This project involves the research of a cultural anthropologist at Northern Illinois University, studying agricultural change in Indonesia. The investigator will study the changes in agricultural practices and rituals in an indigenous society in eastern Indonesia. The hypothesis to be tested is that the villagers, who combine cash-cropping with modern technologies with traditional swidden cultivation, will differentiate in their agricultural rituals as well. The project will see whether the traditional rituals will be restricted to the traditional agricultural regimes, or whether they will be modified to adapt to the contemporary varieties. This research is important because it advances our understanding of agricultural change in this important area of the world. By detailed study of how farmers retain or modify traditional rituals to give meaning to their changed agricultural practices, the project will provide valuable information for planners to use to encourage new adoptions of more high-yielding food sources.
