PH.D., Faculty of Humanities, University of the Witwatersrand, 2011 / Through a case study of the relationship between the rural Makuleke community and the regional tourism operator Wilderness Safaris, this thesis examines the impact of tourism partnerships on community development in post-­‐ apartheid South Africa. The study considers the tourism component of the ‘Makuleke model’, a concept used frequently in academic and popular literature to refer to the community’s landmark land restitution case involving the Kruger National Park (KNP). Thirty years after experiencing a forced removal by the apartheid regime, the Makuleke community in 1998 was able to regain their lost land (the Pafuri area of Kruger National Park) and benefit from it through conservation and tourism. The Makuleke have partnered with three tourism operators, their main concessionaire being Wilderness Safaris. Their contractual agreement obliges the tourism company to pay lease fees to the Makuleke Communal Property Association (CPA) and to employ Makuleke residents. To further community development, Wilderness Safaris established a joint venture with the Makuleke CPA, and also runs an environmental education programme for children. Evidence for this thesis was collected over a two and a half year period (from May 2007 to December 2009) using three methodological approaches: archival research, participant observation and semi-­‐structured, open-­‐ended interviews. In analysing the Makuleke CPA-­‐Wilderness Safaris partnership, findings reveal that ten years after the land claim, the commended ‘Makuleke model’ is neither as conceptually coherent nor as practically successful as is commonly supposed. I argue that although the model denotes success, a closer scrutiny of its foundations, assumptions and context expose inherent forces and practices that hinder its long-­‐ term effective implementation. Influenced by post-­‐development theory, I question perceptions of equality in benefit distribution, critique the juxtaposition of traditional with modern values, and examine contestations over power within the Makuleke community. I demonstrate how these features undermine the potential for the genuine transformation and broad-­‐based social upliftment that tourism-­‐led development purposes to achieve at Makuleke. My research findings confirm post-­‐development theoretical propositions that criticise the contradictions in orthodox development procedures and call for a rethinking of the premises upon which approaches to community upliftment through tourism are generally founded.

The results from this study suggest that participants of wilderness adventure education programs offered by Outward Bound and the National Outdoor Leadership School felt challenged by many of the experiences from their programs. Interactions with their group helped in dealing with the challenges presented by the experience. The development of hard skills gave participants a confidence in their abilities to survive and feel safe in these wilderness environments, which allowed them to relax and enjoy the experience, develop new perspectives, become motivated and inspired, and develop a sense of independence. Participants developed a sense of growth and maturity from their experiences, which upon reflection led to a sense of accomplishment. This sense of accomplishment led to transference of program benefits and values into participants’ lives, particularly in greater self-respect/esteem/confidence. The purpose of this study was to gain a better understanding of the outcomes that individuals experienced from wilderness adventure programs and the effects they had on participants’ lives. Means-end theory was used to understand the outcomes, more specifically attributes, consequences, and values, and their connections to each other. This study was longitudinal in nature and a comparison between the original data collection and follow-up interviews was done to investigate reported change in values over time. The results from this study show that the outcomes from participation in the Outward Bound and NOLS programs were transferring into participant’s lives and leaving a lasting impression.

Abstract To tell the nonfiction biography of Christopher McCandless in Into the Wild Jon Krakauer uses a plethora of references to Henry D. Thoreau. In this thesis I study how Krakauer uses Thoreau while balancing on the fine line that differentiates the historian from the storyteller. Through an analysis of Krakauer’s use of Thoreau’s economic ideas, liberal ideas, and view of nature and wilderness I argue that Krakauer blurs a pragmatic understanding of Thoreau and uses techniques of fiction to characterize McCandless as a late Thoreauvian transcendentalist. By doing so, Krakauer explains and defends the protagonist’s actions from criticism making him appear as a character whose story is exceptional. However, the characterization of the protagonist as a follower of Thoreauvian ideals by means of a partial and romantic interpretation of Thoreau is misleading and does not provide us with a better understanding of the life of McCandless. Moreover, the romantic image of Thoreau advanced by Krakauer reflects Krakauer, or at least his times; particularly, it reflects Krakauer’s own view of wilderness and his concern for its impending demise. Consequently, I conclude that Krakauer’s version of McCandless’s story is perhaps too biased to amount to a strong historical narrative and be considered proper nonfiction. Nevertheless, the romanticized characterization of McCandless aids Krakauer to write a more appealing story.

This study focus on the developing of an adventure-based experiential learning program (AEP) to address the personal functioning (positive functioning, self perception, trauma dynamics, relationships and decision making) of youths in the society. The methodology based on experiential learning, wilderness and adventure programming were investigated to research the impact of the AEP on the youths. This information was used to develop an AEP to implement, as an intervention, to enhance the personal functioning of the youths. For the purpose of this study, twenty-eight students between the ages of 17 -19 years from different culture groups in South Africa participated. The youths were enrolled in an adventure program at Beyond Adventure School, which is situated near Alexandria in the Eastern Cape Province. To compile a profile that can be used to develop an AEP, the assessment of the youths were done with the use of two questionnaires: The Comprehensive Functioning Inventory: Post - Matric (CFI - Post) and a general-reasons questionnaire, which gathered information about the reasons why the youths went to Beyond Adventure School. The CFI-Post measures the following components related to the functioning of the youth: positive functioning, self-perception, trauma dynamics, relationships and decision making. The results of the first test showed a negative profile of the youths personal functioning with the following problem areas: positive functioning, self-perception, trauma dynamics and decision making. This results showed a need to implement an AEP as intervention. The second test results after the AEP was implemented concluded that the AEP had a positive impact (with a effect size of p>0,5) on the personal functioning (the positive functioning, self-perception, trauma dynamics and decision making) of the youths. The conclusion this study has is that scientifically developed and implemented AEP has a direct impact on the personal functioning of youths and thus can be used as an intervention. / Thesis (M.A. (Recreation Science))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2005.

For centuries, Western societies thought of wilderness as a barren, desolate place that harboured temptation and sin. Over the last hundred and fifty years, a marked shift has occurred in Western perception of this so-called savage place; it has become revered, protected, and even worshipped. What was once the Devil's playground is now thought to provide a locus of spiritual regeneration and hope for the future. In North America, this pronounced shift is thought to coincide with notions of the sublime and the frontier. This study explores the perceptions of wilderness among Chinese Canadian immigrants in British Columbia, people who have been less influenced by concepts of the sublime and frontier. It examines closely the idea that wilderness today is a self-evident construct that holds across most inhabitants of the province. Instead, ideas about wilderness held by people who have immigrated from China, similar to the ideas held by early immigrants from Europe, are influenced by tradition (especially Confucianism, Taoism, and, more recently, Maoism), space (i.e. coming from densely populated areas), and language. Through this study, it has become apparent that the language and discourse surrounding wilderness in Canada is markedly different from that of Chinese Canadian immigrants. While the language and meaning of wilderness, as referred to in Western society, is assumed relatively easily for interviewees, the identification with moral and aesthetic responses common to discussions of wilderness in North America is much less likely to manifest itself. Wilderness, which represented barrenness and desolation to interviewees when they lived in China, has come to represent forests, mountains, animals, and lack of human influence. What previously had different philosophical meaning, now, in a cognitive sense, represents beauty and, potentially, a locus of spirituality. The results of this study have important consequences for decision-making in cross-cultural environments. Policy surrounding wilderness or environmental preservation may be without meaning or relevance to new immigrants, who bring with them shared meanings and relationships to nature that may or may not be incongruous with Canadian environmental policy. In facing such debates, it is crucial to understand the perceptions of various players and how those ideas are linked to tradition, language, and the geography of the familiar. It is also critical to ask - What is wilderness and why are we protecting it above all else?

No description available.

This study focus on the developing of an adventure-based experiential learning program (AEP) to address the personal functioning (positive functioning, self perception, trauma dynamics, relationships and decision making) of youths in the society. The methodology based on experiential learning, wilderness and adventure programming were investigated to research the impact of the AEP on the youths. This information was used to develop an AEP to implement, as an intervention, to enhance the personal functioning of the youths. For the purpose of this study, twenty-eight students between the ages of 17 -19 years from different culture groups in South Africa participated. The youths were enrolled in an adventure program at Beyond Adventure School, which is situated near Alexandria in the Eastern Cape Province. To compile a profile that can be used to develop an AEP, the assessment of the youths were done with the use of two questionnaires: The Comprehensive Functioning Inventory: Post - Matric (CFI - Post) and a general-reasons questionnaire, which gathered information about the reasons why the youths went to Beyond Adventure School. The CFI-Post measures the following components related to the functioning of the youth: positive functioning, self-perception, trauma dynamics, relationships and decision making. The results of the first test showed a negative profile of the youths personal functioning with the following problem areas: positive functioning, self-perception, trauma dynamics and decision making. This results showed a need to implement an AEP as intervention. The second test results after the AEP was implemented concluded that the AEP had a positive impact (with a effect size of p>0,5) on the personal functioning (the positive functioning, self-perception, trauma dynamics and decision making) of the youths. The conclusion this study has is that scientifically developed and implemented AEP has a direct impact on the personal functioning of youths and thus can be used as an intervention. / Thesis (M.A. (Recreation Science))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2005.

Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Montana, 2008. / Title from author supplied metadata. Description based on contents viewed on July 6, 2009. Includes bibliographical references.

Ma thèse est une étude comparée des oeuvres de Joseph Boyden et de Jean Marc Dalpé, et plus spécifiquement de leur imaginaire spatial. Mon analyse se veut essentiellement géocritique et géosymbolique. Elle s’inspire des travaux de Bertrand Westphal, qui s’intéressent à l’insertion et la transformation littéraire des espaces humains. L’ancrage géographique nordique des textes de ces deux auteurs, et plus spécifiquement dans le Nord ontarien où la nature est omniprésente, me semble particulièrement porteur de sens. Il s’agit d’ailleurs de l’élément principal permettant de rassembler et de comparer les oeuvres de Boyden et de Dalpé. Mon étude se centre ainsi sur la géocritique, mais se veut surtout une écocritique, puisque cette approche me permet de cerner davantage les thèmes et les symboles issus spécifiquement de l’environnement naturel. Je procède donc à une exploration du wilderness littéraire dans les oeuvres, qu’il soit forestier, minier, aquatique ou vivant. Grâce aux travaux de William Cronon, je note que ce concept est remis en question dans les oeuvres du corpus, car il ne s’agit pas ici d’un wilderness en tant que nature vierge. Les personnages vivent, au contraire, à proximité de la forêt, entretiennent un contact quotidien avec la nature. Une véritable relation entre les personnages et les éléments de leur environnement se met donc en place. Toutefois, cette relation n’est pas toujours idyllique, car la nature sauvage demeure tout de même dangereuse. Les auteurs puisent parfois dans un symbolisme plutôt universel ou connu, celui des bêtes sauvages dangereuses et des monstres. La forêt boréale est menaçante, et évoque les ouvrages de Robert Progue Harrison ou encore de Margaret Atwood. L’hiver et le froid soutiennent le thème de la survivance. Ma thèse montre aussi que le sentiment d’emprisonnement suscité par la forêt est une symbolique récurrente. Il existe un lien de parenté entre l’univers de la nature sauvage et l’imaginaire de la biorégion du nord ontarien. Cet imaginaire est marqué par des symboles qui cadrent avec l’expérience que font les personnages du wilderness, mais il est aussi teinté par la mythologie autochtone et renvoie ainsi à la présence importante des peuples des Premières Nations dans la région. En somme, mon analyse du symbolisme écologique s’intéresse à la présence d’un wilderness nord ontarien polysémique et multiforme dans les oeuvres à l’étude. En outre, par sa nature comparative, ma thèse montre que malgré les différences de langue, et les différences culturelles qui en découlent irrémédiablement, il y aurait un imaginaire du wilderness commun à ces auteurs canadiens bien connus, imaginaire cependant directement tributaire de la géographie ontarienne.

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / This dissertation is the result of a comprehensive and qualitative research aimed to investigate issues related to the cultural identities of young people, sons of smallholders and agrarian reform settlers, who live on the rural hinterland of Sergipe. They are aged between 14 and 29 years and they are studying at regular urban high schools. The sample was composed of 194 rural youngs who were investigated through a questionnaire. From the data analysis, it was discovered that the majority of the rural youth have age-grade discrepancy and have been failed at least once. However their parents recognize the importance of sending children to school, especially as a way to ensure their future. They like to go to school to learn and to socialize, feeling comfortable in this space. When they go to the city to continue studying, they fell like if they change , say some reports. Although their relatives approving their studies, most of the young studied faces difficulties in school life. Because they are in high school, they differ from those who have not studied and use the rural language and most part of them communicates in one way at home and in another way at school. For their own future, even liking rural areas, they want to live in the city and do not want to reproduce the social status of family farmers. They want a better future and a job that gives them financial independence, however, it was observed a relationship between the few young people who want to stay on the field and dairy farming. They are sons of small farmers who have dairy cattle who want to stay on the rural area and take care of the family s property. It can be concluded that the rural young people build their own identities in urban high school, while deconstruct some aspects of their rural identities, to reconstruct them, in a new context and situation, especially on individualization and on perspective of continue studying and graduate in a university, aiming for personal achievement and social fitting. / Esta dissertação é resultado de uma pesquisa qualitativa e compreensiva que teve por objetivo investigar questões relacionadas às identidades culturais de jovens rurais do sertão sergipano, filhos de produtores familiares e de assentados da reforma agrária, na faixa etária de 14 a 29 anos, estudantes do ensino médio regular em escolas urbanas. A amostra compõe-se de 194 jovens rurais que foram pesquisados por meio de questionário. Observou-se que a maioria tem defasagem idade-série, tendo sido reprovados entre uma e cinco vezes, embora reconheçam a importância de se enviar as crianças à escola como garantia de um futuro melhor . Eles gostam de ir à escola, sobretudo para aprender e para se socializar, sentindo-se bem nesse espaço. Embora seus parentes aprovem seus estudos, a maioria enfrenta dificuldades na vida escolar. Porque estão no ensino médio, diferenciam-se daqueles que não estudaram e que utilizam a linguagem do campo , sendo que a maior parte se comunica de forma diferente em casa e na escola, relatando que mudaram depois que foram estudar na cidade. Ainda que goste do campo, grande parte gostaria de morar na cidade e não quer reproduzir a condição social de agricultor familiar, pois seus planos estão relacionados à continuação dos estudos em nível superior e, posteriormente, a conseguir um bom emprego que garanta independência financeira. Porém, observou-se uma relação entre os poucos jovens que gostariam de permanecer no campo e a criação de gado leiteiro. Pode-se concluir que os jovens rurais, estudantes do ensino médio regular, constroem suas identidades na escola urbana, enquanto desconstroem alguns aspectos das identidades rurais sertanejas, para reconstruí-las, em um novo contexto e em uma nova situação, sobretudo a partir de individualizações e perspectivas de continuar estudando, buscando formas de realização e de encaixe social.