Nature and Culture in the Andes

1999 History

Author : Daniel W. Gade
Release : 1999
Genre : History
Kind : eBook
Book Rating : 248/5 ( reviews)

Book Synopsis Nature and Culture in the Andes by : Daniel W. Gade

Download or read book Nature and Culture in the Andes written by Daniel W. Gade. This book was released on 1999. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This text reveals the intimate and unexpected relationships of plants, animals and people in western South America. Daniel Gade encourages the reader to look beyond the obvious to see the true complexity of ecological relationships.

Water and Power in Highland Peru

2000 Business & Economics

Author : Paul H. Gelles
Release : 2000
Genre : Business & Economics
Kind : eBook
Book Rating : 076/5 ( reviews)

GET EBOOK

Book Synopsis Water and Power in Highland Peru by : Paul H. Gelles

Download or read book Water and Power in Highland Peru written by Paul H. Gelles. This book was released on 2000. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Cabanaconde, a town of 5,000 people, is located in the arid Andean highlands. It is dominated by the foreboding Hualca Hualca mountain peak that is the source of this town's much-needed water. How the villagers obtain this water, Paul Gelles writes, is not a simple process: the politics of irrigation in this area reflect a struggle for control of vital resources, deeply rooted in the clash between local, ritualized models of water distribution and the secular model put forth by the Peruvian state. Water and Power in Highland Peru provides an insightful case study on the intense conflicts over water rights, and a framework for studying ethnic conflict and the effects of "development," not only in Peru, but in other areas as well. Most of the inhabitants of Cabanaconde do not identify themselves with the dominant Spanish-speaking culture found in Peru. And the Peruvian state, grounded in a racist, post-Colonial ethos, challenges the village's long-standing, non-Western framework for organizing water management. Gelles demonstrates that Andean culture is dynamic and adaptive, and it is a powerful source of ethnic identity, even for those who leave the village to live elsewhere. Indigenous rituals developed in this part of the world, he states, have become powerful tools of resistance against interference by local elites and the present-day Peruvian state. Most importantly, the micropolitics of Cabanaconde provide a window into a struggle that is taking place around the world.

Lines in the Water

2002-06-13 Social Science

Author : Ben Orlove
Release : 2002-06-13
Genre : Social Science
Kind : eBook
Book Rating : 896/5 ( reviews)

GET EBOOK

Book Synopsis Lines in the Water by : Ben Orlove

Download or read book Lines in the Water written by Ben Orlove. This book was released on 2002-06-13. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This beautifully written book weaves reflections on anthropological fieldwork together with evocative meditations on a spectacular landscape as it takes us to the remote indigenous villages on the shore of Lake Titicaca, high in the Peruvian Andes. Ben Orlove brings alive the fishermen, reed cutters, boat builders, and families of this isolated region, and describes the role that Lake Titicaca has played in their culture. He describes the landscapes and rhythms of life in the Andean highlands as he considers the intrusions of modern technology and economic demands in the region. Lines in the Water tells a local version of events that are taking place around the world, but with an unusual outcome: people here have found ways to maintain their cultural autonomy and to protect their fragile mountain environment. The Peruvian highlanders have confronted the pressures of modern culture with remarkable vitality. They use improved boats and gear and sell fish to new markets but have fiercely opposed efforts to strip them of their indigenous traditions. They have retained their customary practice of limiting the amount of fishing and have continued to pass cultural knowledge from one generation to the next--practices that have prevented the ecological crises that have followed commercialization of small-scale fisheries around the world. This book--at once a memoir and an ethnography--is a personal and compelling account of a research experience as well as an elegantly written treatise on themes of global importance. Above all, Orlove reminds us that human relations with the environment, though constantly changing, can be sustainable.

The Andes

2015-03-12 Science

Author : Axel Borsdorf
Release : 2015-03-12
Genre : Science
Kind : eBook
Book Rating : 304/5 ( reviews)

GET EBOOK

Book Synopsis The Andes by : Axel Borsdorf

Download or read book The Andes written by Axel Borsdorf. This book was released on 2015-03-12. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Andes are attracting global interest again: they hold valuable mineral resources, tourists appreciate their great natural beauty and the diversity of indigenous cultures, climbers scale rock and ice faces, while many others are intrigued by regional political developments, such as the Bolivarian revolution in Venezuela or the almost unfettered hegemony of the neoliberal economic model in Chile. This volume is the first attempt for decades to present a complete overview of the longest mountain chain on the planet – a region of remarkable climatic, floristic and geologic diversity, where advanced civilization developed well before the arrival of the Spanish. Today the Andes continue to be characterized by their ethnic, demographic, cultural and economic diversity, as well as by the disparity of local socioeconomic groups. The Andean countries pursue a wide range of approaches to tackle the challenges of making the best use of their natural and cultural potential without damaging their ecological basis, as well as to overcome economic disparity and foster social cohesion. This book provides insights into this unique region and its most pressing issues, complemented by a wealth of pictures and comprehensive diagrams, which, in sum, help to better understand these fascinating mountains.

An Analysis of an Andean Cosmovisión

2014 Aymara cosmology

Author : Christian Ardeleanu
Release : 2014
Genre : Aymara cosmology
Kind : eBook
Book Rating : /5 ( reviews)

GET EBOOK

Book Synopsis An Analysis of an Andean Cosmovisión by : Christian Ardeleanu

Download or read book An Analysis of an Andean Cosmovisión written by Christian Ardeleanu. This book was released on 2014. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Modern life may offer certain benefits for humanity, but it can also create a barrier between humans and the natural world. In contrast, the millenarian Aymara culture of the Bolivian Andes exhibits a harmonic interrelation with nature, ecology, and the cosmos, and it also represents a living system of indigenous knowledge and knowledge production/transformation. The Aymara system of knowing and knowledge production, like other indigenous systems, should not be mistaken for antiquated elements of culture and folklore but should be seen as a distinct and dynamic epistemology. The Aymara cosmovisión is similar to the philosophy of ecology, sharing some general descriptions of interactions in the natural world and the cosmos. However, the two perspectives differ when they are analyzed in their proper systems of knowledge production. In this analysis, the epistemological difference between how ecology and the cosmovisión relate to the natural world is seen as a gap in the two distinct traditions of knowledge production. By first describing characteristics of the Aymara cosmovisión as envisioned by several ritual and spiritual masters (amawt'as), other involved Aymara people, and several Aymara academics, these findings are then analyzed in their relationship to ecology and the natural world. This analysis included many distinct voices, illustrating the non-dogmatic nature of the cosmovisión. Ultimately, each interviewee spoke towards the aspect of the cosmovisión which he/she is most interested in without being bound to a certain doctrine or creed by an authoritative body. Most of the ritual and spiritual specialists generally focus on interacting with the beings of the natural world through diverse ritual conversations. Other spiritual specialists focus on the study and interpretation of a cosmic order and code. Aymara academics are more interested in describing issues surrounding Andean culture and its interaction with the modern Bolivian society, especially in terms of decolonization. The different perspectives of the interviewees yield a data set that is descriptive of the Andean cosmovisión in general, and that offers insight into comparisons with occidental notions of nature and culture.

Popular eBooks

Nature and Culture in the Andes

Water and Power in Highland Peru

The Andes

An Analysis of an Andean Cosmovisión

You may also like...