ANTH Environmental and Ecological Anthropology 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What subfield of anthropology examines the relationships between human cultures and their natural environments?
- Ecological anthropology (Correct answer)
- Environmental sociology
- Human geography
- Biocultural anthropology
Correct answer: Ecological anthropology
Ecological anthropology studies how human groups adapt to their environments and how cultural practices relate to ecological conditions.
Question 2: Julian Steward's concept of 'cultural ecology' emphasized that:
- The natural environment is a primary driver shaping core cultural features (Correct answer)
- All cultures are equally adapted to their environments
- Human cultures universally dominate and reshape their environments
- Cultural practices determine how people perceive their environments
Correct answer: The natural environment is a primary driver shaping core cultural features
Steward's cultural ecology argued that the environment shapes core cultural features (the cultural core) through the specific ways people exploit it for subsistence.
Question 3: What term describes the detailed, locally developed knowledge that indigenous peoples have about their local environment, species, and ecological processes?
- Traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) (Correct answer)
- Ethnobiology
- Indigenous science
- Folk taxonomy
Correct answer: Traditional ecological knowledge (TEK)
Traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) encompasses the cumulative body of knowledge, practices, and beliefs about relationships between living beings and their environment that evolved by indigenous peoples.
Question 4: The concept of a society's 'cultural niche construction' refers to:
- How organisms, including humans, modify their environments to create ecological niches (Correct answer)
- The cultural practices that define a group's identity and social position
- The ecological zone occupied by a particular cultural group
- The process of adapting cultural practices to new environments
Correct answer: How organisms, including humans, modify their environments to create ecological niches
Niche construction theory recognizes that organisms, especially humans, actively modify their environments in ways that then feed back to shape their own evolution and culture.
Question 5: What approach in environmental anthropology argues that local communities should be recognized as primary stewards of natural resources rather than states or corporations?
- Environmental justice framework (Correct answer)
- Political ecology
- Common property theory
- Sustainable development
Correct answer: Environmental justice framework
The environmental justice framework examines how environmental burdens and benefits are distributed unequally across social groups and advocates for equitable resource governance.
Question 6: What is 'political ecology' in anthropology?
- The study of how political and economic forces shape environmental conditions and access to resources (Correct answer)
- The anthropological analysis of green politics and environmental movements
- The ecology of political institutions in traditional societies
- The study of how environmental conditions shape political systems
Correct answer: The study of how political and economic forces shape environmental conditions and access to resources
Political ecology examines the intersections of political economy, power relations, and ecological processes to understand environmental change and resource conflicts.
ANTH Environmental and Ecological Anthropology 1
What subfield of anthropology examines the relationships between human cultures and their natural environments?