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Since their discovery in the region in 2009, invasive Indonesian-native lionfish have been taking over the Belize Barrier Reef. As a result, populations of local species have dwindled as they are either eaten or outcompeted by the invaders. This has led to devastating losses ecologically and economically; massive industries in the local nations, such as fisheries and tourism, have suffered greatly. Attempting to combat this, local organizations, from nonprofits to ecotourism companies, have been manually spear-hunting them on scuba dives to cull the population. One such company, Reef Conservation Institute (ReefCI), operating out of Tom Owens Caye outside of Placencia, Belize, has dissected their caught lionfish for the past three years and kept logs of results. With little to no studies reliably indexing the Belizean lionfish population, this data set provides a priceless opportunity to take a first look and probe further questions about this relatively unstudied population. This project accomplished this by computing various population statistics using these records, including the differences in sex ratio, presence of supraorbital tentacles, length, age, and more. The results and combinations of these factors provide new insight on current theories surrounding lionfish and their anatomy, but more importantly it opens new questions, the answers to which can shed light on new techniques to more efficiently cull the population for the future.

Since their discovery in the region in 2009, invasive Indonesian-native lionfish have been taking over the Belize Barrier Reef. As a result, populations of local species have dwindled as they are either eaten or outcompeted by the invaders. This has led to devastating losses ecologically and economically; massive industries in the local nations, such as fisheries and tourism, have suffered greatly. Attempting to combat this, local organizations, from nonprofits to ecotourism companies, have been manually spear-hunting them on scuba dives to cull the population. One such company, Reef Conservation Institute (ReefCI), operating out of Tom Owens Caye outside of Placencia, Belize, has dissected their caught lionfish for the past three years and kept logs of results. With little to no studies reliably indexing the Belizean lionfish population, this data set provides a priceless opportunity to take a first look and probe further questions about this relatively unstudied population. This project accomplished this by computing various population statistics using these records, including the differences in sex ratio, presence of supraorbital tentacles, length, age, and more. The results and combinations of these factors provide new insight on current theories surrounding lionfish and their anatomy, but more importantly it opens new questions, the answers to which can shed light on new techniques to more efficiently cull the population for the future.

Purpose: To validate a culturally-adapted Kriol and Belizean English version of the Revised Children's Anxiety and Depression Scale (RCADS) through comparison with clinical diagnoses made using the Kiddie Schedule of Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia. Methods: Participants comprised of 256 adolescents aged 10-14 years and 15-19 years, who completed the adapted RCADS (10 depression items, 12 anxiety items) in one-on-one interviews, followed by a diagnostic assessment using Kiddie Schedule of Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia administered by trained clinicians. Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, diagnostic odds ratios, area under the curve (AUC), and Youden's Index were calculated for RCADS cutoffs and scores on the total scale and anxiety and depression subscales. Results: For adolescents aged 10-14 years (n = 161), the AUC was 0.72 for the full scale, 0.67 for anxiety subscale, and 0.76 for depression subscale. For adolescents aged 15-19 years (n = 95), the AUCs were 0.82, 0.77, and 0.83. Most depression items performed well in discriminating those with and without diagnoses. Separation anxiety items performed poorly. "Thoughts of death" were common even among adolescents not meeting diagnostic criteria. The RCADS depression subscale presented the strongest psychometric properties with adolescents aged 15-19 years (at cutoff of 13, sensitivity = 0.83, specificity = 0.77, positive predictive value = 0.47, negative predictive value = 0.95, odds ratio = 15.96). Conclusion: The adapted RCADS-22 had acceptable categorization for adolescents aged 10-14 years and excellent categorization for adolescents aged 15-19 years; therefore, the tool is recommended for use among the latter age group. Based on sensitivity and specificity values at different cutoffs, guidance is provided to select different thresholds to suit clinical, public health, or other uses to detect and quantify adolescent depression and anxiety in Belize.

Purpose: To validate a culturally-adapted Kriol and Belizean English version of the Revised Children's Anxiety and Depression Scale (RCADS) through comparison with clinical diagnoses made using the Kiddie Schedule of Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia. Methods: Participants comprised of 256 adolescents aged 10-14 years and 15-19 years, who completed the adapted RCADS (10 depression items, 12 anxiety items) in one-on-one interviews, followed by a diagnostic assessment using Kiddie Schedule of Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia administered by trained clinicians. Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, diagnostic odds ratios, area under the curve (AUC), and Youden's Index were calculated for RCADS cutoffs and scores on the total scale and anxiety and depression subscales. Results: For adolescents aged 10-14 years (n = 161), the AUC was 0.72 for the full scale, 0.67 for anxiety subscale, and 0.76 for depression subscale. For adolescents aged 15-19 years (n = 95), the AUCs were 0.82, 0.77, and 0.83. Most depression items performed well in discriminating those with and without diagnoses. Separation anxiety items performed poorly. "Thoughts of death" were common even among adolescents not meeting diagnostic criteria. The RCADS depression subscale presented the strongest psychometric properties with adolescents aged 15-19 years (at cutoff of 13, sensitivity = 0.83, specificity = 0.77, positive predictive value = 0.47, negative predictive value = 0.95, odds ratio = 15.96). Conclusion: The adapted RCADS-22 had acceptable categorization for adolescents aged 10-14 years and excellent categorization for adolescents aged 15-19 years; therefore, the tool is recommended for use among the latter age group. Based on sensitivity and specificity values at different cutoffs, guidance is provided to select different thresholds to suit clinical, public health, or other uses to detect and quantify adolescent depression and anxiety in Belize.

Water quality monitoring is essential for the wellbeing of humans, animals, and the environment. Monitoring coastal water quality is critical for the sustainable management and development of coastal resources as over one-third of the human population live in coastal areas. The health of our coasts, oceans, and cities highly depends on our changing climate and anthropogenic activities. Creating robust solutions to climate change and achieving coastal resilience requires interdisciplinary research by leveraging various datasets and techniques. The water quality monitoring techniques encompassed by this body of work aim to leverage satellite remote sensing to monitor water clarity and sea surface temperature for coral health and the second are a suite of microbiological techniques to monitor antibiotic resistance. The first two studies utilize remote sensing imagery to monitor water clarity and sea surface temperature (SST) in coastal Belize. The third and fourth studies use culture, amplification, and sequencing techniques to elucidate levels of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) and antibiotic resistant bacteria (ARB) in two major cities—Los Angeles, CA, USA and Belize City, Belize. The final chapter captures the impact remote sensing modules and a course-based undergraduate research experience (CURE) can have on the confidence and self-efficacy of STEM and non-STEM students. The first chapter investigates water clarity changes using Aqua MODIS imagery during the COVID-19 anthropause. Here satellite derived Kd(490) (proxy for water clarity), marine traffic data, and climate model data were used to uncover significant improvements in water clarity during 2020 compared to the baseline period from 2002-2019 in areas with typically heavy marine traffic. In the second chapter, a Google Earth Engine and RStudio based toolkit is devised to combine Aqua MODIS-derived Kd(490) and SST into a coral vulnerability index for marine protected areas (MPAs) in Belize. Using the cora

Using a qualitative research design, the contextual factors and processes associated with criminal offending and wider social exclusion were examined for six Black young men from the Southside of Belize City. The young men had been permanently excluded from secondary school between the ages of 14 and 17 years and had been criminally charged. Face-to-face, semi-structured interviews were conducted with the young men and their mothers after cross-referencing school exclusion data from secondary schools and youth-based organisations with criminal offending data from the Belize Police Department. The study examined the extent of the influence of permanent school exclusion on the offending behaviour and the multidimensional disadvantages experienced in the post-school exclusion lives of the young men. The findings suggest that multiple disadvantages associated with the social environments of the home, neighbourhood, and peer group served as risk factors that contributed to early offending behaviour. Most of the young men grew up alongside demographically similar peers in lone-parent households in neighbourhoods that had a shared historical experience of social and economic marginality, including poverty, high rates of violence, and a proliferation of gangs. However, permanent school exclusion served as a critical life event that deprived the young men of access to education and the opportunity to acquire formal educational qualifications, which set into motion a dynamic process of social exclusion through multiple forms of exclusion, particularly in relation to their participation in education and training, the labour market, social networks, and their experience of criminalisation. In the end, they experienced a cyclical pattern of precarious engagement in low-quality or unsecured work, unemployment, and short-term training programmes, none of which ameliorated their economic marginality. A concurrent process of criminalisation occurred as the young m

Purpose: To validate a culturally-adapted Kriol and Belizean English version of the Revised Children's Anxiety and Depression Scale (RCADS) through comparison with clinical diagnoses made using the Kiddie Schedule of Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia. Methods: Participants comprised of 256 adolescents aged 10-14 years and 15-19 years, who completed the adapted RCADS (10 depression items, 12 anxiety items) in one-on-one interviews, followed by a diagnostic assessment using Kiddie Schedule of Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia administered by trained clinicians. Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, diagnostic odds ratios, area under the curve (AUC), and Youden's Index were calculated for RCADS cutoffs and scores on the total scale and anxiety and depression subscales. Results: For adolescents aged 10-14 years (n = 161), the AUC was 0.72 for the full scale, 0.67 for anxiety subscale, and 0.76 for depression subscale. For adolescents aged 15-19 years (n = 95), the AUCs were 0.82, 0.77, and 0.83. Most depression items performed well in discriminating those with and without diagnoses. Separation anxiety items performed poorly. "Thoughts of death" were common even among adolescents not meeting diagnostic criteria. The RCADS depression subscale presented the strongest psychometric properties with adolescents aged 15-19 years (at cutoff of 13, sensitivity = 0.83, specificity = 0.77, positive predictive value = 0.47, negative predictive value = 0.95, odds ratio = 15.96). Conclusion: The adapted RCADS-22 had acceptable categorization for adolescents aged 10-14 years and excellent categorization for adolescents aged 15-19 years; therefore, the tool is recommended for use among the latter age group. Based on sensitivity and specificity values at different cutoffs, guidance is provided to select different thresholds to suit clinical, public health, or other uses to detect and quantify adolescent depression and anxiety in Belize.

Standard Development Goal (SDG) 14, which targets monitoring water quality and reducing marine pollution, is especially relevant to vulnerable coastal communities and ecosystems like Belize. To quantitatively assess progress toward SDG 14, measurement of chlorophyll-a concentrations via satellite data could be used as an effective way of monitoring coastal water. The remote sensing of chlorophyll-a has been successfully used in other regions of the world but has yet to be applied to Belize. This paper assesses chlorophyll-a algorithms for 145 studies determined in a relevant criteria literature search. These papers are narrowed down to 12 studies based on the factors such as coefficient of determination, algorithm accessibility, and relevance. Seven different algorithms are suggested for potential use on coastal waters in Belize, and one of these algorithms is tested to demonstrate seasonal trends in algae blooms in Belize. The results of this study suggest that there is potential in monitoring water quality in Belize through remote sensing of chlorophyll, and that further research validating chlorophyll-a algorithms with in-situ data is necessary.

Cacao seeds, Theobroma cacao, provide the basis for a ceremonially important Mesoamerican food. Past efforts to identify cacao in ceramics focused on highly decorative vessel forms associated with elite ceremonial contexts, creating assumptions as to how cacao was distributed and who could access it. This study examines 54 archaeological ceramic sherds from El Pilar (Belize/Guatemala) of Late Classic (600 to 900 CE) residential and civic contexts representing a cross-section of ancient Maya inhabitants. Identification of cacao in ancient sherds has depended on the general presence of theobromine; we used the discrete presence of theophylline, a unique key biomarker for cacao in the region. Analysis was done by grinding off all outside surfaces to reduce contamination, pulverizing the inner clay matrix, extracting absorbed molecules, and concentrating the extractions. In order to obtain especially high selectivity and low limits of detection, our study utilized the technique of resonance-enhanced multiphoton ionization coupled with laser-desorption jet-cooling mass spectrometry. This technique isolates molecules in the cold gas phase where they can be selectively ionized through a resonant two-photon process. Of the sherds analyzed, 30 samples (56%) were found to contain significant amounts of theophylline and thus test positive for cacao. Importantly, cacao is present in all contexts, common to all Maya residents near and far from centers.

Purpose A central theme in the literature on entrepreneurship in remote communities – be they religious, indigenous, rural or migrant communities – is the balance between continuity and change or tradition and modernity and the role of entrepreneurship in maintaining or uprooting this balance. The purpose of this paper is to examine this dynamic in the context of Springfield, a small settlement of Old Order Mennonites in Belize, Central America. Design/methodology/approach This study draws on ethnographic research conducted in the Mennonite settlement of Springfield, Belize, between 2002 and 2019, as well as written correspondence with key stakeholders from Springfield. Findings This paper identifies three issues of contention between the Springfield Mennonites and the Belizean state: the agricultural census issue, the buying land issue and the cow tagging issue. Each of these revolves around state demands for assimilation into (digitalized) administrative systems and Mennonite resistance to these demands based on their religious-moral code. This study describes the negotiations around these issues. Originality/value The focus in most literature on entrepreneurship in remote communities is on how internal community dynamics shape the balance between continuity and change and, in extension, the space for entrepreneurship. The originality of the paper lies in shifting the focus to the relationship between the community and external stakeholders, especially the state.

This research explores the dynamics between local communities and conservation that take place in the form of a biological corridor in Central Belize. Embedded within the wider context of biodiversity in Mesoamerica, the Maya Forest Corridor (MFC) aims at maintaining biological connectivity between the trilateral Selva Maya that extends over Belize, Guatemala and Mexico and the Mayan Mountain Massif of Central Belize. This is done by conducting a qualitative case study of four rural creole communities in relation to the creation of the MFC, namely Gracie Rock, Mahogany Heights, Flowers Bank and Rancho Dolores. By applying concepts of distribution, recognition and representation from an environmental justice perspective, we analyse the primary and secondary data gathered during a two-month long fieldwork in Belize between November 2021 and January 2022. The primary data collection consisted of 30 semi-structured interviews with local community members and MFC coalition members, participant observation of online and physical workshops about the MFC planning and strategy-making, 2 transect walks in Gracie Rock and Flowers Bank, informal chats and field observations. The gathered data was triangulated and analysed through an iterative thematic analysis and discourse analysis that allowed us to critically investigate issues of justice in conservation. Our findings showed that issues of epistemic injustice are reproduced by the MFC coalition because the ways community members engage and interact with nature are reduced to being instrumental, rather than relational. Moreover, our findings also indicated that misrepresentation and misrecognition of local communities were the results of political processes of limited participation and boundary-making that framed local communities as part of the problem. Finally, our results showed how a particular discourse around the MFC is produced by the coalition through the essentialization of Mayan identity and a focus on an internatio

This research explores the dynamics between local communities and conservation that take place in the form of a biological corridor in Central Belize. Embedded within the wider context of biodiversity in Mesoamerica, the Maya Forest Corridor (MFC) aims at maintaining biological connectivity between the trilateral Selva Maya that extends over Belize, Guatemala and Mexico and the Mayan Mountain Massif of Central Belize. This is done by conducting a qualitative case study of four rural creole communities in relation to the creation of the MFC, namely Gracie Rock, Mahogany Heights, Flowers Bank and Rancho Dolores. By applying concepts of distribution, recognition and representation from an environmental justice perspective, we analyse the primary and secondary data gathered during a two-month long fieldwork in Belize between November 2021 and January 2022. The primary data collection consisted of 30 semi-structured interviews with local community members and MFC coalition members, participant observation of online and physical workshops about the MFC planning and strategy-making, 2 transect walks in Gracie Rock and Flowers Bank, informal chats and field observations. The gathered data was triangulated and analysed through an iterative thematic analysis and discourse analysis that allowed us to critically investigate issues of justice in conservation. Our findings showed that issues of epistemic injustice are reproduced by the MFC coalition because the ways community members engage and interact with nature are reduced to being instrumental, rather than relational. Moreover, our findings also indicated that misrepresentation and misrecognition of local communities were the results of political processes of limited participation and boundary-making that framed local communities as part of the problem. Finally, our results showed how a particular discourse around the MFC is produced by the coalition through the essentialization of Mayan identity and a focus on an internatio

While there has been much research on cooperatives, research focused on the benefits and services that cooperatives provide their members, and how those benefits help strengthen cooperative success, has been sparse. This research aimed to address this gap and identify common types of benefits and services utilized by cooperatives around the world. Findings were generated to inform members of a Fisheries Improvement Project (FIP+) within the Belize spiny lobster fishery. Using a mix of informal interviews and a literature review of cooperative benefits, a pattern finding analysis was conducted. It was found that benefits fell into three main categories: social, economic, and environmental. A total of 32 benefit categories were identified and described. The categories showed varying levels of complexity. Many benefits occurred across sectors, while other benefits appeared to be more common within one or two sectors. The analysis also highlighted the importance of certain enabling conditions as necessary steps to implementing a robust and successful benefits program. Cooperatives are a uniquely positioned business model to address a rapidly changing environment. The variety of benefits found in this research highlight the creativity and adaptability of cooperatives around the world. Future research on cooperative benefits could be an important step in increasing adaptability, but also resiliency in the face of a changing world.

While there has been much research on cooperatives, research focused on the benefits and services that cooperatives provide their members, and how those benefits help strengthen cooperative success, has been sparse. This research aimed to address this gap and identify common types of benefits and services utilized by cooperatives around the world. Findings were generated to inform members of a Fisheries Improvement Project (FIP+) within the Belize spiny lobster fishery. Using a mix of informal interviews and a literature review of cooperative benefits, a pattern finding analysis was conducted. It was found that benefits fell into three main categories: social, economic, and environmental. A total of 32 benefit categories were identified and described. The categories showed varying levels of complexity. Many benefits occurred across sectors, while other benefits appeared to be more common within one or two sectors. The analysis also highlighted the importance of certain enabling conditions as necessary steps to implementing a robust and successful benefits program. Cooperatives are a uniquely positioned business model to address a rapidly changing environment. The variety of benefits found in this research highlight the creativity and adaptability of cooperatives around the world. Future research on cooperative benefits could be an important step in increasing adaptability, but also resiliency in the face of a changing world.

This paper aims to contribute with an overview of the situation of ethnic groups on the Mexico-Belize border, based on the assumption that this is a multi-ethnic area where diverse populations converge. The analysis is carried out based on variables such as the migration phenomenon and the concept of human rights as norms that protect the traditions, uses and customs of the different ethnic groups that cross the border, as well as the development of the dynamics of a border, where a country (Belize) is involved, which is an example of a National State that has not yet incorporated the protection of indigenous rights into its Constitution and laws in various areas such as land ownership and use., El presente trabajo pretende contribuir a tener un panorama sobre la situación en la que se encuentran los grupos étnicos en la frontera México-Belice, partiendo del supuesto de que ésta es pluriétnica pues en ella convergen diversas poblaciones. El análisis se realiza a partir de variables como el fenómeno migratorio y la concepción de los derechos humanos como normas protectoras de las tradiciones, los usos y costumbres de los diferentes grupos étnicos que cruzan la frontera, así como el desenvolvimiento en las dinámicas de una frontera, donde está de por medio un país (Belice) que es un ejemplo de un Estado Nacional que todavía no ha incorporado la protección de derechos indígenas en su Constitución y leyes en diversos ámbitos como el relativo a la propiedad y uso de tierra.

Antoinettia, new genus (Coleoptera: Erotylidae: Erotylinae: Tritomini), is erected for three species: A. audbala (Skelley), new combination, A. huhnei Skelley, new species, and A. kovariki (Skelley), new combination. A genus complex involving Ischyrus Lacordaire, 1842, and Megischyrus Crotch, 1873, is defined and a preliminary key to neotropical genera of Tritomini with coarsely facetted eyes is presented. ZooBank registration. urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:7CF5D30C-C46E-4135-A188-B53B0A77B34E

This thesis seeks to understand the human response to extreme environmental, social, and political change during the Terminal Classic (750-1050 CE) at Cahal Pech. Across the Maya lowlands, this period is distinguished by the end of divine kingships, the cessation of new monumental architecture, rapid changes in prestige goods and trade networks, and population decline at many major centers. Cahal Pech, a medium-sized ceremonial center, experienced great shifts in political power and access to resources during the Terminal Classic. This thesis attempts to understand the last occupation of the site, prior to abandonment. Field data for this study is derived from excavations at Plaza H, located in the northeastern portion of Cahal Pech. Research conducted at the Plaza focuses on the Terminal Classic occupation history, architectural features, and evidence of activities. The interpretation presented in this thesis draws from the frameworks of resilience theory and social memory, approaches that emphasizes agency and the ability for societies to reorganize while creatively drawing on the past. The outcome of this research shows that the residents of Cahal Pech during the Terminal Classic succeeded at both the maintenance of noteworthy cultural practices and undertaking radical changes in social scale, demonstrating significant resiliency.

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is the leading cause of death in Belize, and its prevalence is rapidly increasing. The purpose of this study is to understand the everyday realities of people living with T2DM in Belize (e.g., barriers to care, strengths, health practices), how these affect diabetes self-management (DSM), and implications for health care. Data generation methods include interviews with T2DM patients, discussions with key informants, field notes, and participatory observation which took place in February and March of 2020. Principal findings were categorized into three main themes. The first is that patients experience numerous difficulties, including a tiered health care system privileging those with more resources, communication barriers with health care providers, and major gaps in prevention, education, and social supports. Secondly, many Belizeans with T2DM engage in spiritual practices that provide for mental strength, stress relief, lifestyle guidance, overcoming addictions, overcoming denial, and building determination toward health promoting, life-affirming attitudes and actions. Further, geographies can empower DSM. Home is a domain where personal power is most focused. A community domain that is conducive to active living is crucial. People use a plethora of local plant medicines instead of, alongside of, or to complement pharmaceuticals for DSM without disclosure to HCPs. Plant medicine usage and cultural-spiritual healing is pervasive in this population; therefore, health care can optimize T2DM outcomes through open dialogue and collaboration with patients, herbal doctors, traditional Indigenous medicine practitioners, community leaders, and faith leaders. Integrating these understandings will be key for moving forward to improve DSM education and support, as well as culturally safe care.

Caribbean Acropora spp. corals have undergone a decline in cover since the second half of the twentieth century. Loss of these architecturally complex and fast-growing corals has resulted in significant, cascading changes to the character, diversity, and available eco-spaces of Caribbean reefs. Few thriving Acropora spp. populations exist today in the Caribbean and western North Atlantic seas, and our limited ability to access data from reefs assessed via long-term monitoring efforts means that reef scientists are challenged to determine resilience and longevity of existing Acropora spp. reefs. Here we used multiple dating methods to measure reef longevity and determine whether Coral Gardens Reef, Belize, is a refuge for Acropora cervicornis against the backdrop of wider Caribbean decline. We used a new genetic-aging technique to identify sample sites, and radiocarbon and high-precision uranium-thorium (U-Th) dating techniques to test whether one of the largest populations of extant A. cervicornis in the western Caribbean is newly established after the 1980s, or represents a longer-lived, stable population. We did so with respect for ethical sampling of a threatened species. Our data show corals ranging in age from 1910 (14C) or 1915 (230Th) to at least November 2019. While we cannot exclude the possibility of short gaps in the residence of A. cervicornis earlier in the record, the data show consistent and sustained living coral throughout the 1980s and up to at least 2019. We suggest that Coral Gardens has served as a refuge for A. cervicornis and that identifying other, similar sites may be critical to efforts to grow, preserve, conserve, and seed besieged Caribbean reefs.

The consolidation of Belize was accompanied by political and social instability, which contributed to the slow progress towards independence. In the process, the politician George Cadle Price, who developed within the margins of a colonial context; it sought to generate changes from a national project. The events around Price's life are analyzed to make visible how they were linked to the development of modern politics in Belize; elements proposed by Bertux on the biographical approach are taken up. Current bibliography is reviewed, and the field diary made in 2011 by the author is taken up. Based on this, it delves into the positions that existed around Belizean politics and identity., La consolidación de Belice estuvo acompañada de inestabilidad política y social, lo cual contribuyó al lento avance hacia la independencia. En el proceso, el político George Cadle Price, quien se desenvolvió dentro de los márgenes de un contexto colonial, buscó generar cambios a partir de un proyecto de nación. Se analizan los eventos alrededor de la vida de Price para visibilizar cómo se ligaron con el desarrollo de la política moderna en Belice; se retoman elementos propuestos por Bertux sobre el enfoque biográfico. Se revisa bibliografía actual y se retoma el diario de campo realizado en el 2011 por el autor. A partir de esto, se profundiza en las posturas que existían en torno a la política e identidad beliceña.

The 18th century was a complicated time in Central American history. In Europe, England and Spain were involved in a long war for control of American territories. Consequently, the two countries signed controversial pacts in the royal courts. The limited space located between the western part of the Yucatán Peninsula and what is now northern Belize was disputed territory. This dispute was exemplified by two remarkable political actors: Alejandro Joseph de Guelle and James Cook. Both men traveled back and forth throughout the territory and contributed to building a space in our imagination for such a historical borderland., El siglo XVIII fue un momento complicado en la historia centroamericana. En Europa; Inglaterra y España se vieron envueltas en una larga guerra por el control de los territorios americanos que se tradujo en la firma de pactos controversiales en las cortes reales. El espacio límite ubicado entre la parte occidental de la Península de Yucatán y lo que es ahora el norte de Belice fue un lugar en disputa con dos destacados actores políticos: Alejandro Joseph de Guelle y James Cook. Ambos viajaron de ida y vuelta desde Mérida hasta el Walix y gracias a eso, contribuyeron a construir este espacio en nuestro imaginario como un lugar histórico con implicaciones políticas como territorio de frontera.

This article analyzes external factors that influenced the formation of the Belizean Nation-state from a regional perspective. It highlights the relations between Belize and Central America which have been worked scarcely in the social studies of the region. Among the factors that contributed to build these relationships are i) the formation of the territory in the midst of disputes and colonial interests between Spain and England; ii) the successive migrations that took place in Belize, and that formed a multiethnic and multicultural society, strengthening its ties with Central America; and, iii) the border disputes with Guatemala that caused a sort of externalization of its effects both in its representation of belonging to the region, and in its inclusion within Central American social studies., Este artículo analiza factores externos que incidieron en la formación del Estado nación beliceño desde una perspectiva regional. Resalta las relaciones poco trabajadas en los estudios sociales de la región, entre Belice y Centroamérica. Entre los factores que contribuyeron a construir estas relaciones se mencionan: i) la producción del territorio en medio de disputas e intereses coloniales entre España e Inglaterra, ii) las migraciones sucesivas que tuvieron lugar en Belice y configuraron una sociedad pluriétnica y multicultural, afianzando sus nexos con centroamericana y iii) las disputas fronterizas con Guatemala que provocaron una suerte de externalización de sus efectos tanto en su representación de pertenencia a la región, como en su inclusión dentro de los estudios sociales centroamericanos.

This paper explores whether the relationship between church-state actors contributes to or constrains educational quality. It posed the following research question: Is there alignment between the church and the state in the envisioning and delivery of education in Belize? Technical documents, non-technical documents, and key stakeholder interviews were qualitatively analysed and triangulated. The study found that, while alignment exists in overarching goals and historical appreciation of the partnership, there are also misalignments in overlapping roles, conflicting philosophies, dissonance between actions and stated commitment to the partnership, and the manifestation of accountability in education. Given that the government’s approximately 23% investment in education is juxtaposed with documented low returns, this paper can contribute to understanding some underlying challenges that potentially undermine that investment., Este artículo investiga si la relación entre la Iglesia y el Estado contribuye o limita la calidad de la educación. Se parte de la siguiente pregunta de investigación: ¿hay alguna conexión entre la Iglesia y el Estado en cómo se visualiza y cómo se imparte la educación en Belice? Se realizó un análisis cualitativo de documentos técnicos, no técnicos y de entrevistas con los principales interesados, así como una triangulación de los datos. El estudio encontró que, aunque hay una conexión entre los objetivos generales y la valoración histórica de la alianza, también hay discordancias en cuanto a duplicación de puestos, filosofías en conflicto, disonancia entre las acciones y el compromiso expreso con el acuerdo y una manifestación de rendición de cuentas en la educación. En vista de que aproximadamente el 23 % de la inversión gubernamental en la educación está yuxtapuesta a la baja rentabilidad documentada, este artículo pretende ayudar a comprender los desafíos pendientes que podrían potencialmente debilitar la inversión.

Este artículo examina la economía de Belice desde la independencia en 1981 (excluyendo el impacto del virus COVID-19). Durante este tiempo ha habido cambios significativos en la estructura, especialmente el aumento en la importancia de las exportaciones de servicios, mientras que la población se ha expandido rápidamente debido a los aumentos naturales y la migración interna neta. El lento crecimiento económico en las primeras dos décadas condujo a un experimento con un crecimiento impulsado por la deuda que terminó en fracaso. Los años transcurridos desde la crisis financiera mundial en 2008/9 han resultado especialmente difíciles como resultado del sobreendeudamiento, la erosión de las preferencias para las exportaciones de productos básicos y el aumento de la corrupción. Por lo tanto, Belice se ha encontrado en una trampa de deuda de la que es difícil escapar. El nivel de pobreza, como era de esperar, se ha vuelto severo., This article examines the Belizean economy since independence in 1981 (excluding the impact of the virus COVID-19). During this time there have been significant changes in structure, especially the increase in the importance of exports of services, while population has expanded rapidly due both to natural increases and net inward migration. Slow economic growth in the first two decades led to an experiment with debt-led growth that ended in failure. The years since the global financial crisis in 2008/9 have proved especially difficult as a result of the debt overhang, the erosion of preferences for commodity exports and the increase in corruption. Belize has therefore found itself in a low-level equilibrium debt trap from which it is hard to escape. The level of poverty unsurprisingly has become severe.

In February 1948, a nearly military conflict broke out between Guatemala and the British Empire. The problem revolved around Belize in the context of the end of World War II when the British felt vulnerable. They overreacted to the active, though chaotic, strategy of the Guatemalan government to regain the territory. Great Britain sent troops and warships to Belize, in the midst of the United States' attempt to create an OAS with an anti-communist agenda. Declassified files from Great Britain, the United States, Mexico, and new personal letters from top Guatemalan officials help to recreate this forgotten and important moment of the early Cold War years in Latin America., En febrero de 1948 se desató un conflicto entre Guatemala y el Imperio británico que por poco llega a las armas. El problema giró en torno a Belice y se dio en el contexto del fin de la Segunda Guerra Mundial, cuando los británicos se sentían más vulnerables. Así, reaccionaron exageradamente a la activa, aunque caótica, estrategia del gobierno guatemalteco para recuperar el territorio. Gran Bretaña envió tropas y barcos de guerra a Belice, en medio del intento de Estados Unidos por crear una OEA de corte anticomunista. Archivos desclasificados de Gran Bretaña, Estados Unidos, México y nuevas cartas personales de altos funcionarios guatemaltecos ayudan a recrear este olvidado e ilustrador momento del inicio de la Guerra Fría en América Latina.

This article is part of a broader research project that explores the porous borders of the Mainland Caribbean area and its links to the insular Caribbean region. In particular, my interest centers on different expressions of connectivity and/or dysconnectivity to be found in literary texts from the Mainland Caribbean where we find situations –as with Yucatan or Belize– of quasiinsularity, but where these multicultural territories at the same times share histories that fuse and run across political limits. The last four decades have seen an explosion of literary texts in Belize, that show different responses to the question of a national culture. In this article I identify some of the projects and innovative actions that begin to challenge the image of the nation, focusing on women, migration and borders., Este artículo forma parte de una investigación más amplia que explora las fronteras porosas de un Caribe continental y sus articulaciones con un Caribe insular. Mi interés particular es en las diferentes expresiones de conectividad /o des-conectividad que se evidencian en textos literarios en las áreas continentales, donde encontramos situaciones de cuasi-insularidad, como en Yucatán y Belice, pero que a la vez son territorios multiculturales que comparten historias que unen y cruzan las fronteras políticas. Las últimas cuatro décadas han generado una explosión de textos literarios en Belice que juntos muestran respuestas diversas a la idea de una cultura nacional. En este artículo identifico algunas de los proyectos y las pautas innovadores que interrogan la imagen de la nación, focalizando en la mujer, migración y fronteras.

First, this work offers a prospection of the studies on the Hindu migration to the British Honduras colony in the 19th century. Next, a discussion takes place about whether the movement that brought the first Hindus to this colony can be interpreted as a “diaspora” or should it be conceptualized as labor or other migration. The study concludes with a section that seeks to explain the Hindu presence in the colony, which also led them to the territory of Guatemala. It concludes with a reflection that synthesizes the set of experiences obtained in the process of investigation and argumentative construction on an unexplored topic in the Central American region., En este trabajo se desarrolla, en primera instancia, una prospección de los estudios sobre la migración hindú a la colonia de Honduras Británica en el siglo XIX. Seguidamente, se realiza una discusión acerca de si el movimiento que llevó a los primeros hindúes a esta colonia se puede interpretar como una “diáspora”, o bien, se debe conceptualizar como migración laboral o de otro tipo. El estudio concluye con un apartado en el que se busca explicar la presencia hindú en la colonia, lo que también les llevó a habitar territorio de Guatemala. Se concluye con una reflexión que sintetiza el conjunto de experiencias obtenidas en el proceso de investigación y construcción argumentativa en un tema inexplorado en la región centroamericana.

The current paper focusses on Spanish (de facto second official language) in contact with English (official language) and Belize Kriol (considered to be a lingua franca). These three languages are numerically the majority languages in Belize and, as a consequence, are an important axis of study for multilingualism. Previous quantitative analysis of interviews with a cohort of Spanish speakers who use all three languages in the same utterance are examined within the context of linguistic ideologies. This analysis provides insights into the Belizean semiotic landscape and the ways in which speakers enact linguistic agency. It is demonstrated that mixed discourse not only evidences grammatical competency in Spanish, contrary to deficit approaches, but also plurilingual competency since speakers simultaneously navigate multiple grammars as well as ideologies which are often in conflict with their linguistic choices. Furthermore, these languages together index both Belize’s Caribbean and Central American belonging., Este estudio tiene como enfoque el español (segunda lengua de facto) hablado en Belice en contacto con el inglés (lengua oficial) y el Kriol beliceño (considerada la lingua franca). Estos son los tres idiomas mayoritarios en cuanto al número de hablantes y por tanto representan un eje central para el estudio del multilingüismo. Tras un análisis cuantitativo previo en el cual las personas hablantes utilizan los tres idiomas de forma simultánea y las ideologías lingüísticas, este estudio pretende entender la agentividad lingüística y el paisaje semiótico de Belice. El análisis viene así a demostrar la competencia plurilingüe de las personas hablantes, la cual implica saber navegar las normas ideológicas a la par que múltiples sistemas gramaticales.

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is the leading cause of death in Belize, and its prevalence is rapidly increasing. The purpose of this study is to understand the everyday realities of people living with T2DM in Belize (e.g., barriers to care, strengths, health practices), how these affect diabetes self-management (DSM), and implications for health care. Data generation methods include interviews with T2DM patients, discussions with key informants, field notes, and participatory observation which took place in February and March of 2020. Principal findings were categorized into three main themes. The first is that patients experience numerous difficulties, including a tiered health care system privileging those with more resources, communication barriers with health care providers, and major gaps in prevention, education, and social supports. Secondly, many Belizeans with T2DM engage in spiritual practices that provide for mental strength, stress relief, lifestyle guidance, overcoming addictions, overcoming denial, and building determination toward health promoting, life-affirming attitudes and actions. Further, geographies can empower DSM. Home is a domain where personal power is most focused. A community domain that is conducive to active living is crucial. People use a plethora of local plant medicines instead of, alongside of, or to complement pharmaceuticals for DSM without disclosure to HCPs. Plant medicine usage and cultural-spiritual healing is pervasive in this population; therefore, health care can optimize T2DM outcomes through open dialogue and collaboration with patients, herbal doctors, traditional Indigenous medicine practitioners, community leaders, and faith leaders. Integrating these understandings will be key for moving forward to improve DSM education and support, as well as culturally safe care.

Humans have utilized the Mesoamerican Reef for millennia but the effects of prehistorical and historical fishing on this ecosystem remain understudied. To assess long-term trends in reef fish abundance in the central Belizean portion, we used three reef matrix cores from this region to construct a record of parrotfish (Labridae) tooth abundance relative to the total number of all fish tooth subfossils. Parrotfish positively affect reef accretion rates and play a pivotal role in maintaining reefs in a coral-dominated state. Our study examined a 1200-year record across three coral cays: Elbow and Lagoon Cays and Bakers Rendezvous. Despite initial increases of fish tooth abundance at all three cays, declines were observed well before modern reef degradation. At Elbow Cay, an initial decline, likely due to Pre-Columbian Maya fishing, appears to be halted near the time of Spanish arrival. A subsequent decline begins at Elbow and Lagoon Cays likely due to Spanish colonization. The religious practices of the Catholic Spanish and the arrival of English privateers and logwooders likely increased fishing pressure. Bakers Rendezvous shows rapid accretion and parrotfish tooth accumulation as well as high tooth abundances, even as the other two cays show declines. Its sharper, more recent decline is likely the result of either the use of new, more southern fishing territories for Catholic Maya converts, the 1832 founding of Stann Creek Town by the Catholic Garifuna, or an interaction of the two. Our data suggest that the origins of reef degradation began hundreds of years before modern declines.

Humans have utilized the Mesoamerican Reef for millennia but the effects of prehistorical and historical fishing on this ecosystem remain understudied. To assess long-term trends in reef fish abundance in the central Belizean portion, we used three reef matrix cores from this region to construct a record of parrotfish (Labridae) tooth abundance relative to the total number of all fish tooth subfossils. Parrotfish positively affect reef accretion rates and play a pivotal role in maintaining reefs in a coral-dominated state. Our study examined a 1200-year record across three coral cays: Elbow and Lagoon Cays and Bakers Rendezvous. Despite initial increases of fish tooth abundance at all three cays, declines were observed well before modern reef degradation. At Elbow Cay, an initial decline, likely due to Pre-Columbian Maya fishing, appears to be halted near the time of Spanish arrival. A subsequent decline begins at Elbow and Lagoon Cays likely due to Spanish colonization. The religious practices of the Catholic Spanish and the arrival of English privateers and logwooders likely increased fishing pressure. Bakers Rendezvous shows rapid accretion and parrotfish tooth accumulation as well as high tooth abundances, even as the other two cays show declines. Its sharper, more recent decline is likely the result of either the use of new, more southern fishing territories for Catholic Maya converts, the 1832 founding of Stann Creek Town by the Catholic Garifuna, or an interaction of the two. Our data suggest that the origins of reef degradation began hundreds of years before modern declines.

BackgroundIn light of increasing complexity of identifying and treating malaria cases in low transmission settings, operational solutions are needed to increase effective delivery of interventions. Community engagement (CE) is at the forefront of this conversation given the shift toward creating local and site-specific solutions. Malaria programmes often confuse CE with providing information to the community or implementing community-based interventions. This study seeks to expand on CE approaches for malaria by looking to a variety of health and development programmes for lessons that can be applied to malaria elimination.MethodsQualitative data was collected from key informant interviews and community-based focus group discussions. Manual analysis was conducted with a focus on key principles, programme successes and challenges, the operational framework, and any applicable results.ResultsTen programmes were included in the analysis: Ebola, HIV/Hepatitis C, Guinea worm, malaria, nutrition, and water, sanitation and hygiene. Seven focus group discussions (FGDs) with 69 participants, 49 key informant (KI) interviews with programme staff, and 7 KI interviews with thought leaders were conducted between October-April 2018. Participants discussed the critical role that village leaders and community health workers play in CE. Many programmes stated understanding community priorities is key for CE and that CE should be proactive and iterative. A major theme was prioritizing bi-directional interpersonal communication led by local community health workers. Programmes reported that measuring CE is difficult, particularly since CE is ongoing and fluid.ConclusionsResults overwhelmingly suggest that CE must be an iterative process that relies on early involvement, frequent feedback and active community participation to be successful. Empowering districts and communities in planning and executing community-based interventions is necessary. Communities affected by the disease will

Pan Africanism is strategy that emerges through a history of surviving oppression, methodology to understand thought and action, and theory that tests findings against sociopolitical context. History, methodology and theory are used to develop the historical trajectory that responds to invasion, slavery, colonization and neocolonialism in Belize. As such, three manuscripts are offered to outline the historical narrative of Belizean Pan Africanism, autoethnographic insights for the study of Pan Africanism, and the sociopolitical context that contemporary Pan Africanism in Belize rises out of. Kurt Young defines Pan-Africanism as: "a fusing of affirmations of African identity with libratory efforts at the level of the masses (2009:7). The study and practice of Pan Africanism should therefore aligned in objectives and strategy to interrupt oppressive conditions that impact communities within the African Diaspora. This project, therefore, operationalizes scholar-activism in history, method and theory to outline strategic action and collective subversion as Pan Africanist Praxis in Belize.

The former British colony in Central America, Belize, is usually described by observers as well as administrators and rulers, in terms of cultural diversity and multiplicity of ethnic groups which compose it. However, since recent independence (1981), the Government of Belize has not implemented multicultural policies that would grant differential treatment to individuals because of their ethnicity or racial background, as it is the case in the Americas since the 1980-90. The objective of the article is to understand this gap between the diversity of society and the absence of multicultural policies. It is based on the analysis of two types of public policies: cultural policies and property control policies. The article is built around a double questioning on the modalities for the implementation of a national project: how the Government of Belize has managed the legacy of the “divide and rule” colonial policy aimed at segmenting the population? How has it adapted to the “multicultural turn” of the years 1980-90 and its logic of recognition of diversity? The analysis tends to show that taking account of otherness by public policy is part of the British colonial tradition while integrating the aspirations born of the long march towards independence, and it also creates specific forms of management of the difference, in the sense of differential redistribution on the basis of collective memberships., Belice se describe generalmente en referencia a su diversidad cultural y a la multiplicidad de grupos étnicos que lo componen. Sin embargo, desde la independencia reciente no se elaboraron políticas multiculturales que otorguen un trato diferencial a los individuos debido a sus identificaciones étnicas o raciales, tal como sucede en otros países de América desde los años 1980-1990. El objetivo del artículo es entender este desfase entre diversidad de la sociedad y ausencia de políticas multiculturales. Se apoya en el análisis de dos tipos de políticas públicas: las políticas culturales y las políticas de control de la propiedad. El artículo se estructura alrededor de un doble cuestionamiento acerca de las modalidades de elaboración del proyecto nacional en Belice. El análisis tiende a mostrar que la gestión de la alteridad se inscribe en la tradición colonial británica a la vez que integra las aspiraciones nacidas de la larga marcha hacia la independencia y que suscita formas específicas de gestión de la diferencia, en el sentido de políticas basadas en la redistribución diferencial de recursos sobre la base de pertenencias colectivas.

Ocelots (Leopardus pardalis) are listed as least concern on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red list of Threatened Species, yet we lack knowledge on basic demographic parameters across much of the ocelot's geographic range, including population density. We used camera‐trapping methodology and spatially explicit capture‐recapture (SECR) models with sex‐specific detection function parameters to estimate ocelot densities across 7 field sites over 1 to 12 years (from data collected during 2002–2015) in Belize, Central America. Ocelot densities in the broadleaf rainforest sites ranged between 7.2 and 22.7 ocelots/100 km2, whereas density in the pine (Pinus spp.) forest site was 0.9 ocelots/100 km2. Applying an inverse‐variance weighted average over all years for each broadleaf site increased precision and resulted in average density ranging from 8.5 to 13.0 ocelots/100 km2. Males often had larger movement parameter estimates and higher detection probabilities at their activity centers than females. In most years, the sex ratio was not significantly different from 50:50, but the pooled sex ratio estimated using an inverse weighted average over all years indicated a female bias in 1 site, and a male bias in another. We did not detect any population trends as density estimates remained relatively constant over time; however, the power to detect such trends was generally low. Our SECR density estimates were lower but more precise than previous estimates and indicated population stability for ocelots in Belize.

This dissertation examines La Milpa North, an ancient Maya hilltop palatial compound built and occupied in the Late to Terminal Classic periods (ca. A.D. 600-950). Previously, several scholars proposed that this site is the northern node of a network of secondary centers arranged in a quadripartite pattern around the civic center of La Milpa intended to reflect the shape and function of a four-sided and three-tiered Maya cosmos. Through archaeological investigation, this project evaluates assertions of cosmological significance at La Milpa North. In so doing, this project aims to contribute to ongoing anthropological dialogues regarding our ability to detect and interpret meanings encoded in archaeological landscapes inscribed by the ideological and practical needs of ancient peoples. To address questions of intentionality and meaning in the built environment, this project adopts a biography of place approach. Though by nature incomplete and subject to revision, a biography of place endeavors to reconstruct a diachronic narrative of the construction, use, and modification of space while simultaneously exploring the experiences, meanings, and senses of place of ancient social actors. Through this lens, La Milpa North is conceptualized as a multivalent place with which a diverse array of ancient individuals formed complex relationships and, in processes contingent on historical material circumstances, imbued landscapes with meanings.In building a biography of place, this dissertation employs various analytical and theoretical frameworks to partially reconstruct aspects of the relationships that individuals formed with La Milpa North. Recognizing that numerous social, political, and economic contingencies structure relationships individuals build and maintain with places, this project situates the built environment and artefactual assemblages within broader local, regional, and interregional processes of social transformation. A long history of research in the Maya Low

This article dicusses the effects of a hurricane that struck Bacalar in 1785, highlighting three geo-historical variables: a) the location of Bacalar, distant from Merida and surrounded by both British loggers and Mayan rebels in the neighboring forests; b) the dispute over the logging of palo de tinte (Haematoxylum campechianum); c) temporal rain-fed agriculture as the basis of livelihood. Its relevance lies in the analyzed sources that narrate the experience lived in detail, as well as in the approach that allows looking beyond the devastation. It is concluded that in addition to the intensity of the natural phenomenon, the disaster was detonated by the vulnerable context in which Bacalar was, in the midst of a disruption by the control and management of strategic resources, mainly the palo de tinte., Resume: L'objectif de cet article est d'analyser les effets d'un ouragan qui a frappé Bacalar en 1785, en soulignant trois variables géo-historiques: a) la situation de Bacalar, situé loin de Mérida, environné par des marchand de bois anglais et des Mayas rebelles; b) la dispute concernant l’abattage du Bois de Campêche (Haematoxylum campechianum); c) l'agriculture pluviale comme principal moyen de subsistance. La pertinence de cet essai repose sur les sources analysées, narrant en détails l'expérience vécue, de même que dans son approche qui nous permet de regarder au-delà de la dévastation. Cette étude conclut que, outre l'intensité du phénomène naturel, les conséquences de ce désastre se sont largement aggravés à cause du contexte vulnérable dans lequel se trouvait la ville de Bacalar :en pleine dispute pour le contrôle et la gestion de ressources stratégiques et en particulier le Bois de Campêche., Resumen: El objetivo de este artículo es analizar los efectos de un huracán que golpeó Bacalar en 1785 destacando tres variables geohistóricas: a) la ubicación de Bacalar, lejos de Mérida, y rodeado de madereros ingleses y mayas rebeldes; b) la disputa por la tala del palo de tinte (Haematoxylum campechianum); c) la agricultura de temporal como base de la subsistencia. Su pertinencia radica en las fuentes analizadas que narran detalladamente la experiencia vivida, así como en el enfoque que permite mirar más allá de la devastación. Se concluye que además de la intensidad del fenómeno natural, el desastre se detonó por el contexto vulnerable en el cual se encontraba el Partido de Bacalar, en medio de una disputa por el control y manejo de recursos estratégicos, principalmente el palo de tinte.

Mexican transboundary water dynamics involving settings shared with Guatemala and Belize have seldom-studied realities. This article approaches these dynamics from two perspectives. The first centers on the role of Mexican state institutions, that is, the legal framework and the governmental structure, which shows a water policy that does not take into account the omnipresence and abundance of transboundary water resources. This situation involves a series of institutional omissions, but at the same time allows a look to be taken at multilevel water governance on different scales that makes it possible to outline a second analytical perspective, albeit one still in process., Resumen Las dinámicas transfronterizas del agua en México presentan realidades poco estudiadas en los escenarios compartidos con Guatemala y Belice. Este artículo las aborda desde dos perspectivas. La primera, centrada en el papel de las instituciones del Estado mexicano, es decir, el marco legal y la estructura gubernamental, la cual evidencia una política en relación con el agua que no toma en cuenta la omnipresencia y la abundancia de los recursos hídricos transfronterizos. Esta situación presenta una serie de omisiones institucionales pero, al mismo tiempo, permite vislumbrar una gobernanza hídrica multinivel en distintas escalas que posibilitan esbozar una segunda perspectiva de análisis aunque se trate de un fenómeno todavía incipiente.

This article dicusses the effects of a hurricane that struck Bacalar in 1785, highlighting three geo-historical variables: a) the location of Bacalar, distant from Merida and surrounded by both British loggers and Mayan rebels in the neighboring forests; b) the dispute over the logging of palo de tinte (Haematoxylum campechianum); c) temporal rain-fed agriculture as the basis of livelihood. Its relevance lies in the analyzed sources that narrate the experience lived in detail, as well as in the approach that allows looking beyond the devastation. It is concluded that in addition to the intensity of the natural phenomenon, the disaster was detonated by the vulnerable context in which Bacalar was, in the midst of a disruption by the control and management of strategic resources, mainly the palo de tinte., Resume: L'objectif de cet article est d'analyser les effets d'un ouragan qui a frappé Bacalar en 1785, en soulignant trois variables géo-historiques: a) la situation de Bacalar, situé loin de Mérida, environné par des marchand de bois anglais et des Mayas rebelles; b) la dispute concernant l’abattage du Bois de Campêche (Haematoxylum campechianum); c) l'agriculture pluviale comme principal moyen de subsistance. La pertinence de cet essai repose sur les sources analysées, narrant en détails l'expérience vécue, de même que dans son approche qui nous permet de regarder au-delà de la dévastation. Cette étude conclut que, outre l'intensité du phénomène naturel, les conséquences de ce désastre se sont largement aggravés à cause du contexte vulnérable dans lequel se trouvait la ville de Bacalar :en pleine dispute pour le contrôle et la gestion de ressources stratégiques et en particulier le Bois de Campêche., Resumen: El objetivo de este artículo es analizar los efectos de un huracán que golpeó Bacalar en 1785 destacando tres variables geohistóricas: a) la ubicación de Bacalar, lejos de Mérida, y rodeado de madereros ingleses y mayas rebeldes; b) la disputa por la tala del palo de tinte (Haematoxylum campechianum); c) la agricultura de temporal como base de la subsistencia. Su pertinencia radica en las fuentes analizadas que narran detalladamente la experiencia vivida, así como en el enfoque que permite mirar más allá de la devastación. Se concluye que además de la intensidad del fenómeno natural, el desastre se detonó por el contexto vulnerable en el cual se encontraba el Partido de Bacalar, en medio de una disputa por el control y manejo de recursos estratégicos, principalmente el palo de tinte.

This article dicusses the effects of a hurricane that struck Bacalar in 1785, highlighting three geo-historical variables: a) the location of Bacalar, distant from Merida and surrounded by both British loggers and Mayan rebels in the neighboring forests; b) the dispute over the logging of palo de tinte (Haematoxylum campechianum); c) temporal rain-fed agriculture as the basis of livelihood. Its relevance lies in the analyzed sources that narrate the experience lived in detail, as well as in the approach that allows looking beyond the devastation. It is concluded that in addition to the intensity of the natural phenomenon, the disaster was detonated by the vulnerable context in which Bacalar was, in the midst of a disruption by the control and management of strategic resources, mainly the palo de tinte., Resume: L'objectif de cet article est d'analyser les effets d'un ouragan qui a frappé Bacalar en 1785, en soulignant trois variables géo-historiques: a) la situation de Bacalar, situé loin de Mérida, environné par des marchand de bois anglais et des Mayas rebelles; b) la dispute concernant l’abattage du Bois de Campêche (Haematoxylum campechianum); c) l'agriculture pluviale comme principal moyen de subsistance. La pertinence de cet essai repose sur les sources analysées, narrant en détails l'expérience vécue, de même que dans son approche qui nous permet de regarder au-delà de la dévastation. Cette étude conclut que, outre l'intensité du phénomène naturel, les conséquences de ce désastre se sont largement aggravés à cause du contexte vulnérable dans lequel se trouvait la ville de Bacalar :en pleine dispute pour le contrôle et la gestion de ressources stratégiques et en particulier le Bois de Campêche., Resumen: El objetivo de este artículo es analizar los efectos de un huracán que golpeó Bacalar en 1785 destacando tres variables geohistóricas: a) la ubicación de Bacalar, lejos de Mérida, y rodeado de madereros ingleses y mayas rebeldes; b) la disputa por la tala del palo de tinte (Haematoxylum campechianum); c) la agricultura de temporal como base de la subsistencia. Su pertinencia radica en las fuentes analizadas que narran detalladamente la experiencia vivida, así como en el enfoque que permite mirar más allá de la devastación. Se concluye que además de la intensidad del fenómeno natural, el desastre se detonó por el contexto vulnerable en el cual se encontraba el Partido de Bacalar, en medio de una disputa por el control y manejo de recursos estratégicos, principalmente el palo de tinte.

This dissertation examines La Milpa North, an ancient Maya hilltop palatial compound built and occupied in the Late to Terminal Classic periods (ca. A.D. 600-950). Previously, several scholars proposed that this site is the northern node of a network of secondary centers arranged in a quadripartite pattern around the civic center of La Milpa intended to reflect the shape and function of a four-sided and three-tiered Maya cosmos. Through archaeological investigation, this project evaluates assertions of cosmological significance at La Milpa North. In so doing, this project aims to contribute to ongoing anthropological dialogues regarding our ability to detect and interpret meanings encoded in archaeological landscapes inscribed by the ideological and practical needs of ancient peoples. To address questions of intentionality and meaning in the built environment, this project adopts a biography of place approach. Though by nature incomplete and subject to revision, a biography of place endeavors to reconstruct a diachronic narrative of the construction, use, and modification of space while simultaneously exploring the experiences, meanings, and senses of place of ancient social actors. Through this lens, La Milpa North is conceptualized as a multivalent place with which a diverse array of ancient individuals formed complex relationships and, in processes contingent on historical material circumstances, imbued landscapes with meanings.In building a biography of place, this dissertation employs various analytical and theoretical frameworks to partially reconstruct aspects of the relationships that individuals formed with La Milpa North. Recognizing that numerous social, political, and economic contingencies structure relationships individuals build and maintain with places, this project situates the built environment and artefactual assemblages within broader local, regional, and interregional processes of social transformation. A long history of research in the Maya Low

This article dicusses the effects of a hurricane that struck Bacalar in 1785, highlighting three geo-historical variables: a) the location of Bacalar, distant from Merida and surrounded by both British loggers and Mayan rebels in the neighboring forests; b) the dispute over the logging of palo de tinte (Haematoxylum campechianum); c) temporal rain-fed agriculture as the basis of livelihood. Its relevance lies in the analyzed sources that narrate the experience lived in detail, as well as in the approach that allows looking beyond the devastation. It is concluded that in addition to the intensity of the natural phenomenon, the disaster was detonated by the vulnerable context in which Bacalar was, in the midst of a disruption by the control and management of strategic resources, mainly the palo de tinte., Resume: L'objectif de cet article est d'analyser les effets d'un ouragan qui a frappé Bacalar en 1785, en soulignant trois variables géo-historiques: a) la situation de Bacalar, situé loin de Mérida, environné par des marchand de bois anglais et des Mayas rebelles; b) la dispute concernant l’abattage du Bois de Campêche (Haematoxylum campechianum); c) l'agriculture pluviale comme principal moyen de subsistance. La pertinence de cet essai repose sur les sources analysées, narrant en détails l'expérience vécue, de même que dans son approche qui nous permet de regarder au-delà de la dévastation. Cette étude conclut que, outre l'intensité du phénomène naturel, les conséquences de ce désastre se sont largement aggravés à cause du contexte vulnérable dans lequel se trouvait la ville de Bacalar :en pleine dispute pour le contrôle et la gestion de ressources stratégiques et en particulier le Bois de Campêche., Resumen: El objetivo de este artículo es analizar los efectos de un huracán que golpeó Bacalar en 1785 destacando tres variables geohistóricas: a) la ubicación de Bacalar, lejos de Mérida, y rodeado de madereros ingleses y mayas rebeldes; b) la disputa por la tala del palo de tinte (Haematoxylum campechianum); c) la agricultura de temporal como base de la subsistencia. Su pertinencia radica en las fuentes analizadas que narran detalladamente la experiencia vivida, así como en el enfoque que permite mirar más allá de la devastación. Se concluye que además de la intensidad del fenómeno natural, el desastre se detonó por el contexto vulnerable en el cual se encontraba el Partido de Bacalar, en medio de una disputa por el control y manejo de recursos estratégicos, principalmente el palo de tinte.

Large carnivores play many vital biological, economic, and conservation roles, however, their biological traits (low population densities, cryptic behavior) make them difficult to monitor. Pumas have been particularly difficult to study because the lack of distinctive markings on their coats prevents individual identification, precluding mark-recapture and other similar analyses. Further, compared to temperate areas, research on the interspecific interactions of Central American felids is particularly lacking. I used single- and multi-season, single-species occupancy models and two-species co-occurrence models to analyze camera trapping and habitat data collected at eight study sites across Belize. Puma occupancy was positively influenced by jaguar trap success, understory density, canopy cover, and human trap success, and negatively influenced by stream density. Jaguar trap success was the best predictor of where pumas occurred, while prey species were not found to influence puma occupancy. Mean occupancy was 0.740 (0.013) and ranged from 0.587 (0.042) to 0.924 (0.030). Over time, puma occupancy rates were generally high (> 0.90) and stable. Puma occupancy was higher in logged areas, suggesting that current levels of natural resource extraction at those sites were not detrimental to the species. Co-occurrence modeling showed little evidence for interactions between the carnivores, suggesting that jaguars may be acting as an umbrella species and that conservation efforts directed at jaguars are likely to benefit the other carnivores, including pumas. Overall, these findings are positive for puma conservation, but human-induced land use change is expanding and further monitoring will give us insight into how pumas respond to human encroachment.

The literature of Latin America informs and captivates lectors through a myriad of sociocultural, political and economic contexts, thus validating it as an artistic expression representative of those postcolonial communities that authors wish to engage. In the case of postcolonial literature, both contemporary and historical events play a significant role in the development of a nation’s distinct identity and facilitate an incipient society’s recognition as an independent region. In this article, I illustrate how the three-part series of books Journey On, Aba Wama, and Gariganus’ Exile by Belizean author Nelita Doherty contribute significantly to the creation of postcolonial Belize through the establishment, struggles, and survival of the Afro-indigenous Garifuna community. This work critically analyzes themes such as emancipation, the concept of “nation”, a feminist perspective of protecting the nation, cultural heritage and remembrance, and subalternity viewed through the lenses of macrohistories and microhistories.

The literature of Latin America informs and captivates lectors through a myriad of sociocultural, political and economic contexts, thus validating it as an artistic expression representative of those postcolonial communities that authors wish to engage. In the case of postcolonial literature, both contemporary and historical events play a significant role in the development of a nation’s distinct identity and facilitate an incipient society’s recognition as an independent region. In this article, I illustrate how the three-part series of books Journey On, Aba Wama, and Gariganus’ Exile by Belizean author Nelita Doherty contribute significantly to the creation of postcolonial Belize through the establishment, struggles, and survival of the Afro-indigenous Garifuna community. This work critically analyzes themes such as emancipation, the concept of “nation”, a feminist perspective of protecting the nation, cultural heritage and remembrance, and subalternity viewed through the lenses of macrohistories and microhistories.

The literature of Latin America informs and captivates lectors through a myriad of sociocultural, political and economic contexts, thus validating it as an artistic expression representative of those postcolonial communities that authors wish to engage. In the case of postcolonial literature, both contemporary and historical events play a significant role in the development of a nation’s distinct identity and facilitate an incipient society’s recognition as an independent region. In this article, I illustrate how the three-part series of books Journey On, Aba Wama, and Gariganus’ Exile by Belizean author Nelita Doherty contribute significantly to the creation of postcolonial Belize through the establishment, struggles, and survival of the Afro-indigenous Garifuna community. This work critically analyzes themes such as emancipation, the concept of “nation”, a feminist perspective of protecting the nation, cultural heritage and remembrance, and subalternity viewed through the lenses of macrohistories and microhistories.

The literature of Latin America informs and captivates lectors through a myriad of sociocultural, political and economic contexts, thus validating it as an artistic expression representative of those postcolonial communities that authors wish to engage. In the case of postcolonial literature, both contemporary and historical events play a significant role in the development of a nation’s distinct identity and facilitate an incipient society’s recognition as an independent region. In this article, I illustrate how the three-part series of books Journey On, Aba Wama, and Gariganus’ Exile by Belizean author Nelita Doherty contribute significantly to the creation of postcolonial Belize through the establishment, struggles, and survival of the Afro-indigenous Garifuna community. This work critically analyzes themes such as emancipation, the concept of “nation”, a feminist perspective of protecting the nation, cultural heritage and remembrance, and subalternity viewed through the lenses of macrohistories and microhistories.

The literature of Latin America informs and captivates lectors through a myriad of sociocultural, political and economic contexts, thus validating it as an artistic expression representative of those postcolonial communities that authors wish to engage. In the case of postcolonial literature, both contemporary and historical events play a significant role in the development of a nation’s distinct identity and facilitate an incipient society’s recognition as an independent region. In this article, I illustrate how the three-part series of books Journey On, Aba Wama, and Gariganus’ Exile by Belizean author Nelita Doherty contribute significantly to the creation of postcolonial Belize through the establishment, struggles, and survival of the Afro-indigenous Garifuna community. This work critically analyzes themes such as emancipation, the concept of “nation”, a feminist perspective of protecting the nation, cultural heritage and remembrance, and subalternity viewed through the lenses of macrohistories and microhistories.

The literature of Latin America informs and captivates lectors through a myriad of sociocultural, political and economic contexts, thus validating it as an artistic expression representative of those postcolonial communities that authors wish to engage. In the case of postcolonial literature, both contemporary and historical events play a significant role in the development of a nation’s distinct identity and facilitate an incipient society’s recognition as an independent region. In this article, I illustrate how the three-part series of books Journey On, Aba Wama, and Gariganus’ Exile by Belizean author Nelita Doherty contribute significantly to the creation of postcolonial Belize through the establishment, struggles, and survival of the Afro-indigenous Garifuna community. This work critically analyzes themes such as emancipation, the concept of “nation”, a feminist perspective of protecting the nation, cultural heritage and remembrance, and subalternity viewed through the lenses of macrohistories and microhistories.

This article dicusses the effects of a hurricane that struck Bacalar in 1785, highlighting three geo-historical variables: a) the location of Bacalar, distant from Merida and surrounded by both British loggers and Mayan rebels in the neighboring forests; b) the dispute over the logging of palo de tinte (Haematoxylum campechianum); c) temporal rain-fed agriculture as the basis of livelihood. Its relevance lies in the analyzed sources that narrate the experience lived in detail, as well as in the approach that allows looking beyond the devastation. It is concluded that in addition to the intensity of the natural phenomenon, the disaster was detonated by the vulnerable context in which Bacalar was, in the midst of a disruption by the control and management of strategic resources, mainly the palo de tinte., Resume: L'objectif de cet article est d'analyser les effets d'un ouragan qui a frappé Bacalar en 1785, en soulignant trois variables géo-historiques: a) la situation de Bacalar, situé loin de Mérida, environné par des marchand de bois anglais et des Mayas rebelles; b) la dispute concernant l’abattage du Bois de Campêche (Haematoxylum campechianum); c) l'agriculture pluviale comme principal moyen de subsistance. La pertinence de cet essai repose sur les sources analysées, narrant en détails l'expérience vécue, de même que dans son approche qui nous permet de regarder au-delà de la dévastation. Cette étude conclut que, outre l'intensité du phénomène naturel, les conséquences de ce désastre se sont largement aggravés à cause du contexte vulnérable dans lequel se trouvait la ville de Bacalar :en pleine dispute pour le contrôle et la gestion de ressources stratégiques et en particulier le Bois de Campêche., Resumen: El objetivo de este artículo es analizar los efectos de un huracán que golpeó Bacalar en 1785 destacando tres variables geohistóricas: a) la ubicación de Bacalar, lejos de Mérida, y rodeado de madereros ingleses y mayas rebeldes; b) la disputa por la tala del palo de tinte (Haematoxylum campechianum); c) la agricultura de temporal como base de la subsistencia. Su pertinencia radica en las fuentes analizadas que narran detalladamente la experiencia vivida, así como en el enfoque que permite mirar más allá de la devastación. Se concluye que además de la intensidad del fenómeno natural, el desastre se detonó por el contexto vulnerable en el cual se encontraba el Partido de Bacalar, en medio de una disputa por el control y manejo de recursos estratégicos, principalmente el palo de tinte.