The value of historical ecology in planning for sustainable livelihoods: a Kiribati case study

Thomas, Frank R. (2012) The value of historical ecology in planning for sustainable livelihoods: a Kiribati case study. The Journal of Pacific Studies, 32 . pp. 137-152. ISSN 1011-3029

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Abstract

The precariousness of human existence on atolls, both past and present, is apparent when one examines the close linkages between communities and their environment. There have been few applications of Historical Ecology, the transdisciplinary study of how human societies and the 18natural 19 environment interact and transform each other through time, on atolls and other coral islands, particularly for the period preceding Western contact. Kiribati provides examples of communities that did not endure, as well as others that were sustainable for some 2,000 years. Knowledge of ecological complexity over centuries and millennia is a critical first step in the process of identifying the causes of environmental change and devising realistic methods for managing scarce atoll resources, as well as assessing the effectiveness of traditional adaption strategies in contemporary settings.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Subjects:	G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GF Human ecology. Anthropogeography
Divisions:	Faculty of Arts, Law and Education (FALE) > Oceania Centre for Arts, Culture and Pacific Studies
Depositing User:	Ms Shalni Sanjana
Date Deposited:	02 Oct 2012 23:22
Last Modified:	19 Jan 2017 00:57
URI:	https://repository.usp.ac.fj/id/eprint/5296

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