Clark University - Clark News Winter 2003
In the mountains, nightclubs and parks with Clark's Fulbright Scholars
by Wendy Linden
A record 13 Clark students were awarded prestigious Fulbright grants to pursue research and service activities throughout the world for the 2001-2002 academic year. Six of those are graduate students from Clark's International Development, Community and Environment program (IDCE.) Equipped with adventurous spirits, language skills and a keen insight into different cultures and their environments, these IDCE Fulbright scholars have ventured from the remote valleys and mountains of Morocco to theaters in Latvia to national parks in Indonesia in search of answers to their research questions. Here is a sampling of their research.
Laura Burnham: Eco-tourism in the mountains of Morocco
Laura Burnham isn't interested in the typical beach vacation. She'd rather drink tea with the natives outside Toubkal National Park in Morocco. And she's not the only one. Adventure or "eco-vacations" to remote areas are on the rise. Burnham wanted to find our how this "eco-tourism" affects the infrastructure of these remote destinations.
After serving as a Peace Corps volunteer in Morocco from 1996 to 1998, Burnham decided to apply for a Fulbright to return to the same valley region on the southern slope of Mount Toubkal. She wanted to examine the trend of eco-tourism in the region and its affects on the varying stakeholders in the park-park management, nearby park-affected villages, domestic and international non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and tourists. She also planned to grapple with questions about the cultural impacts of the rapid growth of the adventure tourism industry and what changes indigenous comminutes and guides have noticed in the natural habitat as a result of the growing tourism. Her goal is to develop recommendations for the park management.
Burnham used her language skills-she speaks the native language of Moroccan Arabic and a local tribal language called Tashelheet-to help gather data with a combination of interviews, written surveys and participatory meetings with the mountain guides, foreign and national tourists and park communities. The results have given her lots of food for thought.
"What has been interesting so far is that my research has moved toward a more holistic view of the issues surrounding the park. I am seeing an intricate web that is woven between the varying parties and the subtleties of national park management."
She has also learned how distant events can have important effects on this complicated system. "In the aftermath of Sept. 11, tourism in Morocco has dropped. That has affected the mountain industry quite dramatically-and it's added a dimension to my research I hadn't planned on but that will be useful."
As she finishes her data collection and looks toward formulating some final research conclusions over the next six months, Laura still finds time to experience her own 'eco-adventure.' "I love standing in the back of a tru ck heading into the mountains, surrounded by Berbers, with the sun shining on my face enjoying an impeccable view."
Jossett Gauley: Rock music in Latvia
"They believe in a 'do it yourself' approach to life." That's how Jossett Gauley describes the population of 18- to 34-year-old Latvian independent musicians he is working with on his Fulbright research.
After befriending some independent rock musicians as a Peace Corps volunteer in Latvia, Gauley became interested in why these musicians wanted to create their own legal NGO. So, he went back to Latvia, this time with a Fulbright grant, to learn more.
"The main thing I've discovered is that legality-having a piece of paper that says 'it's okay to play this kind of music' or 'you can have a concert' or 'you can organize a community festival'-means a great deal in a transitional society like Latvia," he says. "These groups were once harassed by police and prevented from presenting their art. Today, they have become major players in their communities."
He has also discovered that NGO status can change members' views of the community. He recalled several cases in which NGO members have claimed giving up drinking or drugs as their involvement in the NGO increased. NGO members are also more likely to become involved in their communities, Gauley adds.
To better understand the community conditions that facilitate the emergence of these organizations-as well as how these groups empower themselves and promote their ideas through democratic institutions in Latvia-Gauley undertook a comprehensive study of the Latvian NGO sector. He reviewed youth policy in the region and conducted two case studies with local bands.
"In both studies, I worked closely with young independent artists. I also conducted focus groups with high school students to understand their perspectives of their communities, how they are affected by community institutions, and how they perceive culture change," he says. Gauley also interviewed community business leaders, government officials and educators.
As he sorts through the data in the next stage of his research, Gauley recalls one of his favorite interviews with the mayor of Kuldiga, Latvia. "He told me one of the groups I was studying was the most influential NGO/community organization in the town. This is the same group of young people once labeled as 'drug dealers' and 'hooligans.'"
Beth Suedmeyer: Balancing development and conservation in Indonesia's Forests
Can park development and conservation occur simultaneously? Thanks to her Fulbright grant, Beth Suedmeyer has been living and researching in Indonesia for the past 10 months to try to find out. Suedmeyer is examining the physical and social landscape in Kerinci Seblat National Park in Southwest Sumatra, Indonesia, following a five-year integrated conservation and development project (ICDP)-the largest funded ICDP in Indonesian history.
"When the project began in 1998, its goal was to influence change not only within the park and forest areas but also in the villages and concessions in the buffer area adjacent to the park," she explains. "The integrity of the park was threatened by encroachment from shifting cultivation, cinnamon plantations, forest logging, mining, commercial plantations and road development."
The ICDP focused on these complex problems, improving park management, village development and biodiversity concerns. Using Clark's Idrisi GIS software and interpretations of satellite images, Suedmeyer plans to assess the ICDP's impact on development in the village and surrounding area and how that development has affected forest conservation.
"Indonesia has experienced a variety of challenges in the time period since the ICDP implementation-economic crisis, the fall of the Suharto regime and numerous devastating forest fires," she explains. "Many people have turned to forest extraction and land clearing for agriculture in an attempt to improve their economic situation. By comparing the rate of forest-cover change in ICDP and non-ICDP villages, I will be able to identify the impact of ICDP activities on forest conservation through this tumultuous time in Indonesia."
Ultimately, Suedmeyer would like to create a model that can help predict areas of the park most at risk for forest encroachment. She hopes the assessment of the ICDP and the threat analysis will provide valuable information to conservation managers in planning the next steps in combating threats to the forest and park.
"The Fulbright experience has been truly incredible. It's allowed me to be immersed in a country and culture and to collaborate with people from many government and non-government organizations. I've shared ideas with everyone from professors of local universities and district and village leaders to community members," says Suedmeyer.
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