This thesis, concerned with ecological transitions, is more specifically set in the debate of sustainable agricultural practices in India. The chosen approach is a comparative study of two...Show moreThis thesis, concerned with ecological transitions, is more specifically set in the debate of sustainable agricultural practices in India. The chosen approach is a comparative study of two organizations providing seeds to farmers in India: on one side Bayer CropScience Ltd. (India), which promotes the use of hybrid, genetically modified (GM) crops and chemical pesticides; and on the other side Navdanya, which turns to the preservation and development of traditional seeds and practices. The primary aim of this research is to establish a clear link between belief systems and economic ecological practices. From this link, this research proposes a comparison of the values that have a significant effect on Navdanya’s inner workings and economic endeavors to values ruling over Bayer India in order to inform societal transitions towards sustainable economic models. This thesis concludes that Bayer’s episteme is characterized by its definition of progress as growth, and its co-dependence in equilibrium between shareholders and consumers that are more widely set in the Modern episteme’s anthropocentrism and objectification of the ‘other’. Navdanya’s episteme is characterized by a sacred understanding of biodiversity and an attempt to recenter economies towards women and nature in the idea that their creations is merely unpaid work upon which the growth paradigm relies. The two organizations are set in a polarizing tension rooted in the core beliefs of both paradigms.Show less
This thesis presents a plant macrofossil analysis on fluvial deposits from the Middle Pleistocene site of Happisburgh Site 1, on the East Anglia coast of England. This analysis contributes to a...Show moreThis thesis presents a plant macrofossil analysis on fluvial deposits from the Middle Pleistocene site of Happisburgh Site 1, on the East Anglia coast of England. This analysis contributes to a greater understanding on hominin dispersals in Europe from around 0.5 Ma, and their preferences concerning the climate and environment. The research problem therefore concerns the ecological tolerance towards early hominins. In this analysis, two samples are studied from different trenches and of different sedimentary composition: HAP10-L8 and HAP10-L7sample8 section2 (the lowest situated sample of section2). The identified taxa are compared with former macrobotanical research on different samples from HAP10-L7section2. From the outcome of these macrobotanical analyses, it is clear that we are dealing with a small freshwater river channel within a complex river system with many different plant habitats.Show less
This thesis presents a plant macrofossil analysis on fluvial deposits from the Middle Pleistocene site of Happisburgh Site 1, on the East Anglia coast of England. This analysis contributes to a...Show moreThis thesis presents a plant macrofossil analysis on fluvial deposits from the Middle Pleistocene site of Happisburgh Site 1, on the East Anglia coast of England. This analysis contributes to a greater understanding on hominin dispersals in Europe from around 0.5 Ma, and their preferences concerning the climate and environment. The research problem therefore concerns the ecological tolerance towards early hominins. In this analysis, two samples are studied from different trenches and of different sedimentary composition: HAP10-L8 and HAP10-L7sample8 section2 (the lowest situated sample of section2). The identified taxa are compared with former macrobotanical research on different samples from HAP10-L7section2. From the outcome of these macrobotanical analyses, it is clear that we are dealing with a small freshwater river channel within a complex river system with many different plant habitats.Show less
