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95 books match the query 'Australia' and 3 start with l

cover of Labor's Lot: The Power, History, and Culture of Aboriginal Action

Labor's Lot

The Power, History, and Culture of Aboriginal Action

Elizabeth A. Povinelli

University of Chicago Press, 1994

How does an Aboriginal community see itself, its work, and its place on the land? Elizabeth Povinelli goes to the Belyuen community of northern Australia to show how it draws from deep connections between labor, language, and the landscape. Her findings challenge Western notions of "productive labor" and longstanding ideas about the role of culture in subsistence economies.

In Labor's Lot, Povinelli shows how everyday activities shape Aboriginal identity and provide cultural meaning. She focuses on the Belyuen women's interactions with the countryside and on Belyuen conflicts with the Australian government over control of local land. Her analysis raises serious questions about the validity of Western theories about labor and culture and their impact on Aboriginal society.

Povinelli's focus on women's activities provides an important counterpoint to recent works centering on male roles in hunter-gatherer societies. Her unique "cultural economy" approach overcomes the dichotomy between the two standard approaches to these studies. Labor's Lot will engage anyone interested in indigenous peoples or in the relationship between culture and economy in contemporary social practice.
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cover of Little America: Australia, the 51st State

Little America

Australia, the 51st State

Erik Paul

Pluto Press, 2006

"Australia is one of the US's most staunch supporters: Australia has sent troops to Iraq, and is an ally in the 'war on terror'. Australian domestic policy also follows the US economic model, as state industries and services have been privatised. 

Erik Paul dissects the relationship between Australia and the US. He explores how Australia has become a key player in maintaining American dominance in South East Asia, and looks critically at the contrast between the Australian wealth and the comparative poverty of surrounding nations. 

Examining the influence of neoconservative imperialism on Australia's economic and military strategies, he draws some startling conclusions about future Australian relationships in East Asia, in particular, its relationship with China."
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cover of Llamas beyond the Andes: Untold Histories of Camelids in the Modern World

Llamas beyond the Andes

Untold Histories of Camelids in the Modern World

Marcia Stephenson

University of Texas Press, 2023

Camelids are vital to the cultures and economies of the Andes. The animals have also been at the heart of ecological and social catastrophe: Europeans overhunted wild vicuña and guanaco and imposed husbandry and breeding practices that decimated llama and alpaca flocks that had been successfully tended by Indigenous peoples for generations. Yet the colonial encounter with these animals was not limited to the New World. Llamas beyond the Andes tells the five-hundred-year history of animals removed from their native habitats and transported overseas.

Initially Europeans prized camelids for the bezoar stones found in their guts: boluses of ingested matter that were thought to have curative powers. Then the animals themselves were shipped abroad as exotica. As Europeans and US Americans came to recognize the economic value of camelids, new questions emerged: What would these novel sources of protein and fiber mean for the sheep industry? And how best to cultivate herds? Andeans had the expertise, but knowledge sharing was rarely easy. Marcia Stephenson explores the myriad scientific, commercial, and cultural interests that have attended camelids globally, making these animals a critical meeting point for diverse groups from the North and South.

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