Learning to Survive Ecological Risks among the Sidama of Southwestern Ethiopia
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 6078832 |
|---|---|
| Authors | J Dira (0000-0002-1735-4759, Washington State University, corresponding author), B Hewlett (0000-0002-9243-1355, University of West Florida), Samuel Dira |
| Year | 2016 |
| Volume | 18 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Publication date | 2016-12-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Journal of Ecological Anthropology (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1528-6509 • E-ISSN: 2162-4593 |
| Publisher | University of South Florida Libraries (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.5038/2162-4593.18.1.7 |
| OpenAlex | W2549622873 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
| References cited | 25 |
Sidama farmers rely on rain-fed agriculture and experience a highly variable natural environment. Recurrent drought, erratic rainfall, and crop and livestock loss are common in mid and lowland areas, but local people are not passive victims of the changing environment: they use accumulated knowledge and skills to respond to and buffer ecological changes. Based on freelists and in-depth interviews with 70 adults and 50 adolescents, this paper describes how the Sidama conceive of ecological risks, survive difficult times, and learn to be resilient. The results indicate that food shortage and drought are salient risk factors. While local people think the future is unpredictable, they have diverse and complex knowledge about saving, trading and farming that help them cope with environmental challenges. Fifty adolescents interviewed reported that they learned diverse survival strategies from parents, fellow adolescents, and other adults. Interviews with adolescents and adults indicate that the Sidama use multiple methods, including teaching, to transmit cultural knowledge and skills about how to survive ecological risks
Agriculture · Biology · Economic shortage · Environmental resource management · Geography · Socioeconomics · Sociology · Agricultural Innovations and Practices · Climate change impacts on agriculture · Environmental Science · Rangeland Management and Livestock Ecology · Ecology
Cultural transmission of ethnobotanical knowledge and skills
Promoting Community Resilience in Disasters
Stability and resilience in East African Pastoralism
Environmental risk, resilience and migration
Household food insecurity and hunger among households in Sidama district, southern Ethiopia
Risk Perception and Coping Strategies among the Karrayu Pastoralists of Upper Awash Valley, Central Ethiopia
Making Friends in the Rainforest
Perception of Interannual Covariation and Strategies for Risk Reduction among Mikea of Madagascar
Culture and Psychological Responses to Environmental Shocks
Response Diversity and Resilience in Social-Ecological Systems
Sidama Agro-Pastoralism and Ethnobiological Classification of its Primary Plant, Enset (Ensete ventricosum)
Traditional ecological knowledge and community resilience to environmental extremes
Cultural Transmission of Traditional Knowledge in two populations of North-western Patagonia
Demography and Childcare in Preindustrial Societies
The Effect of Market Economies on the Well-Being of Indigenous Peoples and on Their Use of Renewable Natural Resources
The Religious Conversion Process Among the Sidāma of North-East Africa
Belief and Experience Among the Sidamo
Egalitarian Societies
Inculcation of ideology among the Sidāma of Ethiopia
Gender and Risk in a Matrifocal Caribbean Community
Cultural Transmission Among Aka Pygmies
Considerations for Collecting Freelists in the Field
Money, Modernization and Ambivalence Among the Sidāma of Northeastern Africa
| Unique citing works | 3 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,75 |
| Citation span | 2022 - 2025 (4) |
| Citation velocity | recent |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 3 |