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PDF
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Type:
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Conference Paper |
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Author:
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Bosc, Pierre-Marie; Weber, Jacques |
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Conference:
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Crossing Boundaries, the Seventh Biennial Conference of the International Association for the Study of Common Property |
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Location:
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Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada |
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Conf. Date:
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June 10-14 |
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Date:
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1998 |
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URI:
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https://hdl.handle.net/10535/571
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Sector:
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Social Organization
Agriculture |
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Region:
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Africa |
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Subject(s):
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IASC
common pool resources--case studies
social organization
farmers' associations
collective action
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Abstract:
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"In this communication it will be shown that social inequalities within a given society do not constitute an insuperable obstacle to the establishment of new forms of management of renewable resources. It will indeed be demonstrated that these inequalities, which form dividing lines that, although unstable, are sufficiently clear-cut between individuals and strategic groups, do not in fact hinder changes in the way in which renewable resources are appropriated. They do not prevent the creation of public property, or of a new common property resource, or the emergence of the relevant management systems.
"Collective action is made possible by the formation of a farmer organization which becomes the scene for confrontation of individual strategies. These can be contrasted (migrants returning home, elders, women, social juniors, etc.) and the power balance within the society is at once a central issue and one of the conditions attendant upon the emergence of the new forms of management of renewable resources. The organization enables the creation of new areas of negotiation that are open to subordinate social categories. These new bodies do not take the place of traditional institutions, which still stand guarantee for the final decisions, but they give a voice to claims and projects that had not previously been considered by these institutions.
"This communication is based on a case study of a social group in Basse Casamance, Senegal, which had to confront profound alterations in the way in which renewable resources were managed within farming systems that were undergoing major change, both climatic and social. This case study is a result of research work conducted on the basis of several periods in the field between 1992 and 1997, and which led to the production of a thesis (Bosc 1998)."
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