modernization
Batek Change their Minds about Schooling
Some Batek living in a village called Kampung Dedari, located in Malaysia’s Taman Negara National Park, have changed their minds about the value of their young people getting a formal education. Ahmad A. Talib traveled up the Tembeling River to visit the village, interview some parents and children, and write a piece last week for […]
Changes in Rural Thailand
Over the past 60 years, Rural Thai villagers have changed from poor, isolated farmers to relatively prosperous suburbanites who seek jobs, conveniences, income and connections. A feature article last week in the prominent Japanese business journal Nikkei Asian Review explored the dramatic changes that anthropologist William Klausner has witnessed in his 60 years of life […]
Changes in Rural Northeast Thailand [journal article review]
The northeast section of Thailand has changed from a traditional, isolated peasant society into a region of sophisticated rural dwellers. A recent journal article by Somchai Phatharathananunth describes the social, economic, and political transformations over the past several decades in rural Northeast Thailand, which is usually referred to as “Isan” or “Isaan.” The author, an […]
Tristan to Be Modernized
News sources in the United Kingdom reported the winner of a design competition that was established to build the foundations for a more sustainable future for the Tristan Islanders. The winning firm, Brock Carmichael Architects in Liverpool, prepared plans that the Islanders chose out of 37 proposals from architectural firms that had responded to an […]
Chewong Adapt to Modernity [anthology chapter review]
Perhaps the most basic question for anyone investigating the peaceful societies phenomenon is how they are able to maintain their peacefulness in the face of global economic and social pressures. Some answers are suggested by the Chewong, who still avoid anger, violence, and competition—and cherish the nonviolent interactions of their egalitarian society—despite the many challenges […]
Is Modernization Beneficial for Ladakhis? [journal article review]
Helena Norberg-Hodge, who has criticized modernization in Ladakh for many years, has termed the changes taking place there as a “development hoax.” Author of the influential book Ancient Futures, Norberg-Hodge argues that, although traditionally Ladakh has had a healthy social and cultural environment lacking in crime and poverty, the Ladakhi people are turning their backs […]
Black Carbon and Black Anger: Changing Conditions in Ladakh [book review]
The old Ladakhi men are sitting in a line on one side of the community hall arranged by descending age, with the eldest in the corner. The women bring around five gallon buckets of chang, the local beverage, bantering amiably as they fill the mugs of the men. The villagers living in Kumik, in the […]
A Malapandaram School Remains Open
A new primary school in Kerala that opened in June to much fanfare for Malapandaram kids, but which was threatened in July with closing due to insufficient funds, has been kept open after all.The Hindu reported last week that the school at Attathode, located on a major road to Sabarimala, was saved due to quick […]
Kerala and its Peaceful Societies Part 1, the Kadar
The Kadar living in the Anapantham Colony had to move to another location, Sasthanpoovam, nearly 10 years ago when their colony was nearly destroyed by landslides. A mother and a child had been killed in the tragedy. By 2010, they had moved to temporary shelters in the new community and, according to a news report […]
Adventures in Botswana
Daniel Koehler has published three more installments in his blog about his filming adventures among the G/wi and G//ana San people of Botswana. His blog post published on April 22 described a trip he took from New Xade, the resettlement town he has been living in, out to the traditional community in the desert called […]
