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Syndicus, Ivo Sören, 2011. From men's houses to leader courts : processes of transformation in the governance of land use in the Papua New Guinea highlands. Second cycle, A2E. Uppsala: SLU, Dept. of Urban and Rural Development

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Abstract

Land use systems in the central highlands of Papua New Guinea have been subject to accelerated change since their initial interrelation with state systems, missionaries and the monetary economy less than a century ago. This thesis explores the governance of land use in the area of Dirima in Simbu Province and discusses processes of transformation that the governance of land use is subject to between 1945 and present times. Emphasis is given to questions of how the governance of land use is socially organized, how land is accessed and managed for agricultural production, and how the governance of land use interrelates with, and draws on, institutions of government.

Results of this study are based on three months of ethnographic field work, with participant observation as sole method in the field, and complemented by the review of secondary sources.

The governance of land use in the area of Dirima is embedded in a social structure of hierarchically segmented groups, while the functions and significance of different group segments for the governance of land use have changed over the last decades. Strategies of land use are increasingly based on decisions taken within nuclear families, rather than coordinated within larger groups. In the past, men's houses have constituted a significant institution for the governance of land use, while nowadays adopted court systems play a greater role. While this thesis explores change specifically in relation to the governance and social organization of land use, it suggests that a more comprehensive understanding of changes in land use systems may be gained by analyzing social change in more inclusive terms.

Main title:From men's houses to leader courts
Subtitle:processes of transformation in the governance of land use in the Papua New Guinea highlands
Authors:Syndicus, Ivo Sören
Supervisor:Sandström, Emil
Examiner:Bartholdson, Örjan
Series:UNSPECIFIED
Volume/Sequential designation:UNSPECIFIED
Year of Publication:2011
Level and depth descriptor:Second cycle, A2E
Student's programme affiliation:NM009 Rural Development and Natural Resource Management - Master's Programme 120 HEC
Supervising department:(NL, NJ) > Dept. of Urban and Rural Development
(LTJ, LTV) > Dept. of Urban and Rural Development
Keywords:Papua New Guinea, Simbu, land use, governance, change, social organization
URN:NBN:urn:nbn:se:slu:epsilon-s-373
Permanent URL:
http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:slu:epsilon-s-373
Subject. Use of subject categories until 2023-04-30.:Public administration
Land economics and policies
Rural sociology and social security
Language:English
Deposited On:27 Jun 2011 08:17
Metadata Last Modified:20 Apr 2012 14:20

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