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1
Spoerel, Christine (Christine Ann) Carleton University Dissertation International Affairs. "The Anglo-Guatemalan dispute and rural development in southern Belize." Ottawa, 1988.
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Lawrence, Robert S. "Belize: new international actor." Thesis, Tulane University, 1985. http://hdl.handle.net/10945/28012.
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Haramijová, Monika. "Zvláštnosti podnikatelského prostředí Belize." Master's thesis, Vysoká škola ekonomická v Praze, 2009. http://www.nusl.cz/ntk/nusl-15939.
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Diploma thesis concerns with business environment in Belize, with analysis of particular components of the environment and with specification of business particularities. Chapters are divided according to the PEST analysis and they deal with economic, political, legal, social and cultural environment in Beize. Corporate environments in Belize and in Czech Republic are also confronted in diploma thesis and in the end, the mutal relation of these two countries is mentioned.
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Miller, Deborah A. "Long term impacts of ecotourism on a Mayan rural community in Belize." Virtual Press, 2000. http://liblink.bsu.edu/uhtbin/catkey/1164842.
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Before 1968, Blue Creek Village was comprised of Mayan Indians living their traditional way of life, growing corn, beans, and rice, caring for their homes and family. The years following 1968, Blue Creek Village began to see development and change. Between the years of 1968-1971, a road, Catholic Church and an ecotourism site were built, the International Zoological Expedition (IZE). Three years later a primary school was built (1974-75) and finally in 1978 an agriculture building was built. Only 9% of the people living in Blue Creek Village had no formal schooling. Two generations of the Blue Creek Village people experienced and were affected by developmental changes occurring in their community.During the summer of 1999 (May 13 - August 8), I studied the Mayan Indians to determine how ecotourism, education, and gender influence the cash income earned by the Mayan people and how education is influenced by ecotourism, gender, age, individual, family/generational or community decisions. Blue Creek Village, Belize, was chosen as the site of study because Mayan Indians lived a traditional lifestyle and it was adjacent to an ecotourism location, the IZE Blue Creek Rainforest Preserve in the Maya Mountains. Ethnographic interviews and participant observations were used to obtain responses and demographic data of the local Mayan people. From these responses the statistical analysis revealed that education does influence the cash income of the local Mayan people in Blue Creek Village. Prior to the IZE Rainforest Preserve, the Mayan men's only source of cash income was through rice production, and women were unable to earn cash. The cash earned from the visiting tourists assisted families by providing cash income to pay for an education for their children.Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Management
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Hunter, Clarissa C. "The chultuns of Caracol, Belize." Virtual Press, 1995. http://liblink.bsu.edu/uhtbin/catkey/941712.
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Chultuns have served as a source of curious debate for most Maya archaeological projects. Although there is great speculation about the function(s) served by the chultuns, few theories are concrete. This study attempted to determine the specific use of chultuns as relevant to this particular site. During the 1989 field season at Caracol excavations were carried out in six chultuns. A team composed of one student and several workman were assigned to investigate each group. At least one test pit was placed within each group to search for other diagnostic material to compare with the artifacts recovered from the chultun. The data collected indicates that the chultuns of Caracol were primarily related to a burial function. However, the possibility cannot be ruled out that a different function was intended for these features and that they were only used as burial chambers when they were about to be abandoned.Department of Anthropology
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Holden, Patsy. "BALLCOURT ICONOGRAPHY AT CARACOL, BELIZE." Master's thesis, University of Central Florida, 2009. http://digital.library.ucf.edu/cdm/ref/collection/ETD/id/2649.
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One of the more commonly known aspects of the ancient Maya culture is the ballgame. This ancient ballgame was played by most Mesoamerican cultures on a constructed ballcourt and many major Mesoamerican sites have at least one, if not more than one. Contemporary Mesoamericans still play versions of this ballgame today, but without the use of the ballcourts, questioning the importance and purpose of the ballcourt that is no longer the case today. After over a century of research, scholars have yet to unravel all the cosmological and mythological mysteries of the ballcourt and its purpose to the ancient Maya. Although the archaeological record rarely supports the well-known Postclassic Hero Twin myth, most scholars continue to use this myth to interpret Classic ballgame iconography. In this study, I link Classic period ballcourt architecture and iconography at Caracol to Preclassic cache practices, to an Early Classic tomb, and to an elite Classic structure, demonstrating a widespread set of cosmological symbols that were not exclusively reserved for the ballcourt. I suggest that the four eroded figures on Caracol Ballcourt Markers 1 and 2 represent east, west, zenith, and nadir, and that the north-south alignment of Classic Southern Lowland ballcourts was the result of a vertical visualization of the three ballcourt markers. This study shows that the Maya ballcourt was a cosmogram, intended to delineate sacred space and demarcate a portal into the underworld.M.S.
Department of Anthropology
Sciences
Anthropology MA
7
Barrow, Ursula H. "Organizing for business in Belize." Thesis, University of Cambridge, 1990. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.385900.
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Lee, Devon Lovelle. "Pan Africanist Praxis Ina Belize." Diss., Virginia Tech, 2019. http://hdl.handle.net/10919/103648.
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Pan Africanism is strategy that emerges through a history of surviving oppression, methodology to understand thought and action, and theory that tests findings against sociopolitical context. History, methodology and theory are used to develop the historical trajectory that responds to invasion, slavery, colonization and neocolonialism in Belize. As such, three manuscripts are offered to outline the historical narrative of Belizean Pan Africanism, autoethnographic insights for the study of Pan Africanism, and the sociopolitical context that contemporary Pan Africanism in Belize rises out of. Kurt Young defines Pan-Africanism as: "a fusing of affirmations of African identity with libratory efforts at the level of the masses (2009:7). The study and practice of Pan Africanism should therefore aligned in objectives and strategy to interrupt oppressive conditions that impact communities within the African Diaspora. This project, therefore, operationalizes scholar-activism in history, method and theory to outline strategic action and collective subversion as Pan Africanist Praxis in Belize.Doctor of Philosophy
White Colonizers invaded the shores of Africa, dislocating a people from their legacy and heritage. However, a strategy was formed to create a new legacy and heritage that broke the bondage of White supremacy that trapped Black bodies. From the enslaved that ran to forge a new path for their people, to those that shed blood for freedom, Pan Africanism has been a strategy that has incorporated thoughts of freedom into escape plans. This study builds a historical timeline for Pan Africanism in Belize, methodology for the study of Pan Africanism and an academic exploration of contemporary Pan Africanism in Belize. Pan Africanism as history, method and contemporary theory add to the body of knowledge by inserting Belize at the center of Pan Africanist theory and practice. The study and practice of Pan Africanism is aligned in objectives and strategy to interrupt historical and contemporary conditions that impact communities within the African Diaspora. This project, therefore, operationalizes scholar-activism in history, method and theory to outline strategic action and collective subversion as Pan-Africanist Praxis in Belize.
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Powis, Terry George. "An integrative approach to the analysis of the Late Preclassic ceramics at Lamanai, Belize /." Thesis, Full text (PDF) from UMI/Dissertation Abstracts International, 2002. http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/utexas/fullcit?p3086792.
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Key, Carol. "Cayes, Coral, Tourism and Ethnicity in Belize." Thesis, University of North Texas, 2002. https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc3239/.
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The development of tourism and more importantly eco-tourism has emerged as a primary objective for the government of Belize, Central America. This study examines two villages Seine Bight and Placencia located on a peninsula occupied by separate ethnic groups (Garifuna and Creole) that is located on a peninsula in Southern Belize. Seine Bight and Placencia are undergoing a change in economic activity to tourism. The study attempts to understand the role of ethnicity, socio-economic status, amount of contact with tourists, and the environment in regard to attitudes towards tourism utilizing quantitative and qualitative methods. The study also attempts to understand the organization and disorganization of productive activity on the peninsula and ethnicity over space and time. The point of diffusion and contact of different groups is reflected archeologically and historically in the marine landscape. The peninsula served not only as a natural harbor for those sailing up and down the coastline over time but also served as a point of diffusion of different groups reflected in changing place names, such as Placentia, Point Patient, and Pasciencia.
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Kosakowsky, Laura J. "Preclassic Maya Pottery at Cuello, Belize." University of Arizona Press (Tucson, AZ), 1987. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/595479.
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"This monograph adds important data on the development of Preclassic period ceramics in northern Belize."—American Antiquity"This book contributes to our understanding of early Maya society during an era that has only new been revealed."—The Chesopiean"Kosakowsky's book, produced in the clear, easy-to-read and well designed format . . . is a substantive contribution to Maya ceramic studies."—Journal of Latin American Studies
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Cook, Patricia Maria 1965. "Residential architecture on Albion Island, Belize." Thesis, The University of Arizona, 1991. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/291687.
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The discovery of small, residential-sized mounds in the northern Yucatan composed of solid or nearly solid rubble limestone triggered a vigorous debate within Maya archaeology over the actual function of these mounds. Many Mayanists found it difficult to accept that these were indeed housemounds based on their size and composition. A review of recent excavations of similar mounds from various regions within the Maya area is combined with new evidence from Albion Island, Belize, to posit that rubble construction is merely an alternate form of construction dictated by geologic and geographical constraints. Group 200 on Albion Island is a group of five mounds which in size, shape, and cultural artifacts fall within the designation 'housemound,' but which are composed mainly of limestone cobbles and boulders.
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Pyburn, Karen Anne, and Karen Anne Pyburn. "The settlement of Nohmul: Development of a prehispanic Maya community in northern Belize." Diss., The University of Arizona, 1988. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/184624.
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The study of prehistoric Maya settlements has been hampered by simplistic views of cultural ecology, over generalized ethnographic analogy, and a lack of attention to both natural and cultural site formation processes. As a result, Mayanists have tended to expect very little variety in archaeological features and have assumed cultural uniformity over wide ranges of time and space. Traditional research designs support these assumptions. Current knowledge of Maya social organization suggests that more structural variety may occur in Maya archaeological sites than is ordinarily discovered. Some of this variation is evidenced by features not currently visible on the ground-surface. The Nohmul Settlement pattern project employed a "purposive" sampling design to search for settlement variation over time and space. Several assumptions about surface-subsurface relationships were tested. Surface indications were not found to outline subsurface variety. Excavating at intervals from site center in both visible and "invisible" features, showed that the Nohmul community was affected by both centralizing and decentralizing influences and grouped into residential clusters resembling neighborhoods. The degree of centralization and the location of the clusters, as well as some of their characteristics, changed notably over Nohmul's 2500 year occupation.
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Hayden, Heather Lyn. "The Erosion of Coastal Sediment and Regeneration of Rhizophora mangle Following Anthropogenic Disturbance on Turneffe Atoll, Belize." PDXScholar, 2015. https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/open_access_etds/2365.
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As communities and managers become aware of the long-term impacts of mangrove loss, estimated at 1-2% per year, interest in sediment erosion and mangrove rehabilitation has increased substantially. In this thesis project I 1) examine erosion rates within coastal fringing Rhizophora mangle ecosystems following mangrove clearing and compare these rates to accretion rates in intact mangroves; and 2) investigate the abiotic factors influencing mangrove seedling survival and regeneration of naturally colonizing R. mangle, in historic mangrove habitat after anthropogenic clearing.
Differences in erosion were compared between patches of open-coast intact and anthropogenically cleared R. mangle to quantify the sediment trapping function provided by mangroves and its loss following clearing over a 24 month period. Growth rates of mangrove seedlings in intact forest were compared to seedlings in cleared areas. Seedling growth indicators were measured on 100 seedlings at five sites (50 in the intact and 50 in the cleared areas). To examine the limiting factors on seedling growth rates, nutrient addition and wave protection treatments were applied to seedlings in three disturbed areas.
Sites within intact mangroves had sediment accretion (M= +3.83 mm) while areas cleared of mangroves had sediment erosion (M= -7.30 mm). Seedling growth (height) over the 2 year study period significantly differed between intact mangrove (M = 15.6 cm) and cleared (M = 10.24 cm) areas. Seedling mortality from the cleared areas (31%) differed from the intact areas (13%). Average seedling growth (height) was: greater with both nutrient/wave (M = 18.4 cm) and nutrient (M = 17.65 cm) treatments compared to controls (M = 10.8 cm), which suggests that providing nutrients and/or wave protection result in growth outputs comparable to seedlings found in intact mangroves.
This study may prove to be useful in identifying areas that are most vulnerable to erosion following mangrove removal and ideal location of restoration following mangrove removal. Areas cleared of mangroves can lead to intensified erosion in areas where fringing reefs are not continuous. When managers are determining areas to focus resources for restoration, focusing on areas with nutrient rich habitat may result in higher survival rates and growth outputs.
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Pastor, Clara. "Education in Belize : history and current issues." Thesis, McGill University, 1995. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=22616.
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This study examines the evolution of preschool, primary and secondary education in Belize for the period 1816 to 1994 in relation to access, quality, effectiveness and efficiency in the use of available resources. Qualitative analysis of documentary evidence and interviews with 40 Belizean educators was combined with quantitative analysis of enrollment and other statistics. The data collected identified the major development milestones including compulsory attendance for primary students, the Primary School Leaving Certificate, the Belize National Selection examination for primary students, the Caribbean Examination Council examinations for secondary students and local teacher training. Major continuing issues include: lack of proper planning, inadequate human and financial resources, shortages of qualified teachers, high dropout rates, irrelevant curricula, and imbalance between rural and urban educational opportunity. This study concludes that although preschool, primary and secondary education has expanded, much still remains to be done to provide equal access, and improve its quality, effectiveness and efficiency.
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Neighbor, Rebecca, Claire Gleadhill, and Kacie Denton. "Viral Hemorrhagic Conjunctivitis Outbreak in Rural Belize." Digital Commons @ East Tennessee State University, 2019. https://dc.etsu.edu/asrf/2019/schedule/196.
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ABSTRACT OBJECTIVES:
The objectives of this project are to review current literature regarding conjunctivitis including the pathogens that cause conjunctivitis, how to diagnose and differentiate between viral and bacterial conjunctivitis, and the different modalities to treating the disease with limited resources in rural communities. Then examine an outbreak of viral hemorrhagic conjunctivitis in rural Belize in October of 2017. This includes examining data collected by ETSU Family Medicine Department during health outreach clinics regarding diagnosis made, treatment provided, and comparing this information to a survey collected about social determinants of health. Finally, discuss the importance of disseminating public health education regarding how to limit the spread of contagious infections to a rural population with limited health literacy and access to resources.
METHODS:
In October of 2017 East Tennessee State University (ETSU) Quillen College of Medicine medical students, primary care physicians, and residents traveled to rural Belize to provide free primary care. The clinics consisted of seeing patients at both an established clinic in Roaring Creek, Belize and at remote health clinics in even more rural locations. Many of the patients who presented to the clinics had similar complaints of itchy, red, and productive eyes. Quantitative data was recorded from patient charts regarding their presenting symptoms, diagnosis, and the treatment. The data was organized utilizing microsoft excel and evaluated using SPSS and measures of central tendency. Qualitative data was also collected from interactions with patients and newspaper articles published in Belize about the conjunctivitis outbreak.
RESULTS:
The results showed that a total of 431 patients received care and 52% of them were diagnosed with conjunctivitis. 46.9% of the patients were determined to have viral conjunctivitis, while 2.8% of them had bacterial conjunctivitis. It was discovered that many patients utilized one reusable cloth to wipe their children's eyes repeatedly thus spreading the disease across and throughout the rural communities. It was found through careful conversations with patients that they were putting urine and breast milk into their eyes in hopes that it would help their pink eye. The Belize Ministry of Health Reported that there were 5,343 cases of pink eye countrywide, with a viral strain being more predominant than bacterial.
CONCLUSION:
In conclusion, extremely contagious diseases like conjunctivitis are dangerous in rural developing countries because of lack of education about hygiene and limited resources necessary to contain such diseases. While medication is not effective for viral conjunctivitis, it can have devastating consequences (e.g blindness) if a superinfection is not caught early in the course. Education can be the best medicine especially in cases of viral diseases. Patients were also provided with resources to wash their hands often, sterilized water to flush their eyes, and single use towels. A lesson on conjunctivitis, its complications, and how to prevent the spread of the disease was aired on public television. This reports provides examples of both practice creative ways to spread health literacy in rural populations with limited access to resources.
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Hepburn, N. C. "Cutaneous leishmaniasis in British troops from Belize." Thesis, University of Edinburgh, 1995. http://hdl.handle.net/1842/20566.
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A general review of cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) and its management is followed by a retrospective review of 306 cases of CL in British soldiers from Belize. The diagnosis was confirmed by demonstration of the parasite, by histology and/or culture, in 61% of cases. Leishmania braziliensis braziliensis (Lbb) was identified in 78 cases and Leishmania mexicana (Lmm) in a further 29 cases. Only cases in which the parasite was identified were analysed further. A single lesion was present in 71%, usually on the exposed extremities. The mean diameter of the ulcers was 14.4mm and lesions had been present for a mean of 9.9 weeks before treatment started. Those due to Lbb were larger, yet they had been present for a shorter time than those due to Lmm. There were no other distinguishing clinical features between them. Treatment with sodium stibogluconate was effective. A 10 day course of 600-800mg od healed 48.5%, whereas a 14 day course of 600 mg bd healed 63.9%. A total of 24g of sodium stibogluconate healed the ulcers of 90% soldiers irrespective of the regime used. Reports of myalgia, anorexia and malaise were more frequent in those who received the higher daily dose. A transient leucopenia and a rise in serum aminotransferases were noted during treatment. These studies led me to propose some management guidelines. The diagnosis should be confirmed histologically and by culture. Sodium stibogluconate 20mg/kg/day should be administered for 20 days. Patients should be assessed 6 weeks after the completion of treatment both clinically - complete epithelialisation with a flat, non-indurated, scar, and by culture of a biopsy.
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Stemp, William James. "An analysis of stone tool use in the Maya coastal economies of Marco Gonzalez and San Pedro, Ambergris Caye, Belize." Thesis, National Library of Canada = Bibliothèque nationale du Canada, 2000. http://www.collectionscanada.ca/obj/s4/f2/dsk3/ftp04/nq64672.pdf.
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Cunningham, Smith Petra. "Fish from afar marine resource use at Caracol, Belize." Master's thesis, University of Central Florida, 2011. http://digital.library.ucf.edu/cdm/ref/collection/ETD/id/4878.
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The ancient Maya had strong ties to the sea. The trade, transportation and use of marine resources were important not only to coastal Maya communities, but also to the heavily populated cities that lay many miles inland. A review of zooarchaeological evidence recovered from excavations at the inland site of Caracol, Belize suggests that the inhabitants imported marine fish for food, marine shell for working into trade items, and sharks teeth and stingray spines for ritual use. This thesis examines the manner in which fish and other marine resources were used, procured and transported from the coast to the site of Caracol. The possibility that certain marine fish might have been transported alive to the site is explored. An examination of present day fishing and animal husbandry practices suggests that many species could have survived an inland trip in ancient times if transported under conditions that allowed for water exchanges and minimized stress. Marine resources had important economic and ritual significance to the people of Caracol. Understanding the methods by which these valuable items were transported and traded ultimately facilitates a greater understanding of the economic and socio-political relationships among these ancient polities.ID: 030423342; System requirements: World Wide Web browser and PDF reader.; Mode of access: World Wide Web.; Thesis (M.A.)--University of Central Florida, 2011.; Includes bibliographical references (p. 69-79).
M.A.
Masters
Anthropology
Sciences
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Bruner, Gail Yvonne. "Evaluation a model of private-ownership conservation : ecotourism in the community baboon sanctuary in belize." Thesis, Georgia Institute of Technology, 1993. http://hdl.handle.net/1853/30382.
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Crandall, James M. "Water and the mountains Maya water mangement at Caracol, Belize /." Orlando, Fla. : University of Central Florida, 2009. http://purl.fcla.edu/fcla/etd/CFE0002652.
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Levi, Laura Jane. "Prehispanic residence and community at San Estevan, Belize." Diss., The University of Arizona, 1993. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/186475.
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Research at the site of San Estevan, Belize begins with the premise that more serious attention must be paid to the significance of residential variability in archaeological modelings of the lowland Maya. A classification of structure groupings is used to track the distribution of San Estevan's diverse residential arrangements across the site. Norms of social structure and economic inequality prove inadequate frameworks to account for the spatial and temporal variation manifest by San Estevan's residential classes, nor do they help to explain the spatial regularities underlying the distributions of these classes. I suggest, instead, that the site's residential units best effect divergent organizational strategies adopted by San Estevan's prehispanic domestic groups. Whereas diffuse political authority, impoverished political economies, and kingroup self-sufficiency traditionally have been invoked to account for Maya residential patterns, domestic strategies at San Estevan gained their shape directly in relation to the functions housed in the community's precincts of monumental architecture. I conclude that prehispanic Maya residential distributions formed through stringent economic and political entailments of community life.
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Cochran, Jennifer Lynn. "Diet, habitat and ecomorphology of cichlids in the Upper Bladen River, Belize." Texas A&M University, 2008. http://hdl.handle.net/1969.1/86072.
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Cichlids are among the most species rich and ecologically diverse families of
freshwater fishes. Life history attributes vary greatly among cichlids across their global
range, and in the Neotropics alone studies have revealed a great deal of diversity in cichlid
ecology, morphology and behavior. This study investigated the habitat use, diet, and
ecomorphology of an assemblage of cichlids in the Upper Bladen River, Belize.
Mesohabitats, including riffles, runs, deep pools, vegetated areas and adjacent streams,
were surveyed and snorkeled, and physicochemical and habitat variables were measured at
each site where cichlids were observed or collected. Between 12 and 65 stomachs of each
cichlid species were analyzed for diet composition. In addition, traditional morphometrics
were completed on five individuals of each species in order to investigate the relationships
between morphology, diet, and habitat use. The present study revealed patterns of trophic
and morphological diversity consistent with a hypothesis of resource partitioning in
accordance with adaptive divergence in morphological traits that influence ecological
performance. The Bladen cichlid assemblage has one algivore with a long, coiled gut
(Archocentrus spilurus), one piscivore with an elongated body and highly protrusbile jaws
(Petenia splendida), two substrate sifters that feed extensively on benthic invertebrates
(Astatheros robertsoni and Thorichthys meeki), one midwater invertebrate feeder ('Cichlasoma' salvini), and one large-bodied, trophic generalist (Vieja maculicauda).
Species in this assemblage display divergent ecological patterns supported by
morphological and behavioral adaptations that yield a degree of diet and habitat
segregation. The present study provides not only basic ecological data essential for
effective conservation, but also evidence of niche diversification within a local assemblage
of heroine cichlids that will be useful for ecological and evolutionary analyses at larger
scales of taxonomy, geography, and time.
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Miller, Bruce W. "Community ecology of the non-phyllostomid bats of Northwestern Belize, with a landscape level assessment of the bats of Belize." Thesis, University of Kent, 2003. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.399600.
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Ferries, Laura Catherine. "Site Formation and Occupation History of the Medicinal Trail House Mound Group at the Program for Belize Archaeological Project, Belize." University of Cincinnati / OhioLINK, 2002. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1029356581.
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Doherty, Deirdre Anne. "Hunting and the implications for mammals in Belize /." For electronic version search Digital dissertations database. Restricted to UC campuses. Access is free to UC campus dissertations, 2005. http://uclibs.org/PID/11984.
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Tetlow, Andrew Peter. "Linear enamel hypoplasia at Santa Rita Corozal, Belize." Master's thesis, University of Central Florida, 2010. http://digital.library.ucf.edu/cdm/ref/collection/ETD/id/4608.
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The focus of this thesis is an analysis of a sample of dentition collected from the Postclassic Maya site of Santa Rita Corozal in Northern Belize. The goal of this study is to determine what the presence (or absence) of Linear Enamel Hypoplasia (LEH) can demonstrate about the general health (i.e. stress, disease, nutrition, and weaning age) and social status of a single subset of the Late Postclassic (900-1500 CE) Maya living at Santa Rita Corozal. Specifically, this thesis focuses on dentition of thirteen individuals from a large Postclassic platform group. The sample consists of sub-adult and adult female dentition from individuals that are associated with the same relative time period (Late Postclassic). The question being addressed in this thesis is: why has LEH presented in these individuals? These samples will also be compared to other studies involving LEH throughout the Maya area, in both similar and dissimilar environments. The preponderance of female and sub-adult remains also makes this platform group a very interesting topic of study for LEH in the Maya area, as it is unusual to find a concentrated area of individuals such as these. Importantly, the results of this study show that there is no significant relationship between general levels of stress and the overall status of an individual. Measurements collected from the LEH affected teeth demonstrate that all of the LEH episodes occurred before the age of 6. The mean age for the teeth sampled that show signs of LEH is 3.5 years, which is consistent with theories pertaining to the weaning age of the Maya during concomitant time periods. However, the size of this sample precludes any concrete conclusions about weaning ages and stress in general among the Maya at Santa Rita Corozal. It is also possible that these events are related to larger issues such as regional droughts or water-born disease.ID: 029050230; System requirements: World Wide Web browser and PDF reader.; Mode of access: World Wide Web.; Thesis (M.A.)--University of Central Florida, 2010.; Includes bibliographical references (p. 102-109).
M.A.
Masters
Department of Anthropology
Sciences
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Kamau, Esther Muthoni. "Population genetics of Schizolobium parahyba (Leguminosae) in Belize." Thesis, University of Cambridge, 2003. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.619535.
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Cavalluzzi, Martin Ray. "Taxonomy of Larval Blennioidei of Belize, Central America." W&M ScholarWorks, 1992. https://scholarworks.wm.edu/etd/1539617642.
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Denton, Kacie Hoyle, and Claire Gleadhill. "Social Determinants of Health in Belize Free Clinic." Digital Commons @ East Tennessee State University, 2019. https://dc.etsu.edu/asrf/2019/schedule/205.
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Abstract: Social Determinants of Health in Belize Free Clinic
Introduction: To determine the most appropriate ways to serve patients in rural Belize through medical mission work, it is important to assess social determinants of health (SDOH). It has long been agreed that a variety of factors affect health, including environment, community and social context, access to healthcare, stress, income, mental health, education, and transportation. Many people in Roaring Creek, Belize, a village with a population of approximately 2,000, use Body and Soul Ministries, a nonprofit that invites medical teams from all over to deliver medical care, as their primary source of healthcare. During one of these trips, a medical team from East Tennessee State University (ETSU) provided medical care and employed the TeamCare survey, already used in several clinics in east Tennessee to assess the SDOH needs of the patient population in Roaring Creek. The purpose of this study was to use a survey that assesses several SDOH to determine better ways to address health needs in the community of Roaring Creek as well as connect patients with resources to meet those needs.
Methods: A team of ETSU medical students, a resident, and five physicians served in a free clinic in Roaring Creek, Belize in October 2017. The team saw approximately 500 patients. Some patients were randomly selected to take the TeamCare survey to assess for six SDOH, including literacy, financial needs, drug use, abuse, transportation, and mental health. Based on the results of the survey, patients were connected with their local community health worker to assist in locating resources for patients. Using SPSS, results from the survey were arranged for frequencies and measures of central tendency.
Results: Overall, a total of 106 patients responded to the TeamCare survey. Based on the survey results, 83.2% of patients responded “yes” to at least one question regarding needs related to SDOH. In fact, 7.9% of patients answered “yes” to five questions. Of note, 53.5% of patients responded positively for financial need, 46.5% positive for mental health needs, 37.6% positive for environmental alcohol or drug abuse, and 32.7% positive for transportation needs. More women stated positively for physical or verbal abuse compared to men (-1.48, p=0.001).
Discussion and Conclusion:
Roaring Creek, Belize is a rural community that illustrates how SDOH can impact health outcomes. There has been a recent effort for clinicians to address SDOH, especially in rural areas, but perhaps not enough globally. One way this can be done is by surveying for SDOH at clinic visits and then linking patients with relevant community resources. However, resources are not always readily available in Roaring Creek, Belize. Many patients are positive for SDOH, but with an overall lack of resources, it is important to do more research to determine how global health efforts can best serve these populations. Perhaps the best way for SDOH needs to be addressed is for Body and Soul to collaborate with community health workers and mission teams to establish ongoing programs and longstanding resources for the community.
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Miller, S. T. "Remote sensing applications to flood hydrology in Belize." Thesis, Aston University, 1986. http://publications.aston.ac.uk/14242/.
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The research compares the usefullness of four remote sensing information sources, these being LANDSAT photographic prints, LANDSAT computer compatible tapes, Metric Camera and SIR-A photographic prints. These sources provide evaluations of the catchment characteristics of the Belize and Sibun river basins in Central America. Map evaluations at 1:250,000 scale are compared to the results of the same scale, remotely sensed information sources. The values of catchment characteristics for both maps and LANDSAT prints are used in multiple regression analysis, providing flood flow formulae, after investigations to provide a suitable dependent variable discharge series are made for short term records. The use of all remotely sensed information sources in providing evaluations of catchment characteristics IS discussed. LANDSAT prints and computer compatible tapes of a post flood scene are used to estimate flood distributions and volumes. These are compared to values obtained from unit hydrograph analysis, using the dependent discharge series and evaluate the probable losses from the Belize river to the floodplain, thereby assessing the accuracy of LANDSAT estimates. Information relating to flood behaviour is discussed in terms of basic image presentation as well as image processing. A cost analysis of the purchase and use of all materials is provided. Conclusions of the research indicate that LANDSAT print material may provide information suitable for regression analysis at levels of accuracy as great as those of topographic maps, that the differing information sources are uniquely applicable and that accurate estimates of flood volumes may be determined even by post flood imagery.
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Breen, A. M. "Holocene environmental change : a palaeolimnological study in Belize." Thesis, University of Edinburgh, 2002. http://hdl.handle.net/1842/23262.
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This thesis reconstructs the environmental changes that have occurred in Belize over the last 10,000 years. The study focuses on two lagoons: New River Lagoon and Honey Camp Lagoon. Two key methodologies were employed: diatoms and stable isotopes (oxygen and carbon). Both 14C and 210Pb dating were used to provide a chronology. This work is the first detailed palaeolimnological study to be undertaken in Belize and consequently has enabled an improved understanding of climate dynamics in the circum-Caribbean. The Maya are the native peoples of Belize and this investigation provides an insight into their relationship with the environment in which they lived. Lakes in Belize were sampled for water chemistry variables and modern diatoms. The lakes sampled follow a pathway of chemical evolution from calcium bicarbonate to sodium chloride-dominated systems. The chemical characterisation of the water bodies was not sufficient to enable a transfer function to be completed, but it is apparent that habitat also has an extremely influential role in determining the distribution of diatom species in the environments studied. Taxonomy is an issue which needs to be considered carefully when undertaking a diatom study in a new area. This was addressed through an investigation of the diatom species Mastogloia smithii var. lacustris. This study highlighted not only the role of the local environment in influencing species characteristics but also the differences between the features of type, published and modern material. The significance of these findings can only be judged with the collection of improved ecological data from all three sources.
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Daugaard-Hansen, Flemming. "'Coming home' the return and reintegration of Belizean returnees from the United States to Belize, Central America /." [Gainesville, Fla.] : University of Florida, 2009. http://purl.fcla.edu/fcla/etd/UFE0024672.
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McSwain, Rebecca Anne. "Production and exchange of stone tools among Preclassic Maya communities: Evidence from Cuello, Belize." Diss., The University of Arizona, 1989. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/184958.
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Analysis of lithics, particularly flake debitage, from a small Preclassic Maya community provides data bearing upon the manufacture and distribution of stone tools in the northern Belizean region during the Middle and Late Preclassic eras. These data suggest a complex relationship among contemporaneous communities with regard to raw material and tool acquisition and manufacture. There is no evidence of monopoly of raw material resources by any one group; rather, a mixed pattern is seen involving distribution both of partly processed raw material and of certain finished formal tool types. These formal types, as well as befaces in general, are seen to be increasingly important through time, possibly related to changing agricultural practices. While no conclusions can be drawn on the basis of presently available lithic data as to the nature of the Preclassic regional lithic distribution system, ethnographic and archaeological analogies are used to suggest some possible economic scenarios.
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Patterson, M. Lynn. "Agroforestry in Belize, Maya home gardens in San Lucas." Thesis, National Library of Canada = Bibliothèque nationale du Canada, 2000. http://www.collectionscanada.ca/obj/s4/f2/dsk1/tape3/PQDD_0013/MQ59862.pdf.
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John, Jennifer Ruth. "Postclassic Maya Ceramic Iconography at Lamanai, Belize, Central America." Thesis, University College London (University of London), 2008. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.498768.
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Hitchen, Peter Ronald. "Education and multi-cultural cohesion in Belize, 1931-1981." Thesis, University of Central Lancashire, 2002. http://clok.uclan.ac.uk/7757/.
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This thesis is concerned with the British neglect of education in Belize and the emergence of increased tensions between church and state, from the twin catalysts for social change of the 1931 hurricane and economic depression until independence in 1981. This conflict has revealed a contradictory web of power structures and their influence, through the medium of schools, on multi-cultural development. The fundamental argument is that despite a rhetoric- of-difference, a cohesive society was created in Belize rooted in the cultural values propagated through an often-contradictory church-state education system, and that Jesuit supremacy of Belizean education came too late to unsettle or exploit the grass-root forces of cultural synthesis. Racial conflict in Belize is more a matter of habitual rhetoric and superficial. The historiography of Belize falls broadly into two categories: Diplomatic and labour, nevertheless cultural and educational studies have developed most notably from Social Anthropology. An extensive literature review revealed that notwithstanding the emergence of a substantial historiography of education on the British Caribbean similar research has been neglected on Belize. Therefore, my own thesis fills a significant gap in the historiography of British Caribbean education. The PhD discusses the relationship between conflicting hierarchies within education and multi-cultural cohesion, not yet been fully attempted in any of the secondary literature. This is a proposition argued through substantial and original primary research, employing a mix of comparative empirical research and theoretical Sights influenced by historical sociologist Nigel Bolland to analyse the interactions of people at community level, the ubiquitous presence of the denominations, and political and hierarchical activities. The empirical data was initially collected from HMSO, and Colonial Office files at the Public Record Office. The principal methodological area of research for the PhD resulted from a visit to Belize to procure a quantity of oral testimony providing a 'history from below' as an extra dimension to the British Colonial perspective. The methodology for Part 3 (1964-1981) reveals shifts in the balance of power relying solely on oral evidence and archival/ecclesiastical records from Belize. Church historians have confirmed previous research into the latter to narratives. An important contributiog.to my area of study lies in the use of Belize as a central focus and the historical peculiarity of denominalisation, where, unlike the English system the church rather than the secular lobby won the contest for control in schools.
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Yacubic, Matthew Patrick. "The Chipped Stone Tool Industries of Blackman Eddy, Belize." Diss., CLICK HERE for online access, 2006. http://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/ETD/image/etd1283.pdf.
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Tibbits, Tawny Lynn Bailey. "Geochemical sourcing of granite ground stone tools from Belize." Diss., University of Iowa, 2016. https://ir.uiowa.edu/etd/3202.
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Portable X-ray fluorescence (pXRF) provides a new alternative to destructive methods of raw material characterization, such as X-ray fluorescence (XRF), neutron activation analysis (NAA), and traditional thin section petrography, although its effectiveness on coarse-grained materials, such as granite, has been questioned. This project addressed this question by determining the effectiveness of pXRF in characterizing granites from Belize and in sourcing granite ground stone tools from Maya sites in Belize. Geochemical fingerprints were defined for three potential source areas (granite plutons in the Maya Mountains of Belize) using outcrop samples. Samples were analyzed using pXRF, XRF, electron microprobe (EMPA), and thin section analyses. PXRF data from archaeological collections of granite ground stone tools from sites in Belize were then compared to the pluton geochemical signatures.
There were two principle results of this research. First, analyses indicated that pXRF can accurately characterize the geochemistry of granites from Belize on a suite of elements. Second, this research demonstrated that the Maya of Belize exploited multiple granite outcrops and participated in different kinds of exchange networks to acquire granite, sometimes acquiring stone from the nearest outcrops and sometimes not. While Mountain Pine Ridge was the dominant source outcrop that was exploited, Cockscomb Basin and Hummingbird Ridge granites were also quarried or scavenged. Sometimes the closest source was used, as is the case at Alabama, who exploited the locally available Cockscomb Basin granite. Through this study it appears that the nearest pluton was not always used. Instead Mountain Pine Ridge granite tools were imported from a greater distance, implying that there were additional factors, such as economic partners and changing political powers, which lead to Mountain Pine Ridge granite being the most pervasive in most archaeological collections within Belize.
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Battle, Rachael Florita. "Family Caregivers' Perspectives on Establishing Hospice Care in Belize." ScholarWorks, 2019. https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/6970.
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End-of-life (EOL) care decisions present a challenge for family caregivers. Despite the increasing number of terminally ill patients in need of pain management and comfort care, there is limited qualitative data about how populations in the developing world can access culturally appropriate resources and EOL support. In this phenomenological study, 17 Garifuna family caregivers in southern Belize were interviewed about their experience caring for terminally family members. The conceptual frameworks were Kübler-Ross’s hospice approach and Watson’s theory of human caring. The two theories were selected based on their significance to this process: Kübler Ross’s hospice approach and its impact on the family system during the end stage of life and Watson’s theory of human caring for its emphasis on the impact of the importance of meeting the basic needs of individuals. NVivo 12 was used to code and generate themes for further analysis. Caregivers who said they would not utilize support outside of the home were those who were committed not do so at the request of the patient. Caregivers who cared for their family member and those who could financially afford to hire caregivers in their home to assist with their relative said they would not utilize nonfamily support. All others, regardless of relationship to the patient, indicated they would have accepted care if the environment were safe, caring, and culturally sensitive. Additionally, the caregivers saw their needs as secondary and insignificant compared to the comfort and care of the patient. This study may contribute to positive social change by revealing strategies and services that could be included in the design of a health services delivery system to meet the needs of individuals facing EOL decisions.
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Wildes, Fred Thomas. "A resource management strategy for the Belize barrier reef system." Thesis, Virginia Tech, 1992. http://hdl.handle.net/10919/41513.
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The need for a broader geographical and functional perspective in managing natural resources of the Belize barrier reef system was examined. The small country of Belize in Central America is struggling to increase its economic development and growth. It has an excellent natural resource base, the most dramatic component being the extensive barrier reef system just offshore.
The research identified key economic and environmental issues relative to Belize’s reef complex, and analyzed resource management policies and actions taken to date. Development and conservation needs suggest a multiple use strategy aimed at economic and environmental sustainability. Due to areal extent and ecological complexity, the present reactive, small-scale and piecemeal approach is not adequate to realize sustainable utilization of the area’s resources. This research shows the need for a broad spatial and interdisciplinary “coastal zone" perspective, leading to a comprehensive and integrated strategy upon which to base resource planning and management.
A strategy for the reef system must be accomplished within the broader context of a national resource management strategy, integrating concerns of economic development and environmental protection. As a component of this national policy, the proposed strategy for the barrier reef system is based on principles of multiple use of resources, coastal zone scope, and sustainability. The research supports a reef system-wide protected area, using a biosphere reserve framework and a customized model planning process to implement the strategy.Master of Science
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Duffy, Lisa Glynns. "Maize and stone a functional analysis of the manos and metates of Santa Rita Corozal, Belize." Master's thesis, University of Central Florida, 2011. http://digital.library.ucf.edu/cdm/ref/collection/ETD/id/4883.
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The manos and metates of Santa Rita Corozal, Belize are analyzed to compare traditional maize-grinding types to the overall assemblage. A reciprocal, back-and-forth grinding motion is the most efficient way to process large amounts of maize. However, rotary movements are also associated with some ground stone implements. The number of flat and trough metates and two handed manos are compared to the rotary-motion basin and concave type metates and one-handed manos to determine predominance and distribution. Flat is the predominant type and, together with the trough type, these grinding stones make up the majority of metates at the site. Manos are highly fragmented, but the two-handed variety is more common among those fragments able to be identified. While this would at first glance support a fully maize dependent subsistence, the presence of two additional non-reciprocal motion metate types and the fact that the trough metates are clustered in one sector of the site suggest that, in addition to maize, significant processing of other foods also occurred in association with these grinding stones.ID: 030423021; System requirements: World Wide Web browser and PDF reader.; Mode of access: World Wide Web.; Thesis (M.A.)--University of Central Florida, 2011.; Includes bibliographical references (p. 96-110).
M.A.
Masters
Anthropology
Sciences
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Searcy, Bill. "A felt needs approach to evangelism in Corozal District, Belize." Theological Research Exchange Network (TREN), 1985. http://www.tren.com.
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Crandall, James. "WATER AND THE MOUNTAINS: MAYA WATER MANGEMENT AT CARACOL, BELIZE." Master's thesis, University of Central Florida, 2009. http://digital.library.ucf.edu/cdm/ref/collection/ETD/id/4021.
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Water management techniques in the Southern Maya Lowlands are both regionally diverse and site specific. This thesis examines the water management strategies of the Classic Period Maya at the site of Caracol, Belize. While it is likely that elites at Caracol controlled the redistribution of resources, i.e. craft and agricultural products, it is probable that the production of agricultural resources and the maintenance of water resource acquisition took place on a more local level. In order to test this hypothesis, a sample of five reservoirs were examined through original research -- and situated in conjunction with past settlement studies -- to determine the water storage capacity and likely function of different water management features throughout the built environment of Caracol. As a result, this thesis argues that the placement and construction of water management features -- i.e., reservoirs -- at the site of Caracol, Belize are indicative of specific landscape patterns which are expressed by a distinct vernacular construction style and are also a reflection of the socio-political organization present within the site during the Late Classic Period.M.A.
Department of Anthropology
Sciences
Anthropology MA
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Farruggia, Frank Thomas. "A FLORISTIC DESCRIPTION OF A NEOTROPICAL COASTAL SAVANNA IN BELIZE." Miami University / OhioLINK, 2004. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=miami1090942598.
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Murray, Malcolm R. "The environmental effects of mangrove clearance in Belize, Central America." Thesis, University of Edinburgh, 1996. http://hdl.handle.net/1842/21441.
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The thesis begins with an examination of the pattern of global mangrove clearance. In Belize unlike many other countries, mangrove clearance is being driven by the current market requirement for housing, rather than industrial or agricultural demands. There is little local demand for mangrove related products (notwithstanding that many of the fish and crustaceans that use the mangrove forest as a nursery ground or habitat are commercially exploited). Analysis of recent clearance permit applications shows that mangrove forest clearance is rapidly accelerating around Belize City. The physical process of forest clearance in Belize is then outlined emphasising its effect upon the forest environmental processes. These are conceptualised in a series of predictive hypotheses considering the expected changes in a range of soil, water and other environmental properties following forest clearance. These are grouped into four - changes stemming from alteration to the little input; changes due to a reduction in the vegetation cover; changes driven by surface water and drainage modification; and finally changes determined by the geology and physical alteration to the ground surface. The significance of such changes in these measured properties is given in a discussion of mangroves stress tolerance and avoidance strategies. Published mangrove tolerance ranges and responses to critical levels of flooding, salinity, temperature, insolation, tidal action, sedimentation, wind, soil acidity, anaerobic state and the presence or absence of soil nutrients are reviewed, summarised in a series of flow diagrams. A field site sampling strategy is devised and three sites of different ages and stages in the clearance process are selected, to provide an insight into both the spatial and temporal aspects of change. A range of soil, water and environmental properties such as ground level insolation and litter cover are measured at these sites using both areal and transect sampling schemes. The resulting data are analysed using 3D visualisation techniques, comparative statistical testing (Mann Whitney-U tests and one way ANOVA) ordination techniques and semi-variogram analysis. These show that significant differences do exist between sites located in the forest and those in the newly cleared areas, with this difference changing through time and manifested at different scales across space. For some properties a third conceptual unit can be sustained - referred to as the "transition zone" - this straddles both sides of the clearance cut-line. By showing that changes occur in the forest soil and water properties in areas next to cleared sites, this thesis concludes with a re-evaluation of Belize's existing mangrove forest clearance legislation. It asks whether the current 66' wide mangrove forest buffer is sufficient to provide a sustainable protective barrier along Belize's coasts and waterways.
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Vitous, Crystal Ann. "Impacts of Tourism Development on Livelihoods in Placencia Village, Belize." Scholar Commons, 2017. http://scholarcommons.usf.edu/etd/6773.
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Placencia Village is one of Belize’s leading “eco-destinations,” due to its sandy-white beaches, coral reefs, and wildlife sanctuaries. While the use of “green washing,” the process of deceptively marketing products, aims or policies as being environmentally friendly, has proven to be effective in attracting consumers who are thought to be environmentally and socially conscious, the exponential growth, coupled with the absence of established policies, represents a significant threat to Belize. This thesis examines the political-ecologic dimensions of rapid tourism expansion in Southern Belize by investigating how the health of the biophysical environment is perceived, what processes are responsible for change, and how these changes are impacting the socioeconomic livelihoods of the local people.
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Buttram, Mance Edwin. "Completing the Circle: Garifuna Pilgrimage Journeys from Belize to Yurumein." Thesis, The University of Arizona, 2007. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/193242.
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This thesis explores the connections that the Garifuna indigenous group of Belize has with their former homeland, the island of St. Vincent. After emerging as a distinct ethnic group during the 17th century, the Garifuna were exiled from St. Vincent by British colonial rulers in 1797. For the Garifuna people, the connection to the island is more than historical. It is also spiritual. Interviews were conducted in July 2006 in Belize with members of the Garifuna community who have made the journey back to the island. In addition to presenting the results of those interviews, this thesis will also provide a history of the Garifuna people, describe some of the spiritual aspects of the culture, and a discussion of the current literature on pilgrimage.
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Kunen, Julie Lynn 1968. "Study of an ancient Maya Bajo landscape in northwestern Belize." Diss., The University of Arizona, 2001. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/280242.
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This dissertation investigates the organization of ancient Maya settlements with respect to the use and management of critical agricultural resources. I find that inhabitants of my study area divided the landscape into discrete zones, each with a distinct use pattern. Residences were located in upland areas, where open spaces among the houses were used for gardens. Farming was practiced on terraced slopes in a second zone, where clusters of agricultural installations were designed to sustain cultivation. Finally, a nearby seasonal wetland served as a reservoir of important raw materials. The pattern of land use I document suggests a variation of the infield-outfield model of agriculture. According to this model, farming households invest decreasing amounts of labor in cultivation as the distance from house to agricultural field increases. Some scholars suggest, however, that during the Classic Period (A.D. 600-900) population in the Maya lowlands was so dense as to create continuous rural settlements, with little space separating the sustaining area of one center from that of its neighbors. In consequence, reliance on various forms of intensive cultivation increased, the infields of one polity overlapping those of the neighboring polity. No vacant terrain remained for extensively cultivated outfields, and long-fallow cultivation dropped out of the subsistence repertoire. My research supports this conclusion, with the important exception that certain lands, such as seasonal wetlands, were not conducive to the demands of intensive agriculture, and thus continued to be used as reservoirs of other essential resources. I not only documented the partition of the landscape into discrete zones of use, but also investigated the relationship between access to resources and the social and spatial organization of three ancient Maya communities. My study suggests that the founders of communities gain access to the greatest number of production options. My research links aspects of residential variability, most notably length of occupation, size and complexity of house compounds, and extent of architectural elaboration, to access to productive resources by demonstrating that the residences of community founders---those with evidence for the longest occupation---are also the largest, most complex, and most elaborate in each community.
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Higgins, John Erwin 1954. "The political ecology of peasant sugarcane farming in northern Belize." Diss., The University of Arizona, 1998. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/288803.
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The Belizean export sugar industry is dominated by small family farmers who produce the nation's most important cash crop in terms of area under cultivation, employment, and export earnings. These peasant farmers control both cane cultivation and the harvest transport system and receive the lion' s share of the proceeds from the sale of Belizean sugar. The origins of this anomalous industry can be traced to the regions' long history of peasant resistance to exploitation. Sugarcane was brought to Belize by refugees of the Mayan Caste Wars in the mid-nineteenth century who began producing sugar for the local market using swidden technology. Sugar production was briefly taken over by British plantations; however, the peasants were never fully proletarianized despite attempts to turn them into a plantation labor force. The peasantry's historical resistance to proletarianization is the result of several factors. Colonial officials and capitalists found it difficult to control either the movements or the labor of these independent cultivators. Low rural population density, peasants' refusal to give up subsistence farming, sugarcane's compatibility with swidden farming practices, and the peasantry's politicization all contributed to the dominance of small-farmer cane production during this century. During the 1950s plantation production was resurrected in order to meet the colony's recently acquired Commonwealth Sugar Agreement export quota. Colonial planners assumed that plantations were more efficient and competitive than peasant farmers. Nevertheless, in 1972 the state sponsored plantations were forced to shut down due to competition from independent small cane farmers. Peasant sugarcane farming has proven to be remarkably resilient in the face of crises spawned by chronic fluctuations in the price and demand for cane sugar. Most farmers depend heavily on family labor to minimize their production costs. Because they have minimal capital inputs to production, they can sustain negative profits from cane and still survive by deploying family labor into other income and/or subsistence producing activities. The viability of peasant farming families that allows them to compete successfully with large-scale capitalist sugarcane farmers contradicts the Marxian notion of the inevitability of polarization into capitalist farmers and proletarian workers.