Tides, monsoons and seabed: local knowledge and practice in Chwaka Bay, Zanzibar
Article Abstract:
Indigenous people living around Chwaka Bay, Zanzibar, display an intimate knowledge of the environmental effects of tidal cycles, wind and precipitation patterns, and seabed morphology. The Chwaka people have their own terms for these interrelationships, yet it closely matches scientific analysis. Their mental maps of the bay permit them to navigate these waters without incident even during the lowest water levels of spring. Researchers and policy makers need to utilize local knowledge when designing practical development work.
Publication Name: Ambio
Subject: Environmental issues
ISSN: 0044-7447
Year: 1998
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Coastal communities' production choices, risk diversification, and subsistence behavior: responses in periods of transition
Article Abstract:
Coastal dwellers on the islands of Tanzania use marine and terrestrial environments in artisanal and semiautonomous ways. Changes in their subsistence economy between 1993 and 1998 have produced responses of increased integration with the market economy and diversified reliance on increasingly separate ecosystems. However, the largest consequence is income inequality, with the most exposed group made up of those with many agricultural activities.
Publication Name: Ambio
Subject: Environmental issues
ISSN: 0044-7447
Year: 1998
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The Mundel Lake estuarine system, Sri Lanka: possible measures to avoid extreme salinity and sea level variations
Article Abstract:
The salinity of Mundel Lake, a lagoon on the west coast of Sri Lanka, is increasing. Freshwater enters the lake through a seasonal river, and there was up until 1998 occasional connected to the Indian Ocean at its southern end. Variations in salinity and sea level and water exchange from the lagoon to the ocean could be increased by reopening the sandbar.
Publication Name: Ambio
Subject: Environmental issues
ISSN: 0044-7447
Year: 1998
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