AbstractsPhilosophy & Theology

This study focuses on sacred forests in the North Pare Mountains, Tanzania, and questions the reasons behind their current conservation. In spite of not being gazetted by the State, studies show that sacred forests in North Pare have a wider variety of endemic flora and fauna and are better preserved than national forests reserves. Although they are small in size, sacred forests are thus important globally. Some scholars suggest that the reason of such high biodiversity is the local culture and religion, or traditional conservation methods, which are decelerating the process of diminishing of these small forest patches. However, these aspects are not studied in depth. This thesis seeks to investigate these ‘traditions’. Sacred forests are in fact being considered a new type of (modern) conservation model. They are considered ideal also because of local caretakers, who enable to organize conservation with low economic expenditures. I argue, however, that the environmental ethics of people in North Pare emerge from a fusion of local Pare worldviews and modern discourses of Christianity, Islam and formal education. Therefore the assumed traditional/modern dichotomy that the new conservation agenda wants to reconcile does not reflect the reality on the ground and, by misunderstanding these dynamics, policies are likely to fail. The findings of this research also clarify that sacred forests and people constitute each other. The forests, in other words, symbolize a group of people. So, new ways of linking the community and the forests can complement recent conservation efforts, which typically neglect environmental values and moral meanings that are at stake in environmental practices and are fundamental for long-term positive results. Advisors/Committee Members: Dijk, Prof. Dr. Han van (advisor), Kronenburg-García, Dr. Angela (advisor).