331 Klamath Hall
1370 Franklin Blvd.
University of Oregon campus
Ecosystem Change, Westernization, and Women’s Health in Amazonian Ecuador
This project works in collaboration with the Shuar Health and Life History Project of the UO Department of Anthropology to collect data on the health and levels of westernization with the Shuar people of the Amazonian Morona-Santiago region of Southeastern Ecuador. This thesis topic focuses on the effect of the westernization of the Shuar lifestyle on women’s health and reproduction, specifically reproductive health and family planning decisions. In addition, the project hopes to apply this work to predicting future pressures on the ecosystems of the Shuar’s territory. In the short term, the project helps the Shuar track the changes in the health of their community as their economy and environment change. In the long term, this knowledge can be used by other indigenous groups undergoing rapid socioeconomic change to maintain the health of their people and their land.