Fish From Afar Marine Resource Use At Caracol, Belize

The ancient Maya had strong ties to the sea. The trade, transportation and use of marine resources were important not only to coastal Maya communities, but also to the heavily populated cities that lay many miles inland. A review of zooarchaeological evidence recovered from excavations at the inland site of Caracol, Belize suggests that the inhabitants imported marine fish for food, marine shell for working into trade items, and sharks teeth and stingray spines for ritual use. This thesis examines the manner in which fish and other marine resources were used, procured and transported from the coast to the site of Caracol. The possibility that certain marine fish might have been transported alive to the site is explored. An examination of present day fishing and animal husbandry practices suggests that many species could have survived an inland trip in ancient times if transported under conditions that allowed for water exchanges and minimized stress. Marine resources had important economic and ritual significance to the people of Caracol. Understanding the methods by which these valuable items were transported and traded ultimately facilitates a greater understanding of the economic and socio-political relationships among these ancient polities

Linking theories, past practices, and archaeological remains of movement through ontological reasoning

The amount of information available to archaeologists has grown dramatically during the last ten years. The rapid acquisition of observational data and creation of digital data has played a significant role in this “information explosion”. In this paper, we propose new methods for knowledge creation in studies of movement, designed for the present data-rich research context. Using three case studies, we analyze how researchers have identified, conceptualized, and linked the material traces describing various movement processes in a given region. Then, we explain how we construct ontologies that enable us to explicitly relate material elements, identified in the observed landscape, to the knowledge or theory that explains their role and relationships within the movement process. Combining formal pathway systems and informal movement systems through these three case studies, we argue that these systems are not hierarchically integrated, but rather intertwined. We introduce a new heuristic tool, the “track graph”, to record observed material features in a neutral form which can be employed to reconstruct the trajectories of journeys which follow different movement logics. Finally, we illustrate how the breakdown of implicit conceptual references into explicit, logical chains of reasoning, describing basic entities and their relationships, allows the use of these constituent elements to reconstruct, analyze, and compare movement practices from the bottom up

Walking While Asking:Lessons from Agroecology Education in Chiapas, Mexico

Keller, Kate, M.S., December 2019 Environmental Studies Walking While Asking: Lessons from Agroecology Education in Chiapas, Mexico Committee Chairperson: Dr. Neva Hassanein This professional paper presents an assessment of the most recent project of Schools for Chiapas (SfC), a U.S.-based solidarity organization working in collaboration with the Zapatista autonomous communities in Chiapas, Mexico. It examines the challenges and potentials of SfC’s efforts to implement food forests at 16 autonomous secondary schools. I contextualize this work within a larger conversation amongst food sovereignty activists and scholars around efforts to scale-out the use of agroecology through education. As the organization looks to continue its efforts in a similar vein, this paper analyzes potential for advancement in this area. The Zapatistas, an insurgent movement of indigenous Mayan peasant communities, have spent the last 26 years establishing autonomous systems of governance, health, education and agroecological production. For the Zapatistas, as for rural movements throughout Latin America, agroecology plays an essential role in the cultural continuity and autonomy of rural communities, drawing on traditional local knowledge to sustain healthful food systems within the capacity of the land. Movements within the global alliance of La Via Campesina see agroecology as the tool by which they enact their demand for food sovereignty and “social relations free of oppression and inequality.” As such, efforts to extend critical theory and practices of agroecology through education are vital to strengthening their movements and defending indigenous and rural livelihoods and cultures. Scholars and activists within these movements document and analyze the pedagogical practices of these efforts. My analysis draws on in-depth interviews with founders, staff and volunteers of Schools for Chiapas, as well as two other examples in Chiapas of efforts to “scale-out” agroecology through education. My own observations of the food forest initiative (FFI) during a 6-week internship and subsequent employment with SfC also offer personal experiences through which I interpret the execution of the FFI. This paper describes and analyses these experiences and conversations in order to glean lessons that might inform SfC’s future efforts. Though Schools for Chiapas’ relationship with Zapatista autonomy is unique, my conclusions are concurrent with themes in agroecological education in other movements

The Eldercare Dialogues: A Grassroots Strategy to Transform Long-Term Care

This report is the culmination of observations of 11 Eldercare Dialogues, 15 in-depth interviews with Dialogue organizers and participants, and six focus groups, one with each participating organization. It explores the experiences of caregivers and care recipients in the movement to transform long-term care and ensure that caregivers and recipients have the support they need to age and work with dignity. The full report includes a toolkit so other communities can learn from and replicate the Dialogue process

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Investigating the Ancient Maya Landscape: A Settlement Survey in the Periphery of Pacbitun

This thesis presents the results of research conducted at the ancient Maya site of Pacbitun. The site, located in the foothills of the Maya Mountains in the Cayo District of Belize, offered a unique opportunity to investigate the relationship between the site core and various caves located in its 9 km2 periphery. The landscape was a critical component of ancient Maya religion. The earth and all of its topographic features were considered to be alive and, as living beings, to interact in human affairs. Caves were seen as portals to the underworld and homes to deities. Pilgrimages to these sacred places influenced and were influenced by settlement patterns and socio-political relations. Particularly targeted in this study is the causeway system, which connects the site core to a ritually used cave, and is analyzed through the application of predictive modeling. Since analysis of the intermediate area between sites and caves has been rare, this research makes a substantial contribution to our understanding of the ritual landscape

Una mirada crítica a la medida de los vagones exclusivos para mujeres en Transmilenio

Given that the problem of sexual violence in Colombia has increased unusually, the government entities, together with the Secretary of Women, have adopted measures to reduce these facts, such as the wagons for exclusive use by women in Transmilenio. However, these have not been efficient, so it is essential to seek a real strategy that does not bring consequences in the coexistence.Dado que la problemática de violencia sexual en Colombia se ha incrementado de una manera insólita, los entes gubernamentales, junto con la secretaria de la mujer, han adoptado medidas para reducir estos hechos, como los vagones de uso exclusivo para mujeres en Transmilenio. Sin embargo, estas no han sido eficientes, de manera que es indispensable buscar una verdadera estrategia que no traiga consecuencias en la convivencia