differences. In ethnopharmacological studies, Vaccinium species and Q’eqchi’ antidiabetic plants were tested in an assay relevant to diabetes, the advanced glycation endproduct (AGE) inhibition assay. Boreal and tropical Vaccinium species were potent inhibitors of AGEs and demonstrated concentration dependent inhibition, with a half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) range of 5.93–100 µg/mL. Phenolic content ranged from 80.3 to 201 µg/mL in boreal samples and from 1470 to 2170 µg/mL in tropical samples. Tropical species have a greater phenolic content and AGE inhibition. Seven Q’eqchi’ antidiabetic plant species were tested and all plant extracts showed AGE-inhibition. The IC50s ranged from 40.8 to 733 µg/mL, and the most active was Tynanthus guatemalensis Donn.. Tynanthus guatemalensis IC50 was about fives times greater (less active) than the mean ± SE IC50 reported for six tropical Vaccinium species of Vaccinium (8.77 ± 0.79 μg/mL). The highest consensus and most active Maya antidiabetic plant, Tynanthus guatemalensis Donn. Sm. was discovered to be an important plant recorded in archeological artifacts from the Late Classic Maya period (~750 CE). Ancient Maya used a cross shaped sign (k’an glyph) as a decorative element on Late Classic polychrome vessels and murals. The sign was believed to be the xylem template for a plant used as a flavouring in cacao drinks. However, the plant was incorrectly identified in the literature as Pimenta dioica (L.) Merr. (common name: Allspice) based on a common name and aromatic plant quality – not from a botanical voucher specimen. Pimenta dioica wood does not have a cross shape visible in the xylem but a unique character visible after a cross section of T. guatemalensis, is the xylem's cross shape organization. Wood of T. guatemalensis' also has an "allspice" aroma. Tynanthus guatemalensis is most likely the true botanical template behind the ancient Maya k’an glyph and this finding would show the continuity of use of this medicinal plant from ancient to modern times. Vaccinium was selected for an in depth phytochemical analysis using modern metabolomic methods. Nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR) was used to evaluate leaf extract spectra to provide information on (1) the taxonomic identity and (2) quantities of bioactive metabolites across multiple sites. Spectra clearly differentiated leaf samples of V. angustifolium, V. boreale, V. corymbosum, V. macrocarpon, V. myrtilloides, V. myrtillus, V. ovalifolium, and V. uliginosum according to generic, subgeneric, specific, phenotypic circumscriptions. Quantification of chlorogenic acid and hyperoside were replicated with a method that is highly reproducible across multiple sites with different NMR equipment. This methodology provides an important new approach to taxonomy and quality control for plants and natural health products.

A study was undertaken of plants used for treatment of diabetic symptoms by traditional healers of the Eeyou Istchee Cree (Canada), Lukomir Highlanders (Bosnia & Herzegovina), and Q’eqchi’ Maya (Belize). All antidiabetic plants were ranked by syndromic importance value (SIV) based on 15 symptoms, all of which were recognized by the Cree and Maya and 8 by the Highlanders. The Cree used only 18 species, the Highlanders 41, and the Maya 150, numbers which reflect the diversity of flora in their region. Vaccinium (Ericaceae) was one of the few genera in all three regions and the only consensus genus between the Cree and Highlander study sites. The Q’eqchi’ Maya ethnobotany did not present any cross-cultural consensus genera with Cree or Highlander medicinal plants, perhaps due to major biogeographic differences. In ethnopharmacological studies, Vaccinium species and Q’eqchi’ antidiabetic plants were tested in an assay relevant to diabetes, the advanced glycation endproduct (AGE) inhibition assay. Boreal and tropical Vaccinium species were potent inhibitors of AGEs and demonstrated concentration dependent inhibition, with a half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) range of 5.93–100 µg/mL. Phenolic content ranged from 80.3 to 201 µg/mL in boreal samples and from 1470 to 2170 µg/mL in tropical samples. Tropical species have a greater phenolic content and AGE inhibition. Seven Q’eqchi’ antidiabetic plant species were tested and all plant extracts showed AGE-inhibition. The IC50s ranged from 40.8 to 733 µg/mL, and the most active was Tynanthus guatemalensis Donn.. Tynanthus guatemalensis IC50 was about fives times greater (less active) than the mean ± SE IC50 reported for six tropical Vaccinium species of Vaccinium (8.77 ± 0.79 μg/mL). The highest consensus and most active Maya antidiabetic plant, Tynanthus guatemalensis Donn. Sm. was discovered to be an important plant recorded in archeological artifacts from the Late Classic Maya period (~750 CE). Ancient Maya used a cross shaped sign (k’an glyph) as a decorative element on Late Classic polychrome vessels and murals. The sign was believed to be the xylem template for a plant used as a flavouring in cacao drinks. However, the plant was incorrectly identified in the literature as Pimenta dioica (L.) Merr. (common name: Allspice) based on a common name and aromatic plant quality – not from a botanical voucher specimen. Pimenta dioica wood does not have a cross shape visible in the xylem but a unique character visible after a cross section of T. guatemalensis, is the xylem's cross shape organization. Wood of T. guatemalensis' also has an "allspice" aroma. Tynanthus guatemalensis is most likely the true botanical template behind the ancient Maya k’an glyph and this finding would show the continuity of use of this medicinal plant from ancient to modern times. Vaccinium was selected for an in depth phytochemical analysis using modern metabolomic methods. Nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR) was used to evaluate leaf extract spectra to provide information on (1) the taxonomic identity and (2) quantities of bioactive metabolites across multiple sites. Spectra clearly differentiated leaf samples of V. angustifolium, V. boreale, V. corymbosum, V. macrocarpon, V. myrtilloides, V. myrtillus, V. ovalifolium, and V. uliginosum according to generic, subgeneric, specific, phenotypic circumscriptions. Quantification of chlorogenic acid and hyperoside were replicated with a method that is highly reproducible across multiple sites with different NMR equipment. This methodology provides an important new approach to taxonomy and quality control for plants and natural health products.