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    Imagining ecologies : traditions of ecopoetry in Aotearoa New Zealand : a thesis submitted to Massey University in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, Massey University of Palmerston North
    (Massey University, 2019) Newman, Janet Elizabeth
    New Zealand ecopoetry tells the stories of connection with and separation from the land. From the late nineteenth century until the present, opposing and changing notions of ecological loss and belonging have underlain New Zealand’s long lineage of ecopoetry in English. Yet, from a critical perspective, such a tradition is essentially invisible. Scholars have tended to fragment New Zealand ecopoetry according to themes and time periods. But taken as a whole, the tradition not only provides local stories of human relationships with nature transformed by colonialism, it challenges some established conceptions of ecopoetry. Discussions within the relatively new field of post-colonial ecocriticism revealthe importance of local writing. Scholars have emphasized that particular national histories especially in places of settler colonialism have “contributed to the hybridization and creolization of plants, peoples, and place in ways that profoundly denaturalize absolute ontological claims,” (DeLoughrey 2014 325). This approach recognises that rather than a global framework of ecological change, experiences differ according to specific locations and across different timeframes. With this approach in mind, the critical component of this thesis investigates the field of ecopoetry and maps New Zealand’s ecopoetic lineage. It reports on close readings and analysis of contemporary ecopoetry by three New Zealand poets: Brian Turner (b. 1944), Robert Sullivan (b. 1967) and Airini Beautrais (b. 1982). It finds that New Zealand ecopoetry portrays particular tensions about understandings of nature and the human relationship with it. These tensions challenge in specific ways some of the homogenizing, Eurocentric conceptions that prevail in foundational work carried out in the field of ecopoetry since the 1990s. The creative component is a collection of original ecopoems entitled Anti-Pastoral. These poems reflect on my own connection to land through farming over four generations of European settlement in New Zealand. Some poems focus on the degrading effects on people and animals of relatively recent shifts towards large-scale intensive farming. In the critical component I ask: How do we define and depict New Zealand’s long tradition of ecopoetry? How does that tradition speak back to and challenge existing definitions of ecopoetry and of ecology? In the creative component, I ask: How do I, a Pākehā poet and farmer, join that tradition?
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    An integrated catchment management plan toward restoration : sustainable farming with a future focus in the Mangaone West : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Environmental Management at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2014) Hickey-Elliott, Andree Beth
    Land cover change and land use management practices have caused environmental degradation of the Mangaone West catchment. A catchment management plan is needed to address the degradation. An integrated method was used to improve the likelihood of plan success. ArcMap and biophysical sampling were used to provide a knowledge base of current catchment conditions. Considerable environmental sampling was carried out, including MCI and QMCI indices, nutrient sampling of nitrogen and phosphorous, sediment assessment methods, riparian assessment and erosion assessment. A catchment meeting was held to form a consensus plan goal and view. The goal of ‘sustainable farming in the Mangaone West, with a future focus’ was established. The river styles framework and a traditional integrated catchment management plan framework were reviewed. Components for plan success were reviewed and integrated into the proposed plan. The catchment sampling found significant degradation with regard to its geomorphology, riparian margin and water quality. Erosion and connectivity of the upper catchment hillslopes and waterways is a significant issue. Much of the catchment is lacking a riparian margin. A combined plan is proposed, using a mixture of the river styles framework and traditional development structure. Best management practices need to be adopted by all landowners and riparian margins require significant restoration. Hillslopes of the upper catchment require stabilisation, and problematic willows in the lower catchment need to be removed. The local community needs to be involved throughout the plan implementation in order to maximise its success. With the proposed plan utilised, the Mangaone West could be restored to a sustainable environment.
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    The consequences of emerging cash crops on small-scale rural farmers' livelihoods : a case study of the energy crop, Jatropha Curcas L, in Kenya : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Philosophy in Development Studies at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2011) Wamalwa, Joshua Kizito
    This thesis investigates claims that growing of drought resistant cash crops such as Jatropha Curcas L (Jatropha) by small-scale rural farmers living in arid and semi-arid regions is an effective way to improve their livelihoods through increased income and improved food security. One school of thought supports this claim – often made by proponents of the bio-fuel industry - and another is sceptical about the claim. This research used the Sustainable Livelihoods Framework to evaluate the impact of growing Jatropha on the livelihoods of smallscale rural farmers in the Meru North district in Kenya. The findings revealed that, some elements of Jatropha farming as an agricultural strategy could be capable of improving rural livelihoods. Interviews carried out with farmers showed that Jatropha growing has had positive and negative impacts on the farmers’ livelihoods. Farmers - especially those who were also traders in Jatropha - noted significant positive impacts in their financial, physical, human, and natural capital domains as demonstrated in the asset pentagon. However, the impacts were far less positive for those farmers who only produced Jatropha. Positive impacts of Jatropha were also noted amongst the wider rural communities. Local people interviewed indicated that Jatropha growing has increased their access to job opportunities as farmers were now employing local people on a casual basis to help out on the Jatropha farms. The local people including farmers have also used the Jatropha plant as a soil protector in places where land is susceptible to soil erosion and mud slides in the region. There were some fundamentals of rural livelihoods that did not experience any immediate impact as a result of Jatropha farming. For instance, food production has not been impacted upon negatively as expected. Food supply in the region has remained constant due to the modes of Jatropha production adopted by farmers that do not interfere with the production of food crops. Similarly, no evidence was found that Jatropha growing had impacted positively or negatively on communal or state-owned physical capital assets. Negative impacts were however noted in the social capital domains of farmers, as many farmers who produced Jatropha but did not trade it themselves have lost trust in their neighbours who acted as their middlemen or traders. More so, this study concludes that the expansion of the Jatropha trade has increased inequality among farmers. Farmers who are ii presumed to be the poorest in the region are not taking up the growing of Jatropha, therefore the benefits of growing Jatropha are only being tapped by the richer farmers. In addition this thesis concludes that growing of Jatropha has increased labour demand for family members and particularly women are bearing much of the heavy labour impact in households in rural areas.