• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
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• v.56 no.3
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• pp.22-44
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• 2023

The subsistence economics of the early Bronze Age has focused on explaining the intensity of agricultural practices without sufficiently taking into account the diversity of production methods that may arise from cultural types or environmental factors. The problem appears to stem from paying insufficient attention to the question whether we should understand the transition from the Neolithic Age to the Bronze Age as continuous or discrete. This has hitherto blocked an avenue to investigate the gradual changes in subsistence resource production methods. Taking as its premise that changes in the production methods of subsistence resources in the Bronze Age have been continuous and gradual, this paper seeks to restore the production patterns of subsistence resources according to the variety of factors that may have influenced the early Bronze Age production method. With diverse cultural patterns and ecological spaces of the early Bronze Age being confirmed, the work of restoring the production methods of subsistence resources in a specific period is difficult to achieve with one or two stand-alone analyses. A more appropriate method would involve separating a number of different aspects related to the production of subsistence resources, analyzing and interpreting each, and in the final stage, synthesizing the analyses. The specific research method employed in this paper checked for compositional differences in stone production tools, functionally categorized according to a variety of factors that have a close relationship with the production of subsistence resources: cultural-environmental factors and cultural patterns, geographical and topographical factors, soil productivity, and size of settlement. The results of the analysis are as follows: for the early Bronze Age production pattern of subsistence resources in the Seoul and Gyeonggi regions, while no substantive differences were observed with respect to cultural type, geographical and topographical location, the results show statistically significant differences in the composition of production tools according to settlement size and soil productivity. Also, with an increasing ratio of settlement size and total production soil, increases in hunting and armoring tools, woodworking tools, and harvesting tools were observed; on the other hand, when it came to the ratio of fishing tools, the opposite relationship was observed. While a correlation between settlement size or crop cultivation productivity and dependence on hunting or farming was expected, the results of the regression analysis show that settlement size and soil productivity ratios do not have mutually significant relationships. The results thus illustrate that patterns of production differ according to a variety of factors, and no single factor is decisive in the adoption of subsistence resource production methods by a specific settlement. Therefore, the paper emphasizes the need to investigate the production patterns of subsistence resources according to the variety of cultural and environmental factors that make up settlements in early Bronze Age society.

• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
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• v.52 no.3
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• pp.146-159
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• 2019

This study focuses on the understanding of human subsistence and pottery use during ancient times on the Korean peninsula through lipid analysis of potsherds from several major prehistoric settlement sites. Ancient human subsistence has been one of the long-standing topics in Korean archaeology. However, since the high acidity of sediments does not allow long-term preservation of organic remains, we still lack some critical information related to the prehistoric diet. Pottery contains relatively well-preserved organic remains created during past cooking events. Though pottery is one of the most studied material cultures in Korean archaeology, almost no attention has been given to analyzing the pottery itself. This is a surprising omission and represents a serious gap in our understanding of prehistoric technology and subsistence. The analysis of ancient lipids extracted from the pottery matrix using GC-MS and isotope analysis can contribute to our understanding of the true nature of past subsistence strategies. Potsherd samples for the analyses in this study were collected from six prehistoric and early historic settlement sites located in the central part of the Korean peninsula. The results showed that subsistence strategies differed by both location and time period. For example, at Jungdo, an inland open-air Bronze Age settlement site in Chuncheon City, we were able to see the presence of terrestrial mammals. At Gahak-dong, Gwangmyeong City, marine resources were utilized, as the location of the site is not far from the coastline. At the early historic site of Guwol-dong, Incheon City, we were able to detect dairy products. The results of this study suggest that there was utilization of a wider range of resources among ancient dwellers in the central part of the Korean peninsula.

• Journal of Marine Bioscience and Biotechnology
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.24-30
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• 2008

Fishing in Kenya, until the discovery of Nile perch as an export commodity in the early 1990s, has basically a subsistence occupation for the lake and coastal communities. The government also did not recognize the importance of fisheries as a contributor to the macro-economy and therefore, did not pay much attention in terms of resource allocation for the development of the sector. Most fishing in Kenya is artisanal, with a little industrial fishing by prawn trawlers. The deep sea (EEZ) fishery resources are currently exploited by DWFNs through a licensing system. Only a small quantity of catch from the EEZ is landed in Kenya, primarily tuna loins for processing for export. Currently capture fisheries, mainly from Lake Victoria, earn local fishers over Kenya shillings (K Sh) 7 billion, while exports earn the country K Sh 5 billion (US$ 50 million) in foreign exchange annually. The government has been putting in place an enabling environment to promote investment activities in order to achieve economic recovery as well as for the development and sustainable use of fisheries resources in the country within the specified period. The Department's major roles are to ensure sustainable exploitation of fisheries resources; to promote aquaculture development; to assure quality and safety of fish and fishery products; and to facilitate fish marketing in order to maximize the benefits that can be derived from fisheries. The contribution of fisheries to local incomes, subsistence and food nutrition is significant, as this occurs in areas with the highest incidences of poverty in the country.

• Journal of Marine Bioscience and Biotechnology
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.31-37
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• 2008

Off the 1,572 km long coastline of Namibia lies known as the Benguela upwelling system, a very rich source of marine life supporting traditional and modern forms of fishery. Commercial fishing and fish processing is one of the fastest-growing sectors of the Namibian economy in terms of employment, export earnings, and contribution to GDP. The fishing industry has grown to the extent that it is currently Namibia's second biggest export earner of foreign currency after mining (90% of national output is marketed for export). In 2005, Namibia harvested about 552,164 tonnes of fish. The final value of processed products (export value) that year was around US$ 376.0 million. Besides the marine captured fisheries, Namibia also has a small but vibrant aquaculture sector. Inland captured fisheries exist in the north-east and north-west of Namibia where as commercial freshwater aquaculture of tilapia and catfish is also undertaken. The inland fisheries are mainly subsistence based and typically labour intensive, with low catch per unit effort. However the subsistence fisheries from these regions play a significant role in the lives of rural community. The domestic market for marine fish products is extremely limited due to the small size of the population (2 million). The fishing industry is a source of considerable employment for many Namibians. Huge potential to increase production exists in Namibia, unpolluted high quality marine waters, high natural primary productivity of the seawater, availability of inexpensive fish by-products from established fish processing sector for inclusion in wet aqua-feeds and well-established processing, packaging and marketing systems due to the marine capture fisheries that can be adopted for aquaculture purpose.

• Journal of the Economic Geographical Society of Korea
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.119-138
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• 2018

The Hmong people are one of the largest ethnic groups in Vietnam. They traditionally practice shifting cultivation for their daily subsistence. This group has a traditional governance system as well as strong clan and kinship relationships that occupy an important role in maintaining Hmong culture and livelihoods. The state's approval of the legitimate and statutory law for the Nature Reserve largely excluded local rights of access to and the use of natural resources. This study focusses on Hmong responses to the state interventions of the establishment of the Nature Reserve as well as forest land allocation. Based on Scott's contribution of Moral Economy (1976), the authors argue that local responses function as a 'risk-averter' against state intervention. Meanwhile, the intra and inter-ethnic relationships based on the 'subsistence ethic' help locals successfully mitigate state intervention. These findings help the state rethink their interventions, which have been constructed with very little respect for local differences or the desires of ethnic peoples. Furthermore, the main findings, which reveal that not only the intra-ethnic relationship but also the inter-ethnic relationship among ethnic minorities can play an important role in maintaining the Moral Economy, are expected to deepen the previous understanding on the Moral Economy, which has previously constrained its scope to the intra-ethnic relationship.

• Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.85-91
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• 2009

About 83% of the total population of Lao PDR lives in rural areas. People living near forest are highly dependent on the forest resources closed to their villages. Especially non-timber forest products (NTFPs) provide a wide range of subsistence needs and are the main source of their cash income. They also make a significant contribution to the country economy. The annual export value of NTFPs is considerably high. 708 edible NTFP species (238 edible plants and 470 animals) have been recorded so far, and about 400 plants have been reported and used as medicinal plants by Lao people. One hundred NTFP species are considered as commercial forest products. The striking trend in NTFP resources is the decline of some commercial species due to increased demand on them for commercialization, and the loss of forest by rapid population growth. To sustainablely manage the NTFPs resources, a number of new management systems are under development and support in progress by the government.

• Forest Science and Technology
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.192-203
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• 2018

This study analyzed the distribution of forest income and other variable sources of rural household income and considered their importance for the reduction of income inequality and poverty. We employed Gini decomposition to measure the contribution of forest income and other sources of income to income equality and assess whether they were inequality-increasing or inequality-decreasing in the 14 villages. The forest income Gini correlation with total income was very high, $R_k=0.6960$, and the forest income share of total rural household income was 35% ($S_k=0.3570$). If the income earned from forest activities was removed, the Gini index would increase by 10.3%. Thus, if people could not access forest resources because of vast deforestation, perhaps from the limitations of government-managed forestry, unplanned clearing of forest land for agriculture or the granting of ELCs, there would be an increase in income inequality and poverty among rural households. The findings suggest that policy makers should look beyond agriculture for rural development, as forest resources provide meaningful subsistence income and perhaps contribute to both preventing and reducing poverty and inequality in rural communities. The study found that non-farm activities were inequality-increasing sources of income. The share of non-farm income to the total rural household income was $S_k=0.1290$ and the Gini index of non-farm income was very high, $G_k=0.8780$, compared with forest and farm income. This disagrees with other studies which have reported that non-farm income was inequality-decreasing for the rural poor.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.6 no.3
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• pp.347-360
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• 1993

The project was undertaken to provide information on the present system of traditional pig farming in the South Pacific region, to identify the problems currently limiting productivity of such pigs and to offer practical strategies which could be used for increasing productivity of the animals. The problems were identified by surveying some 220 subsistence pig farms in eleven island countries in the South Pacific region using a prepared questionnaire. The units were found to be generally small, consisting of about 2-4 sows per herd. The productivity of the units as assessed in terms of sow reproductive efficiency was rather low, being only about 7.5. Feed, housing, breeding, disease, marketing, lack of capital, technical know-how and existing social traditions were identified as current constraints. Based on three of the most limiting factors identified namely feed, housing and breeding, strategies for improvement were developed on the basis of better and more effective use of locally available feed resources, better housing and genetic improvement through crossbreeding programmes. These improvement strategies were tested as a package model on some ten farms in two of the island countries. The results of these on-farm trials indicated that using the improvement strategies increased sow reproductive efficiency by approximately 60 percent, to nearly 12. The significance of these findings in the overall management of traditionally raised pigs in the South Pacific region is discussed.

• Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.311-322
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• 2016

Since forest trees form the basis of forest ecosystem, their prolong subsistence is crucial for various flora and fauna. The foremost challenges to sustain the forest ecosystem comprise of the declining forest tree population accompanied with structural changes due to afforestation and exploitation of forest area, environment changes, pests, pollution, and introgressive hybridization. For ex situ conservation approach, in vitro techniques encompass basic role for conserving tree genetic resources, predominantly where natural propagules like recalcitrant seed might not be appropriate for long-term conservation. The practice includes restricted growth techniques, conventional micropropagation, production and storage of synthetic seeds, and cryopreservation. Even though these practices have been applied chiefly to herbaceous species, but recently, woody species were also focused upon. Key conceptions, challenges and techniques for forest tree seed conservation are discussed briefly in this review with special emphasis on some successful cryopreservation approaches for long-term storage.

• Journal of Practical Agriculture & Fisheries Research
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.137-150
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• 2010

Traditionally, like many people in mountain region of the Himalaya, the Lwang communities depend on mix of subsistence agriculture, animal husbandry, and seasonal migrant labor for their livelihoods. These traditional systems are characterized by low productivity, diverse use of available natural resources (largely for home consumption), limited markets, and some aversion for innovation. The potential to generate wealth through commerce has largely been untapped by these mountain residents and thus is undervalued in local and national economies. Introduction of organic tea farming is a part of Lwang community's several initiatives to break the vicious poverty cycle Annapurna Conservation Area Project (ACAP) played facilitating roles in all their efforts since beginning. In five years, the tea plantation emerged as a new means for secured a livelihood. This study aims to analyze the current practices in tea farming both in terms of farm management and soil nutrient status(technical) and the prosperity of the tea farmers (social). The technical aspect covers the soil and tea leaf analysis of various nutrients contents in the soil and tea leaf. Originally, the technical aspect of the study was not planned but later during the consultation with the advisor it was taken into consideration which added value to the research study. The sample were collected from different locations and analyzed on the field itself. The other part of the study i.e. the social aspect was done through questionnaire survey and focus group discussion. the tea farming provided them not only a new opportunity but also earned an identity in the region. This initiative was undertaken as a piloting measure. Now that the tea is in production with processing unit established locally, more serious consideration has to be given for better yield and economic prosperity. This research finding will help the community to analyze their efforts and make correction measures in tea garden management and application of fertilizer. It is also expected to fill up the gaps of knowledge and information required to reduce economic stresses and enhance capacity of farmers to make the tea farming a sustainable and beneficial business. The findings are expected to Sustainability of organic tea farming has direct impacts on biodiversity conservation compared to the other traditional farming practices that are more resource intensive. The study will also contribute to identify key action points required for reducing poverty while conserving environment and enhancing livelihoods