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5 4 N \kU-<kct ‘\RHODES UNIVERSITYC u r r en t  ISER R esearch  P r o jectsUrban Domestic Energy UseThe broad aim of this project, being conducted in Duncan Village, East London, is to explore the factors influencing domestic energy use at the household level with the aim of formulating a needs-driven, future energy policy. Special attention is paid to the impact of factors such as class, gender and generation on household energy decision-making processes. It is one of three similar longitudinal projects being co-ordinated by the Centre for Policy Studies.Small Business Development in Duncan Village, East LondonThis study, being conducted in conjunction with CORPLAN (an East London-based NGO concerned with planning issues) and the Duncan Village Residents' Association, aims to formulate a micro-business development plan for the township. This will involve a thorough analysis of the social and economic factors affecting the success or failure of small, informal business undertakings in the area."ISER researchers investigating domestic energy use in Duncan Village, East London"ISER Institute of Social and Economic ResearchNatural Resource Management at Dwesa and Cwebe Nature ReservesThe project is designed to address tensions between nature conservation and local neighbouring communities at two coastal nature reserves, Dwesa and Cwebe, in the former Transkei, where local people were resettled and lost land and resources as a result of the establishment of the reserves. Conservation forums have been set up as the first step towards a biore- gional development forum, with partici­pation from villagers and conservation staff. The aim is to develop the capacity of these forums, facilitate negotiation between different stakeholders, support activities which combine development with conservation (e.g. eco-tourism), and to collect the necessary socio-economicand ecological data for planning sustainable use of resources within the reserves.Conservation and Community Development in the Great Fish River Reserve ComplexThis research reflects growing inter­national recognition of (i) the need for neighbouring communities to support the existence of protected areas if these areas are to survive, and (ii) the link between poverty and environmental degradation. In 1995 the Inxuba (Fish River) Conservation and Economic Forum was launched to improve communication between the nine neighbouring villages, Reserve staff and black and white commercial farmers, as well as to advance the development of the communities.“ISER researchers at a workshop at the Great Fish River Reserve complex"Institute of Social and Economic ResearchISER"Rural women gathering wood in Peddie District in the Eastern Cape Province"Rural Livelihoods and Local Level Natural Resource Management in Peddie DistrictThis project forms part of a national study managed by the Land and Agriculture Policy Centre. The ISER team is working on community-based natural resource management systems in six villages in the Peddie district. The focus is on participatory techniques which engage villagers in discussion about indigenous strategies for managing their common resources, such as water, land, soil and wood. Central aims of the project are to inform policy decisions around natural resource management at both provincial and national levels and to assist in building the institutional capacity of the local rural council.De-agrarianization in the Eastern Cape Province in the 1990sThis is one of five similar projects being conducted in various parts of sub-Saharan Africa. The study aims to investigate the making of livelihoods in different types of rural villages, focusing on the survival and market strategies of villagers who have limited or no access to arable land and livestock. The central questions are:How do people with limited access to agricultural resources survive in rural areas? What combinations of economic activities are they engaged in? How are these activities organised and sustained?What are the policy implications of these strategies for rural development, employment creation and land reform in South Africa?"Ploughing team in Shixini, Eastern Cape Province"ISER Institute of Social and Economic Research"ISER researcher discussing the cultural significance o f  objects with a local maker o f Xhosa crafts"Cultural Resource ManagementThis study, being conducted in collaboration with the Albany Museum, deals with the cultural significance attached to material objects, physical sites and natural features of importance to indigenous people in and around national parks. It is the first of a series of nation­wide studies.Health: Two studies on infant immuniza­tion in an urban and rural situation have been completed as well as an assessment of counselling care and education for AIDS cases and their families. An analysis of a survey of health resources (facilities, human resources and finance) has been undertaken with the provincial Department of Health and Welfare. The ISER is preparing to assist with transdisciplinary health and developmentresearch together with other departments at Rhodes University.O ther recently completed projectsinclude: a multi-disciplinary study of the processes of change in the Keiskamma­hoek district,- an investigation of popula­tion and mobility and settlement patterns in the Eastern Cape (1950-1990),- the socio-economic and political context of land reform,- a comparison of social and economic life in East London's Duncan Village in the 1950s with that of the 1990s,- two studies which formed part of the South African Participatory Poverty Assessment Programme and which focused on an urban township and on commercial farms in the Eastern Cape,- and a study dealing with the current and future use of commonage land in small towns.II| IIS t i 3 2 3 1 3 b“The main ISER building on the Rhodes University campus at 6 Prince Alfred Street"

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Current ISER research projects

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