Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.

The purpose of the study was to investigate the invasion of indigenous lands within Bosawas and to establish the root causes of land invasion in terms of the origins and economic circumstances of the incomers; to examine the impact of land invasion upon Mayangna indigenous communities; to investigate perceptions of Bosawas Reserve, attitudes towards conservation and the land use practices of Mayangna and Mestizos; to establish the strategies being employed by indigenous communities to defend their land rights and the role of non-governmental organisations in supporting this; to examine the implications of government policy for invasion of indigenous lands; to relate conflicts in Bosawas to wider economic and political context in Nicaragua.

Main Topics:

Household data: age; birthplace; occupation; ethnicity etc. Life history focused on period 1980-1995: places where lived and land holding during the war Land holding characteristics: area; tenure Land and resource use practices: includes hunting; agricultural data for 1994; marketing of produce; household economy; use of forest resources Attitudes to Bosawas Reserve, environment and conservation Conflicts over land and resource use: with government bodies; within community; with neighbours (land invasion) Responses to conflict over land and resources.

Villagers requested to attend interview rendezvous; interviews conducted at meetings held for other purposes.

Face-to-face interview