Subject: Analyzing the emergence of a complex swidden management system in
the Toledo District, Belize -Dr. Sean Downey

Description: Despite the fact that swidden agriculture has been the subject
of decades of research, questions remain as to the extent to which it is
constrained by demographic growth and if it can adapt to environmental
limits. In his presentation, Downey will show ethnographic and
ethnohistorical evidence and the results of a social network analysis that
suggest Q'eqchi' Maya swidden agriculture during the past 100 years may be
more ecologically adaptive than previously thought. He develops a novel
interpretation of labor reciprocity that highlights how unreciprocated
exchanges, when they occur within the context of a network, may limit
overexploitation of the forest. The observed labor network variability
suggests that Q'eqchi' swidden farming can maintain its identity under
changing conditions, a common definition of resilience.

Event Date: February 17, 2016
Event Start Time: 4:00 pm
Event End Time: 5:00 pm
Event Location: ANS 0408
Contact Person: Barret Wessel
Contact Email: [log in to unmask]