Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019
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Date of Graduation
Spring 2016
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts (BA)
Department
Department of Sociology and Anthropology
Advisor(s)
Mieka Polanco
Jennifer E. Coffman
Carole Nash
Abstract
This ethnographic study examines Traditional Ecological Knowledge in Mji Mkongwe (Stone Town), Zanzibar, and how ecological knowledge shared by locals on the island is formed and is shared among locals in a park setting. Using a framework of political ecology, this study specifically highlights ecological pressures of local population growth, global climate change on a local scale, and local economic changes as the key drivers for the creation and cultural importance of Traditional Ecological Knowledge. To discover both the ecological pressures and the examples of Traditional Ecological Knowledge, I conducted semi-structured, open-ended interviews in Forodhani Park, a public park on the coast of Mji Mkongwe. I spoke with 25 local Zanzibaris visiting or living near the park and asked them a set of prepared interview questions that guided a set of follow up questions. The patterns I discovered involving Traditional Ecological Knowledge emphasized a mixture of different themes, including creation of a unique Zanzibari identity and reinforcement of gender-specific and religiously tied ecologically grounded practices. This thesis emphasizes how this knowledge is being shared and normalized in Forodhani Park and the dynamism of Traditional Ecological Knowledge itself.
Recommended Citation
Mulligan, Jaimie Lynn, "Beyond traditional ecological knowledge: Learned information in Forodhani Park" (2016). Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019. 135.
https://commons.lib.jmu.edu/honors201019/135
