49 research outputs found
The (onto) politics of classifying biocultural diversity: a tale of chaos, order and control
No full textThe issue of classification plays a central role in Wiersum’s work on biocultural diversity. The design of classification systems has enabled Wiersum to classify landscapes into natural, cultural and various intermediate categories. These classification systems do not merely mirror the world, but can only be understood in the light of the social and political values and desires they highlight and seek recognition for. In this chapter we employ a performative perspective of classification by analysing the social work that classification systems do in practice: how they influence not only how the world is known, but also how it is acted upon, and how social and material relationships are remade in the process. We conclude that by performing a world that consists of various natural, cultural and mixed categories, Wiersum’s work (1) privileges local/indigenous communities to manage the nature-culture mixtures; (2) creates a nature-culture continuum to allow for coordination across the nature-human divide; and (3) creates a network of scientists and practitioners from diverse disciplines who can arrive at a division of labour in the research into and management of the biological, human and cultural categories that are distinguished
Creating scientific narratives: Experiences in contructing and interweaving empirical and theoretical plots
No full textTaking an interpretive perspective, this chapter argues that practice research has a narrative character in the sense that it is a speech act that retrospectively verbalises something (namely practices) that did not exist previously, and that is written from the (unique) perspective of its author. Although the narrative turn in research methodology is gaining significant scholarly attention, little is known about how scientific narratives are created by researchers and how researchers can be held accountable for them. We present two autoethnographies, to obtain insight into our own practice as scientific narrators. Our analysis reveals that our scientific narratives were created by interweaving an empirical plot and a theoretical plot. It also shows that researchers can be held accountable for their narratives by means of a ‘narrative contract’ with the narrative’s audience according to which the researchers must deliver (1) meaning, by means of a plot that offers a certain criticality (both empirically and conceptually) and (2) ‘truthfulness’, by resonating with the standards that their audience adheres to. We conclude by discussing the implications of such a narrative turn in research methodology for the conceptualisation of practices, practice based research and practice theory
Forest-People Interfaces: from local creativity to global concerns
No full textThis book takes the reader on a journey through four major themes that have dominated research on the people-forest interface since the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) published its Forestry for Rural Development paper and launched its Programme on Forestry for Local Community Development in 1976. This was the prelude to the FAO VIIIth Forestry Congress entitled 'Forestry for People', organised two years later, which drew attention to the role of forests in meeting people's livelihood needs. These events marked the emergence of social forestry as a new approach to forest management that aimed to increase community participation in the development and management of forest resources (Arnold, 1991; FAO, 1976; Wiersum, 1999). In the 1980s social forestry marked a shift away from an exclusive focus on industrial, timber-oriented forestry to participatory and cooperative management schemes (Colchester et al., 2003). In the same period, the Canadian forester John Bene (Bene et al., 1977) coined the term 'agroforestry' for the practice of integrating trees, food crops and/or animals in a combined production system compatible with the cultural practices of the local population. Bene played an important role in the establishment of the International Council for Research in Agroforestry (ICRAF) in Nairobi in 1997 (King, 1987). This is now known as the World Agroforestry Centre and has regional offices in India, Indonesia, Kenya, Malawi and Mali
The promise of practice: the value of the practice based approach for forest and nature governance studies
No full textA practice based approach is new to studies of forest and nature governance and fairly new to governance studies in general. In this chapter, we outline the promise of such an approach for such studies. The chapter is in two parts. Firstly, a number of conclusions are drawn from the preceding individual chapters. They relate to: (1) the types of forest and nature governance practices that can be empirically distinguished; (2) the way the sensitising concepts of logic of practice, situated agency, and performativity have been used to move beyond mainstream governance approaches; and (3) the specific characteristics of a practice based approach to forest and nature governance. The second part of the chapter discusses the academic and societal value of the practice based approach as offered in this book, firstly by comparing this approach to an interpretative approach in governance studies and addressing similarities and differences, and then by discussing whether the practice based approach can contribute to policy making and steering social change. We conclude that a practice based approach can convincingly address some points that mainstream accounts of governance cannot, but only if certain long-held convictions about what governance really is are abandoned
Prelude to practice: Introducing a practice based approach to forest and nature governance
No full text‘Forest and nature governance’ is a field that has recently emerged from forestry sciences. It analyses the governance of a diverse set of issues, including deforestation, biodiversity loss and illegal logging, producing insights useful for science and policy. Its main theoretical base consists of two mainstream social theories: rational choice and neo-institutionalism. However, since these models rest upon problematic conceptualisations of ‘the social’, this chapter proposes a practice based approach, which offers a comprehensive understanding of the social dynamics related to trees, forests and biodiversity. It goes beyond some of the old dualisms in social theory, such as subject and object, and agency and structure. Three sensitising concepts—situated agency, logic of practice and performativity—will be introduced. In addition, the chapter identifies a number of methodological guidelines for the practice based approach, based on a short review of the practice literature. These concepts and guidelines not only define the practice based approach, but also bind together the individual chapters. Finally, this chapter introduces the book’s contents
Classical Humanism and the Challenge of Modernity. Debates on classical education in Germany c. 1770-1860
No full textClassical humanism was a living tradition until far into the nineteenth century. In scholarship, classical (Renaissance) humanism is usually strictly distinguished from so-called ‘neo-humanism,’ which, especially in Germany, reigned supreme at the beginning of the nineteenth century. While most classical humanists focused on the practical imitation of Latin stylistic models, ‘neohumanism’ is commonly believed to have been mainly inspired by typical modern values, such as authenticity and historicity . ‘Neohumanists’ attached more value to the Greeks than to the Romans. Moreover, they were not intent on imitating classical writers, but on historically reconstructing the ancient world at large. Bas van Bommel shows in his thesis that this common view is based on highly selective source material. Whereas ‘neohumanism’ was mainly adhered to at the universities, at the German Gymnasien a much more traditional educational ideal prevailed, which remained remarkably constant between c. 1770 and c. 1860. This ideal involved the prioritisation of the Romans above the Greeks, as well as the belief that imitation of Roman and Greek models brings about man’s aesthetic and moral elevation. Typically ‘neohumanistic’ aspects were almost completely absent in this Gymnasium-based educational ideal. As humanists at the Gymnasien were much more numerous than academic philologists, not ‘neohumanism,’ but classical humanism should be seen as the dominant educational ideal in the period c.1770 -1860. Van Bommel makes clear that 19th century classical humanism dynamically related to modern society. On the one hand, classical humanists were keen on illustrating the value of classical education by using typically modern concepts, such as ‘the public sphere’ or ‘formal education.’ On the other hand, classical humanism succeeded in influencing even its strongest competitors. The German (höhere) Bürgerschule, for example, almost completely derived its educational ideology from the classical Gymnasium. 19th century classical humanism, in other words, should not be seen as a dried-out remnant of a dying past, but as the continuation of a living tradition. Recommendations • Bas van Bommel criticises the widespread tendency among historians to write history on the basis of mere innovations. All sound historiography pays as much attention to continuities as to discontinuities. • Bas van Bommel also advocates a reintegration into modern educational debates of a number of humanistic core values – such as the prioritization of alpha- above bèta-subjects, anti-utilitarianism, as well as a major focus on aesthetic and moral education. Reintegrating those values could significantly increase the quality of modern pre-university education
Ton van Kalmthout, Huib Zuidervaart (eds.), The Practice of Philology in the Nineteenth-Century Netherlands
No full textTon van Kalmthout, Huib Zuidervaart (eds.), The Practice of Philology in the Nineteenth-Century Netherlands (History of Science and Scholarship in the Netherlands 14; Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press, 2015, 258 pp., ISBN 978 90 8964 591 3)
Le latin dans le système éducatif allemand de la première moitié du xixe siècle
No full textDans un ouvrage récent, l’historien Bas van Bommel a remis en cause de manière convaincante l’utilisation du concept de « néohumanisme » (Neuhumanismus) pour qualifier l’humanisme du xixe siècle en Allemagne. Bien loin d’être une réalisation « néohumaniste », le système éducatif allemand d’alors s’inscrit en réalité dans la continuité des siècles précédents. Il n’empêche qu’un certain nombre de transformations sont à l’œuvre à l’époque, que l’auteur a parfois tendance à minimiser. L’article analyse la critique de Bas van Bommel et s’en sert tout à la fois pour déterminer quelle a réellement été la place du latin dans l’enseignement allemand durant la première moitié du xixe siècle. Plutôt que d’être délaissé à cause d’une prédilection « néohumaniste » pour le grec ancien, le latin continue de dominer l’enseignement « secondaire » (höheres Schulwesen) et parvient à se maintenir tant bien que mal à l’université, malgré une diminution évidente de ses prérogatives. Ce n’est qu’à la fin du siècle que certains changements amorcés autour de 1800 mettront à mal la suprématie du latin à l’école.In einem jüngst veröffentlichten Buch hat der Historiker Bas van Bommel die Verwendung des Begriffs „Neuhumanismus“ zur Bezeichnung des Humanismus des 19. Jahrhunderts in Deutschland überzeugend infrage gestellt. Weit davon entfernt, in einem „neuhumanistischen“ Sinne neugestaltet zu werden, hielt das damalige deutsche Schulwesen am Herkömmlichen fest. Indes setzten etliche Veränderungen bereits in diesem Moment ein, denen der Autor manchmal nicht ausreichend gerecht wird. Der Artikel setzt sich mit Bas van Bommels Kritik auseinander und bedient sich derer zugleich, um den tatsächlichen Platz des Lateins im deutschen Unterrichtswesen in der ersten Hälfte des 19. Jahrhunderts bestimmen zu können. Anstatt wegen einer gewissen „neuhumanistischen“ Vorliebe für das Altgriechische vernachlässigt worden zu sein, überwog das Latein im höheren Schulwesen weiter und konnte an der Universität überleben, obwohl ihm manche seiner Vorrechte eindeutig schon entzogen worden waren. Erst am Ende des Jahrhunderts untergruben einige um 1800 in Gang gekommene Veränderungen die Spitzenstellung des Lateins in der Schule.In a recent book, the historian Bas van Bommel has convincingly challenged the validity of the concept of “neo–humanism” (Neuhumanismus) as a description for nineteenth-century humanism in Germany. Bas van Bommel argues that, far from having put any “neo–humanist” project into practice, the contemporaneous German educational system mainly preserved the tradition of the previous centuries. However, in undertaking this historical revision, I claim, the author has also understated some of the changes that were underway in the German educational system in the mentioned period. My research therefore disputes Bas van Bommel’s criticism, while at the same time deploying it to determine how great the importance of Latin really was in the German educational system in the first half of the 19th century. The instruction of Latin, I assert, was not neglected because of a “neo–humanist” predilection for ancient Greek ; rather, it continued to dominate the “secondary” education (höheres Schulwesen) and still maintained a respectable status at university, although having clearly lost some of its previous prerogatives. Only late in the 19th century did some changes dating back to the period around 1800 undermine the supremacy of Latin education in Germany
[medal] Rekenpenning op de expeditie van admiraal Pieter Van der Does naar Brazilië.
No full textOud plaatsnummer LN.1599/5Recto: De driemaster Argo met de wind in de zeilen en met op het grootzeil het Hebreeuwse woord Jehovah in een stralenkrans ; onderaan in de golven, S • C • en rondom, tussen een verhoogde cirkel en de parelcirkel aan de buitenrand, EN • ALTERA • QVÆ • VEHAT • ARGOVerso: De eilanden Bommel en Thiel, met op elk een grenspaal (Romeinse termini) ; tussen de twee palen de naam Jehovah in het Hebreeuws in een stralenkrans ; rondom, tussen een verhoogde cirkel en de parelcirkel aan de buitenrand, een roosje • SIC • NESCIA • CEDERE • FATA • CIƆ IƆ IC •Dugniolle, J.F. Le jeton historique des dix-sept provinces des Pays-Bas. Brussel: Gobbaerts, 1880, p. 156, nr. 3472.Tas, M. Rekenpenningen, 540 rekenpenningen van de zestiende en de eerste helft van de zeventiende eeuw, Tweede, herziene druk. Rotterdam: Herman Gerritsen, 2020, nr. 339, p. 170.Van Loon, G. Beschryving der Nederlandsche Historipenningen. 's Graavenhaage : Van Lom, P. Gosse en P. De Hondt, eerste deel, 1723, p. 532.II.Bijzondere collectie
Die Heroik der Sünde. Versuch einer methodologischen Kritik der Interpretatio Stoica des Hercules Furens
No full textIm ersten Teil meiner Abhandlung ist die stoische Interpretation der Tragödien Senecas
in theoretischer Hinsicht zu untersuchen. Es sollen eine Anzahl apriorischer Probleme
der interpretatio stoica bloßgelegt werden
