Re-imagining Ourselves: Odyssey and Anthropology in the southwest Indian Ocean Islands

How is identity reconstructed in places where oppression still lingers? This question has intrigued me for the past 15 years and I have sought to answer it by undertaking a voyage back to the Southwest Indian Ocean region, the place of my birth and space of incredible diversity and early globalisations. My proposed lecture discusses the politics of identity, as well as the influence of contemporary social phenomena on the islands, specifically international tourism and heritage management. I argue that the islanders are keen to re-imagine self and community so as to produce alternative identities, networks and sources of power in a still oppressive context – and that this process is vital to care, solidarity and the pursuit of social justice. Doing research in Mauritius, Madagascar, Seychelles and Zanzibar also revealed to me that anthropology is perplexing and rewarding, since it involves difficult ‘returns’, learning with others and seeing power where the apparently powerless reside. I conclude that being in the Indian Ocean region positively changed the way I perceive and experience fieldwork, and that my findings thus far, underscore the relevance of anthropology to contemporary Africans and their ‘cousins’ in the African Diaspora

Producing knowledge or building 'regimes' of truth? : a critical study of two community based organisations and a development facilitation Agency in the Western Cape

This study is based on research carried out at the request of the Community and Urban Services Support Project (CUSSP). The research formed part of the internship programme for the Practical Anthropology course at the University of Cape Town, and involved an investigation into the communication strategies employed by community based organisations in two selected areas in the Western Cape, namely, Franschhoek and New Rest (Guguletu). The thesis is a self-reflexive account of the research period and it explores how the acceptance of participatory approaches to development, and, conflicting interpretations of the term 'participation' can be constructed, maintained and reproduced; resulting in potential conditions which support processes of domination. Reflexivity involves a systematic and continuous analysis of the research process. To do this one should not necessarily aim to learn more about oneself (although this is an inevitable result of field work) but continuously to move from the 'intensely personal experience of one's own social interactions ... to the more distanced analysis of that experience for an understanding of how identities are negotiated, and [particularly for this thesis] how social categories, boundaries and hierarchies and processes of domination are experienced and maintained' (Wright & Nelson 1995:48)

Integrating Asafo Companies for Sustainable Ocean and Coastal Heritage Management in Ghana

African intangible cultural heritage (ICH) is a rich resource for identity, community and sociality. Heritage institutions such as the Asafo companies in Ghana, are traditional warrior groups that historically defended the state. Today, they are critical to coastal heritage management processes. This article reveals their contribution and argues that, while Asafo groups desire greater inclusion in heritage management, the national government of Ghana seeks to decentralize ocean governance processes. But, Asafo companies are complex groupings in which identity and “place,” matter. The article concludes that for a decolonial and sustainable ocean heritage management, the national government of Ghana needs to engage with Asafo companies to better understand them. In doing, so, the government will be better placed to support both a decolonial heritage conservation and ocean sustainability.

Gendering ocean management for sustainable ocean care in Ghana

UNESCO presently offers a universal regime and policy environment for the identification and management of natural and cultural heritages. However, heritage does not merely signify cultural diversity; it can also facilitate greater equity and equality. The research problem addressed in this article is that in Ghana, the national government perceives and treats the small-scale fishing (SSF) sector as a masculine space and endeavour, ignoring the gendered aspects of this environment, of SSF practice and ocean care. In the article, it is hypothesized that if the SSF sector is treated as a socially differentiated space, and if the concern of ocean care is prioritized as a key imperative in Ghanaian ocean management, it is likely that a more inclusive and sustainable ocean management process and SSF sector will emerge in Ghana. Mindful of the socially differentiated nature of the SSF sector in Ghana, the goal of the research presented in this article is to use mixed qualitative research methods (participant-observation and semi-structured interviews) to investigate gendered knowledge forms and gendered practices in ocean care in the central region of Ghana. A key finding of the research is that gendered ritual practices, including canoe building and use in Ghana, are critical to long-term, sustainable, and inclusive ocean management in the country. Recognition of the gendered dimensions of ocean management in Ghana may also result in more inclusive ocean governance policies and nature management policies in Ghana in general. The conclusion of the article is that ocean governance in Ghana should consider and mainstream a gendered perspective of the SSF sector, to advance transformative, sustainable, and inclusive ocean care. The article draws on theories of intersectionality, African indigenous feminist thought, and critical heritage studies to analyse the data gathered, to support the discussion, and to propose the way forward for the national government

Sensory Ecofeminism for Heritage, Tourism, and Sustainability in Mauritius

Worldwide, UNESCO provides a global and authorized set of protocols for the conservation of heritage. The organization has long framed the discourse and practice of cultural heritage management. At the Hangzhou International Congress in 2013, UNESCO declared culture as key to development, thereby confirming the role of culture and cultural heritage in sustainable development. In this article, attention is given to emerging sensory ecofeminism and its links to heritage and tourism in Mauritius, specifically in “unauthorized” heritage management locales and hotel settings. The research problem engaged in this study is that globally, heritage conservation is perceived as being of primary interest to UNESCO, the prerogative of authorized professionals and nominated heritage sites. The goal of the research is to understand the manifestation of cultural heritage and its management in coastal locales and how coastal sites and “unauthorized” heritage managers, hitherto not included in national heritage discourse and practice, may advance inclusive heritage management. Using the anthropological research methods of semi-structured interviews and participant observation to produce ethnographic data in 2022, this study finds that a selection of luxury hotels in Mauritius advances a gender-influenced and ecofeminist discourse that supports heritage, tourism, and sustainability in Mauritius. The conclusion of this study is that “unauthorized” heritage management processes and practices in luxury hotels and tourism establishments can be gender and community inclusive, sensitive to various social hierarchies, and required to achieve environmental sustainability. It is recommended that national heritage institutions and practitioners give more attention to the diverse, often unexpected locales for heritage conservation and inclusion

Challenges to Creolization in Mauritius and Madagascar

This article offers a discussion on creolization in two island societies: Mauritius and Madagascar. It suggests that in these island states there is a concerted effort to produce national identity and that this process seems to challenge creolization. The article makes three claims: creolization is a process inscribed by the historical experience of oppression; discourses of homogeneity obscure creolization; and creoles are not merely the product of creolization. These claims challenge scholarly perception of creolization as a process that is apolitical and ahistorical. It also interrogates the homogeneity of identity in nation states and the view that creolization is a process of which creoles are a product. The author distinguishes between nationalism in Madagascar and Mauritius, noting that in the latter, a hegemonic discourse of “rootedness” is encouraging certain groups to forge links with actual and fictive “homelands.” The article concludes that creolization is a process that is locally and historically inscribed, producing particular experiences, and that those who are most influenced by it are also increasingly influenced by other global processes of change. </jats:p