O estudo tenta investigar quais são as fontes de privações que impedem a expansão das liberdades dos agricultores familiares no semiárido norte-mineiro e se a presença do Microcrédito Produtivo Rural (o Agroamigo) e dos Programas de Formação e Mobilização para a Convivência com o Semiárido: Um Milhão de Cisternas Rurais (P1MC/P1 +2) apresenta alguma eficácia com vistas à redução dos níveis de privações destes agricultores. A hipótese central que guia o itinerário deste trabalho tenta confirmar que as políticas e programas voltados para a região do semiárido norte-mineiro, mesmo que articulados, ainda são insuficientes para causar grandes efeitos na agricultura familiar. O que se observa também é a falta, por parte dos agricultores, de uma formação contextualizada para conviver com o semiárido por meio da adoção de tecnologias apropriadas e de estratégias para o enfrentamento à seca. O estudo demandou como aportes teóricos o pensamento crítico do semiárido e a abordagem das capacitações com a finalidade de explicar a realidade da base empírica. Para tanto, foram coletadas 92 amostras em seis comunidades rurais no município de Januária/MG, cujos dados foram operacionalizados e, posteriormente, analisados com base na abordagem das capacitações. A construção do Índice de Liberdade do Agricultor Familiar no Semiárido Norte-Mineiro (ILAF-SAM) deu suporte para mensurar os níveis de privações identificadas nos grupos de funcionamentos de cada liberdade instrumental. Os resultados revelaram ILAF-SAM muito baixo (0,387) na liberdade “A formação contextualizada e a convivência com o semiárido norte-mineiro”, enquadrando-se no nível extremamente alto de privação de liberdade para os agricultores conviverem com o fenômeno da seca. As oportunidades sociais (ILAF-SAM = 0,599), as facilidades econômicas (ILAF-SAM = 0,598), a segurança protetora (ILAF = 0,502) e as garantias de transparência (ILAF-SAM = 0,640), compuseram as principais fontes de privações que cerceiam os agricultores de ampliarem as suas liberdades. Observou-se também fraca articulação entre os programas de convivência e o Microcrédito Produtivo Rural a fim de reduzir as fontes de privações dos agricultores familiares. Mesmo assim, os resultados encontrados em algumas variáveis, isoladamente, foram relevantes no sentido de complementar este estudo e abrir novas perspectivas de pesquisas no semiárido norte-mineiro. / The study attempts to investigate what are the sources of deprivations that prevent the expansion of the freedoms of family farmers in the semiarid of northern Minas Gerais and whether the presence of the Rural Productive Microcredit (Agroamigo) and of the Training and Mobilization Programs for Coexistence with Semiarid Conditions: One Million Rural Cisterns (P1MC/P1 +2) has some efficacy in reducing the levels of deprivation of these farmers. The central hypothesis guiding the itinerary of this paper tries to confirm that policies and programs for the semiarid region of the northern Minas Gerais, even when conjoined, are insufficient to cause major positive effects on family farming. What is also observed is the lack, on the part of the farmers, of a contextualized training for living in the semiarid through the adoption of appropriate technologies and strategies for coping with drought. The study demanded as theoretical supports the critical thinking of the semiarid and the capabilities approach in order to explain the reality of the empirical basis. Therefore, 92 samples were collected in six rural communities in the municipality of Januária / MG, whose data were operationalized and subsequently analyzed using the capabilities approach. The construction of the Index of Freedom of the Family Farmer in the semiarid northern Minas Gerais (ILAFSAM) supported measuring the levels of deprivation identified in the groups of each instrumental freedom. The results revealed a very low (0.387) ILAF-SAM for the freedom "Contextualized training and coexistence with the semiarid northern Minas Gerais", characterizing an extremely high level of deprivation of freedom for farmers to live with the phenomenon of drought. Social opportunities (ILAF-SAM = 0.599), the economic possibilities (ILAF-SAM = 0.598), protective security (ILAF = 0.502) and guarantees of transparency (ILAF-SAM = 0.640), along with the previous one, composed the main sources of deprivation that curtail farmers from extending their freedoms.We also observed weak connections between these programs for living with the semiarid and the Rural Productive Microcredit with the aim of reducing the sources of deprivations for family farmers.Even so, the results in some isolated variables were relevant in order to complement this study and open new perspectives for research in the semiarid northern Minas Gerais.

Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / Have South African women's lives become happier since the transition to democracy? If they are, could this be linked to gender equality? This is the central question of this study. This study explored a group of women’s subjective experiences of gender equality, by which I mean equality on the basis of gender; and happiness, which refers to women’s life satisfaction and their affective state. It further explores whether gender equality and happiness are linked. The study assumed that everything being equal, endeavours to liberate women from patriarchy and towards gender equality enhance women’s happiness. 1994 ushered in a democratic South Africa and numerous legislative and policy changes were introduced that affect women. Considerable gains have been made at the constitutional and political levels for women’s equality and gender justice. This is reflected in the rankings of South Africa on many different indices. Yet, we see numerous challenges facing women including poverty and gender-based violence. This study examined whether the presence of a range of policies as well as affirmative and protective measures for women have impacted on how they experience their lives. In particular, do they feel that they are happy and do they see happiness as linked to gender equality efforts? Given the research question, this study was grounded within a feminist framework. A mixed methods approach utilising both qualitative and quantitative methods was employed.

This study aims to contribute to the poverty studies in Turkey in terms of the capability approach introduced to the scientific literature by Nobel Laureate thinker Amartya Sen. The approach is closely connected with the idea of justice and particularly with the Rawls&rsquo / s model of social justice. This study&rsquo / s perception of justice is based on the idea that justice is the virtue of the institutions, but not that of individuals. Although the Rawls&rsquo / s justice analysis is approved in terms of making institutional analysis, his perception regarding to the rights are criticized since these are perceived as &ldquo / ends&rdquo / but not the &ldquo / means&rdquo / of individuals&rsquo / welfare. Therefore, it is claimed in this study that holding certain sets of rights are not significant by themselves, but how they can be converted into personal wellbeing is crucial as well. In this framework, poverty is considered as capability deprivation and it is claimed that poverty analyses based on commodity ownership are not satisfactory. As the case of this study, General Directorate of Social Assistance and Solidarity organized as the main state institution so as to alleviate the poverty in Turkey has been chosen and the question of whether the relief programs of the institution are designed to alleviate poverty by enhancing individuals&rsquo / capabilities is raised. It has been concluded in this study that (1) income centred poverty perception of the institution does not take into account the variations in needs, (2) the reliefs are designed to increase economic productivity of individuals but not the valuable capabilities and (3) the operational logic of the institution is based on managing poverty, but not alleviating it.

In this thesis my aim is to bring attention to the problem of sexual exclusion as experienced by members of the disability community and argue that this is an issue of justice. I do this by first discussing the value of sex. I maintain that sex is an integral part of a flourishing human life. Once this is established, I examine theories of justice and demonstrate how the systematic sexual exclusion of persons with disabilities can be understood as an injustice that must be addressed. Finally, I give an overview of some of the proposed solutions to the problem of sexual exclusion and conclude that the transformation of social attitudes is necessary for sexual justice. / Graduate / 0422 / trw.deboer@gmail.com

Magister Educationis - MEd / Since the onset of democracy in 1994, education in South Africa has undergone many developments and changes due to curriculum innovations and interventions. For more than two decades, the government has been seeking to eliminate the divisions of the past by establishing a society based on democratic values, social justice and the observance of fundamental human rights as described in Act 108 of 1996 in the Constitution. The curriculum changes in South Africa after 1994 had a huge impact on the education system as a whole, and classroom teaching shifted from being largely teacher- centered to being predominantly learner-centered. Hence, the newly revised Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) was introduced (DBE, 2011) to provide all teachers with the same outline of what should be taught, when and how. The government's efforts at improving teaching and learning as well as maintaining a high standard of education are commendable, however, findings through this research demonstrate that CAPS disregards the massive differences in terms of contexts within which schools operate and the general lack of resources faced by certain schools. The main aim of this research was to explore the nature of the capability sets of teachers with respect to the implementation of the CAPS curriculum in a no fee school community in the Western Cape. The research was conducted within the framework of a qualitative research approach with a case study design. Classroom observation, focus group interviews and document analysis were utilized as data collection methods. The capability approach of Amartya Sen was applied to unveil the nature of teachers' capability sets in a no fee school in the Western Cape. This study has established that there are several factors inside and outside the school, which influence the implementation of CAPS during the teaching and assessment processes. Therefore, recommendations are made that the policymakers should take into account the context and socio economic background of the school and learners before changing the curriculum.

A noção de desenvolvimento rural aqui apresentada tem como fundamento a Abordagem das Capacitações, proposta por Amartya Sen. O desenvolvimento é ético e multidimensional, e envolve a necessidade de se enfrentar a pobreza e a vulnerabilidade. A pobreza é tida como a falta de liberdade para as pessoas levarem a vida que julgam ser a melhor. A vulnerabilidade é uma situação sócio-econômica na qual a pessoa está piorando a sua situação de bem-estar e tende a acentuar isto mediante um fator exógeno. A pobreza e a vulnerabilidade estão próximas, mas não são a mesma coisa: a vulnerabilidade está no limiar da pobreza, assim a pessoa que está mais vulnerável tende a ficar pobre, ou se já é, pode ter sua pobreza intensificada. Como fator exógeno que tende a aumentar a vulnerabilidade e a pobreza foi estudado o caso da seca no noroeste do estado do Rio Grande do Sul, mais propriamente no município de Santo Cristo. A seca é um fenômeno sócio-econômico que começa em uma situação prévia de vulnerabilidade, já vivida pelas pessoas, e que tende a acentuar a pobreza e a vulnerabilidade com a estiagem e suas decorrentes conseqüências. Para dar conta da multidimensionalidade e complexidade desses fatores, sua análise foi feita a partir da Abordagem das Capacitações, que vai contra a abordagem econômica tradicional e resgata a diferença entre meios e fins. Foram aplicados, in loco, questionários com agricultores familiares do município, elaborados a partir das referências bibliográficas. Temse que, em razão da degradação ambiental, a seca afeta os intitulamentos e os funcionamentos das pessoas. Assim, a seca não é um fenômeno ambiental isolado e sim um fenômeno sócioeconômico, que envolve a vulnerabilidade e a pobreza como fatores desencadeadores. Propõese, então, que a análise de desenvolvimento rural considere a vulnerabilidade a pobreza da região como premissa para obter desenvolvimento. / In this research, the notion of rural development is founded in the Capability Approach, suggested by Amartya Sen. The development is ethics and multidimensional, and ivolves the necessity of facing poverty and vulnerability. The poverty is considered the absence of freedom to the people follow the best way of life they consider. The vulnerability is a socio-economic circumstance in that the person is having his welfare situation each time worse and tends to make that more evident from an exogenous element. The poverty and vulnerability are complementary ideas; however, they are not the same thing: vulnerability is a condition to the poverty. In the other words, if a person, or a family, is more vulnerable to the exogenous events, he tends to get poorer. Or, if he is already poor, can get still poorer. In this dissertation, it was studied the case of drought occurred in the North Western of Rio Grande do Sul State, more specifically in Santo Cristo city, as the exogenous element that tends to make increase vulnerability and poverty. The drought is a socio-economic phenomenon. It starts in a previous vulnerability situation, that people have already lived, and that tends to make vulnerability and poverty that more emphasized, from dryness and its consequence. To analyze the multidimensionality and the complexity of these factors, the analysis was made from Capability Approach that contests the traditional economic approach and recovers the difference between means and ends. To make this research it was applied, in loco, questionnaires to family farmers placed in the mentioned county. The questions were structured having as base bibliographic references used in the dissertation. It was seen that the drought affects people’s entitlements and the functionings, because of environment degradation. So, the drought is not an isolated environmental phenomenon, but a socioeconomic phenomenon, that evolves vulnerability and poverty as resultant factors. Then, the suggestion is that rural development analysis considers the regional vulnerability and poverty as premise to obtain development.

Nas últimas três décadas, a proporção de pessoas abaixo da linha de pobreza foi reduzida substancialmente no Brasil. Parte desta redução ocorreu em função de programas de transferência de renda do país, como o Programa Bolsa Família (PBF), criado em 2004 e que beneficia, atualmente, mais de 12 milhões de famílias pobres e extremamente pobres. O objetivo desta dissertação é discutir o desenho e os impactos deste programa a partir de uma análise baseada na abordagem das capacitações. Para isto são apresentados os conceitos fundamentais referentes à abordagem das capacitações e ao pensamento de Amartya Sen, bem como as principais características do Bolsa Família, seus antecedentes e os impactos provocados nas áreas da educação, saúde, alimentação, trabalho, empoderamento das mulheres e pobreza. Estes impactos e o desenho do PBF são analisados a partir do instrumental obtido através do estudo da abordagem das capacitações. Ademais, são apresentadas algumas propostas ao Bolsa Família visando a atuação deste programa sobre as múltiplas dimensões responsáveis pelo fenômeno da pobreza. / In the last three decades, the proportion of people below the poverty line was reduced substantially in Brazil. Part of this reduction was due to income transfer programs in the country, as the Bolsa Família Program (PBF), established in 2004 and currently aiding more than 12 million poor and extremely poor families. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the design and the impacts of this program from an analysis based on the capabilities approach. Therefore, it’s bring forward the fundamental concepts concerning the capabilities approach and the Amartya Sen’s work as well as the main characteristics of the Bolsa Família, its antecedents and impacts caused in education, health, food, work, empowerment of women and poverty. These impacts and the design of PBF are examined from the instrumental obtained through the capabilities approach. Futhermore, some proposals are introduce in order to Bolsa Familia Program operate on the multiple dimensions that cause poverty.

A Abordagem das Capacitações, de Amartya Kumar Sen, é uma teoria da justiça social que reconhece no processo de desenvolvimento a expansão das liberdades, ocasionando a eliminação de privações, as quais limitam as escolhas das pessoas para exercerem sua condição de agente. As capacidades (capabilities) para atingir o bem-estar é que precisam ser igualadas e expandidas. As oportunidades, devem ser proporcionadas com base na justiça social como equidade. Pela diversidade própria do ser humano em relação a características pessoais e externas, oportunidades sociais podem requerer ação pública de modo a atender essas especificidades, para que os indivíduos possam realizar funcionamentos (estados e ações de uma pessoa). Para combater essas desigualdades, políticas de redistribuição e reconhecimento são fundamentais, sobretudo, no meio rural em relação ao sistema educacional. Apesar da educação ser um direito previsto constitucionalmente, o histórico da educação rural é de precarização. Com o surgimento da luta em prol da Educação do Campo, é criado em 1998, como resposta às reivindicações dos movimentos sociais, o Programa Nacional de Educação na Reforma Agrária - Pronera. Anteriores a este programa, já existiam práticas pedagógicas do Movimento dos Trabalhadores Rurais Sem Terra – MST, dentre as quais destacava-se o Curso Técnico em Cooperativismo – TAC. Esta dissertação pretendeu investigar se o curso Técnico em Cooperativismo – TAC, realizado pelo Programa Nacional de Educação na Reforma Agrária – Pronera no Rio Grande do Sul, interfere na realização de funcionamentos e expansão das capacitações de seus egressos. Durante a pesquisa exploratória, foi realizada uma imersão no cotidiano do Instituto Técnico de Capacitação e Reforma Agrária – Iterra. Além disso, foram gerados dados quantitativos, com os quais foi possível traçar o perfil das turmas do TAC, através da estatística descritiva. Foram realizadas entrevistas com egressos de seis estados brasileiros e com representantes da Concrab e Coceargs, entidades responsáveis pelo TAC em nível nacional e estadual, respectivamente. Os objetivos deste trabalho foram alcançados, sendo concluído que o TAC tem contribuído para a expansão das capacitações e funcionamentos de seus egressos, com repercussões no desenvolvimento dos assentamentos, sendo que os resultados permitiram conhecer muito além das variáveis de análise propostas inicialmente. / The Capability Approach, by Amartya Kumar Sen, is a social justice theory that acknowledges the expansion of freedoms in the development process, which results in the elimination of deprivations, a limiter of people’s choice to exercise their agency. The capabilities, or opportunities, to achieve well-being is what needs to reach equality and expanded. The opportunities should be provided on basis of social justice as equity. Due to the humanity diversity, regarding personal and external characteristics, social opportunities might require public action in order to meet those peculiarities, so that individuals can perform functionings (states and actions of a person). In order to fight off these inequalities, policies of redistribution and acknowledgement are fundamental, especially in the countryside, concerning the education system. Even though education is a constitutional right, the history of rural education shows a state of precariousness. With the arrival of movements fighting for Rural Education, the National Program of Education in the Agrarian Reform – Pronera, was created in 1998, as a response to the social movement requests. Before this program, there were already pedagogical practices of the Landless Rural Workers Movement (MST), amongst which the Cooperative Technical Course (TAC) is highlighted. This essay intends to investigate if the Cooperative Technical Course – TAC, created by the National Program of Education in Agrarian Reform – Pronera in Rio Grande do Sul, affects the functionings and expansion of capabilities of its egress students. During this exploratory research, there was an immersion in the daily activities of the Technical Institute of Capacitation and Agrarian Reform – Iterra. Also, quantitative data was generated, which allowed the profiling of the classes in TAC, through Descriptive Statistics. Interviews with former students from six states and with representatives of Concrab and Coceargs were conducted, two entities responsible for TAC in national and state level, respectively. The objectives of this study were achieved, with the conclusion that TAC has significantly contributed to the expansion of capabilities and functionings of their egress students, with impacts over settlements development. The results also enabled us to gather much more knowledge than the initial variables proposed.

O objetivo geral desta dissertação é defender que as religiões e os argumentos religiosos tenham um espaço no debate da definição de bem e justiça para a sociedade e para o desenvolvimento humano. Por isso faz se necessário debater as relações das teorias filosóficas do Utilitarismo de Jeremy Bentham, da Justiça como Equidade de John Rawls e da Abordagem da Capacitação de Amartya Sen com as religiões. Também é necessário repelir os argumentos que estas filosofias apresentam para que as religiões não participem do debate de bem comum, de justiça e para o desenvolvimento humano. Por fim será apresentado o Índice de Desenvolvimento Humano das Religiões (IDH-R), que segue a mesma metodologia utilizada pelo Programa das Nações Unidas para o Desenvolvimento para compor o IDH em seus relatórios de desenvolvimento humano, e se buscará explicar os motivos das variações do IDH-R entre as diferentes religiões. / The general objective of this dissertation is to argue that religions and religious arguments have a place in the discussion of the definition of good and justice to society and to human development. So it makes it necessary to discuss the relationship of philosophical theories the Utilitarianism of Jeremy Bentham, the Justice as Fairness of John Rawls and the Capability Approach of Amartya Sen with religions. It is also necessary to repel the arguments that these philosophies have that religions do not participate in the discussion of the common good, justice and human development. Finally will be presented the Human Development Index of Religions (HDI-R), which follows the same methodology used by the United Nations Development to compose the HDI in its human development reports, and seek to explain the reasons for variations HDI-R among different religions.

A noção de desenvolvimento rural aqui apresentada tem como fundamento a Abordagem das Capacitações, proposta por Amartya Sen. O desenvolvimento é ético e multidimensional, e envolve a necessidade de se enfrentar a pobreza e a vulnerabilidade. A pobreza é tida como a falta de liberdade para as pessoas levarem a vida que julgam ser a melhor. A vulnerabilidade é uma situação sócio-econômica na qual a pessoa está piorando a sua situação de bem-estar e tende a acentuar isto mediante um fator exógeno. A pobreza e a vulnerabilidade estão próximas, mas não são a mesma coisa: a vulnerabilidade está no limiar da pobreza, assim a pessoa que está mais vulnerável tende a ficar pobre, ou se já é, pode ter sua pobreza intensificada. Como fator exógeno que tende a aumentar a vulnerabilidade e a pobreza foi estudado o caso da seca no noroeste do estado do Rio Grande do Sul, mais propriamente no município de Santo Cristo. A seca é um fenômeno sócio-econômico que começa em uma situação prévia de vulnerabilidade, já vivida pelas pessoas, e que tende a acentuar a pobreza e a vulnerabilidade com a estiagem e suas decorrentes conseqüências. Para dar conta da multidimensionalidade e complexidade desses fatores, sua análise foi feita a partir da Abordagem das Capacitações, que vai contra a abordagem econômica tradicional e resgata a diferença entre meios e fins. Foram aplicados, in loco, questionários com agricultores familiares do município, elaborados a partir das referências bibliográficas. Temse que, em razão da degradação ambiental, a seca afeta os intitulamentos e os funcionamentos das pessoas. Assim, a seca não é um fenômeno ambiental isolado e sim um fenômeno sócioeconômico, que envolve a vulnerabilidade e a pobreza como fatores desencadeadores. Propõese, então, que a análise de desenvolvimento rural considere a vulnerabilidade a pobreza da região como premissa para obter desenvolvimento. / In this research, the notion of rural development is founded in the Capability Approach, suggested by Amartya Sen. The development is ethics and multidimensional, and ivolves the necessity of facing poverty and vulnerability. The poverty is considered the absence of freedom to the people follow the best way of life they consider. The vulnerability is a socio-economic circumstance in that the person is having his welfare situation each time worse and tends to make that more evident from an exogenous element. The poverty and vulnerability are complementary ideas; however, they are not the same thing: vulnerability is a condition to the poverty. In the other words, if a person, or a family, is more vulnerable to the exogenous events, he tends to get poorer. Or, if he is already poor, can get still poorer. In this dissertation, it was studied the case of drought occurred in the North Western of Rio Grande do Sul State, more specifically in Santo Cristo city, as the exogenous element that tends to make increase vulnerability and poverty. The drought is a socio-economic phenomenon. It starts in a previous vulnerability situation, that people have already lived, and that tends to make vulnerability and poverty that more emphasized, from dryness and its consequence. To analyze the multidimensionality and the complexity of these factors, the analysis was made from Capability Approach that contests the traditional economic approach and recovers the difference between means and ends. To make this research it was applied, in loco, questionnaires to family farmers placed in the mentioned county. The questions were structured having as base bibliographic references used in the dissertation. It was seen that the drought affects people’s entitlements and the functionings, because of environment degradation. So, the drought is not an isolated environmental phenomenon, but a socioeconomic phenomenon, that evolves vulnerability and poverty as resultant factors. Then, the suggestion is that rural development analysis considers the regional vulnerability and poverty as premise to obtain development.