Emily
Yerkes, a senior student in Geography, won first place in the
Business/Social and Behavioral Sciences Division of the Richard
J. and Martha D. Denman Undergraduate Research Forum on Wednesday,
May 12. There were about 300 student research projects in the
forum, 20 of which were in the Business/Social and Behavioral
Sciences Division. The title of the poster that she presented
based on her work was "Fifteen Years On: An Assessment of the
Sustainability of a Sustainable Agricultural Project in the
Dominican Republic". The research project grew out of a combination
of her interest regarding the impacts of development on the
environment in the developing world and her recent opportunity
to study abroad in the Dominican Republic during the 2004 winter
quarter. Her research there was supported by an Undergraduate
Research Scholarship which she won. According to her advisor, Kendra
McSweeney, "that gave her the funds to spend some extra
time outside of her class commitments to do the field research."
Ms. Yerkes started out as a natural resources major before
switching to geography. She has been working with Dr. McSweeney
since last fall, when Ms. Yerkes approached her with an idea
about using her upcoming study-abroad in the Dominican Republic
as a way to do research. Dr. McSweeney’s areas of expertise
include neotropical (New World tropics) agriculture and issues
of agricultural development, so she was able to give Ms.
Yerkes ample advice on how to go about researching her subject.
Dr. McSweeney pointed out that “one of the things that made
her research so unusual was that she independently identified,
financed, and executed a foreign-area, foreign-language research
project. For an undergraduate, that is very ambitious. Plus,
she pulled it off!”
The prize was $750 and an opportunity to present her research
to the Ohio Legislature at the Statehouse on Tuesday, May
18. Ms. Yerkes said that “I am extremely proud to have received
the Denman award as it recognizes my hard work on my research
project. I would of course like to thank Dr. McSweeney for
serving as my advisor and offering constant support for my
work.” The Chair of the Geography Department at Ohio State
University, Morton
O’Kelly, offered his own congratulatory remarks for both
advisor and student: “I was previously aware of the high
calibre of Emily's work through her recognition in the honors
program but this award itself is both a pleasant news and
evidence that the faculty advisors drive the students to
ever greater accomplishments. Her advisor Kendra McSweeney
has done a great job guiding this project.” In addition to
the Denman award, Ms. Yerkes was recently honored on Friday,
June 11 by the geography department with the
Huntington Award, an honor she shared with fellow graduating
senior Joseph Lewis.
Dr. O’Kelly also expressed high hopes for further undergraduate
research projects, saying that "It is perhaps no coincidence
that this project derives from the new track in People, Society,
and Environment where there are large numbers of significant
open questions. Such questions with a bit of initiative and
research acumen, are well within the reach of an undergraduate
research program. I expect to see more of these projects
in the years ahead as we ramp up our research experience
for undergraduates." Ms. Yerkes is now headed for graduate
school in Geography at Dr. McSweeney’s alma matter, McGill
University.
Picture: Dr. Morton O’Kelly presents Emily Yerkes with
the Huntington award
Abstract
"Fifteen Years On: An Assessment of the Sustainability of
a Sustainable Agricultural Project in the Dominican Republic"
This research project evaluates the success of an unusually
long-lived development project that promotes sustainable
agriculture in the Sierra region surrounding San Jos, Dominican
Republic. Begun in 1979, Plan Sierra targeted a rural portion
of the country's north characterized by environmental degradation
and poverty. The Plan took a two-pronged approach: it provided
credit to farmers, and focused on disseminating improved
management techniques. These strategies were intended to
increase farmer incomes, reverse decades of soil erosion,
and in the process reduce the temptation of rural residents
to move to the cities (which was especially appealing to
the central government in the face of rapidly increasing
urban migration).
 Plan
Sierra has now formally existed for 15 years. So how is it
doing? Is its longevity an indication of success or failure?
In particular, how satisfied are participant farmers with
the project? To answer these questions, I spent 2 months in the Plan
Sierra project area in Winter 2004. Using a "snowball" interview
method whereby interviews with one individual led to contacts
with others, I spoke at length with seven long-time project
participants. I also conducted structured and semi-structured
interviews with current and former Plan Sierra personnel
in Santiago and San Jose de las Matas. All interviews were
transcribed. I also acquired background data on Plan Sierra
and on agricultural development in the DR in general from
several government offices and NGOs in Santiago.
Preliminary analysis of interview data suggest that Plan
Sierra has certainly provided many benefits to rural development
in the area such as the provision of improved management
techniques for agricultural and forest resources, improvements
in markets for agricultural and forestry products, and educational
facilities that teach skills utilizing the forest resources.
At the same time, however, sporadic funding for the project
during its long life has left most participants disillusioned
with the program; further, they do not feel as though their
economic status has improved through involvement with the
project. Interview and secondary data suggest that the financial
instability of the project results from inconstant political
support, arising largely from the lack of political stability
and recent economic crises in the country. The result has
been to not only deny project funding, but to lessen the
ability of farmers to make an adequate living off the land
in the Sierra region. Ultimately, the longevity of the project
is to some extent an illusion; the project has continued
to exist for over 15 years, but the actual impact of the
project has diminished significantly over this time.
The results of the study show that while Plan Sierra has
achieved a measure of success in meeting its ecological goals
of reforestation, the social goals of the program have not
been achieved. Flaws within the Plan structure and a seemingly
sudden abandonment of the project by Plan staff have left
participants disillusioned with the program and in a continuing
state of poverty. This research suggests that for a sustainable
development program to be successful both the ecological
and social aspects of the project must be addressed and that
to achieve success in both areas requires diligence and continued
support.
The implications of this research indicate that the fact
that a development project continues to exist for a long
period of time is not necessarily an indication of its success
and that a development project simply existing by name does
not mean that the project is actually functioning. Clearly,
constant evaluation and financial maintenance are a necessary,
if insufficient, condition for the success of a development
project.
Mr. and Mrs. Denman, President Holbrook, Emily Yerkes
Emily Yerkes
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