Вода као огледало екоантрополошких односа: случај општине Бабушница
Water as a mirror of ecoanthropological relations: the case of Babušnica municipality

Author(s): Gordana Blagojević
Subject(s): Anthropology, Social Sciences, Political Ecology, Environmental interactions
Published by: Етнографски институт САНУ
Keywords: ecoanthropological relations; Babušnica municipality; water
Summary/Abstract: This paper views the natural resource of water as a medium for viewing the wider network of social, or rather ecoanthropological relations. Ecoanthropological relations entail, firstly relationships among people, both vertical – power relations, and horizontal – relationships among members of a community that are formed through the relationship to the environment and natural resources, as well as the human relationship toward the natural habitat itself. I have chosen the Babušnica municipality for my case study because it is characterized by one of the largest percentages of depopulation in Serbia, and because its water resources have been targeted by a number of different institutions and individuals over the last few decades, to the detriment of the local population and the environment. The paper analyzes a number of examples that had a strong influence on the livelihoods of the locals, especially in the villages of Ljuberađa, Zvonačka Banja and Rakita. The last example, the fight for the Rakita river, against the building of a mini-hydropower plant has become public knowledge over the last few years. Through looking at the problems that have thus far occurred due to neglecting the needs of the local communities and the poor relationship to water resources and the environment, the paper considers possible ways of resolving these issues and the future development of the area.

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