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Managing the Environmental Crisis in Ghana: the Role of African Traditional Religion and Culture—A Case Study of Berekum Traditional Area

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Managing the Environmental Crisis in Ghana: the Role of African Traditional Religion and Culture—A Case Study of Berekum Traditional Area Managing the Environmental Crisis in Ghana: The role of African Traditional Religion and Culture—A case study of Berekum Traditional Area Samuel Awuah-Nyamekye Submitted in accordance with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy The University of Leeds School of Philosophy, Religion and the History of Science October, 2013 - ii - The candidate confirms that the work submitted is his own and that appropriate credit has been given where reference has been made to the work of others. This copy has been supplied on the understanding that it is copyright material and that no quotation from the thesis may be published without proper acknowledgement. © 2013 The University of Leeds and Samuel Awuah-Nyamekye The right of Samuel Awuah-Nyamekye to be identified as Author of this work has been asserted by him with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Acts 1988. - iii - Acknowledgements I wish to express my profound gratitude to the almighty God for the strength He gave me throughout the study. I also acknowledge the special support I received from my wife, Joyce Effah and all my children. I owe a debt of gratitude to my supervisors, Drs. Emma Tomalin and Kevin Ward from the Department of Theology and Religious Studies at the University of Leeds for their painstaking supervising of the thesis. Dr. Ward, in particular, needs a special mention for spending his energy, time and resources to travel to Ghana to see how I was getting on with my data collection. I am as well indebted to my late cousin, Afari Yeboah (a.k.a. Kwasi Yeboah), who was my able Research Assistant, but who unfortunately did not live to see the end of the project he happily associated himself with when the request was made to him. I am equally indebted to Nana Kwadwo Buadu of Berekum, who readily took over from where Afari Yeboah had left off and tenaciously provided me with the support I needed to see the project to its logical conclusion. Kwadwo, I say, Ayikoo! I am also grateful to Mr. Modestus Fosu, a PhD Candidate in the School of Communications at the University of Leeds who squeezed some time out of his tight schedule to read through the drafts of the various chapters before sending them to my supervisors for discussion. I am also very grateful to Dr. Andy Cochrane for his excellent proofreading of this thesis. I wish to express my profound thanks to all my key informants – especially those who asked me to use their photos – whose names I cite for their contributions within the thesis. I am very grateful to the Government of Ghana for sponsoring me throughout the course of my studies via the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFUND). I also wish to acknowledge the £6,000 financial support I received from the Adrian Hastings African Scholar Award, a large part of which was spent on new books relating to the research. In addition to this, the foundation supported me in attending three international conferences (one in the Netherlands and two in the USA) to present my research. A special mention must also be given to Professors R. N. Osei and C. R. Gaba, formerly of the University of Cape Coast, for being my academic mentors. - iv - Additionally, I acknowledge the moral support I received from Professors B. A. Ntreh and E. B. Anum and Drs. Y. S. Agyemang and P. Appiah-Sekyere, all of the Department of Religion and Human Values at the University of Cape Coast; and Professors Naana Jane Opoku Agyemang (the former Vice Chancellor of the University of Cape Coast and current Minister of Education) and K. K. Kuupole (the current Vice Chancellor of the University of Cape Coast). Finally, my thanks go to all those who in one way or another helped me during the course of this research but whom have not been mentioned here. - v - Abstract This thesis examines the connection between traditional religio-cultural beliefs and practices and environmental problems in Ghana using Berekum Traditional Society as a case study. Its primary aim is to assess the nature and the level of the environmental crisis in Ghana, and to explore the possibility of combing indigenous and modern methods to address the current environmental problems in Ghana. The methodology of this thesis is located within the framework for conducting empirical studies in Religious Studies. The qualitative methods of collecting and analysing data are utilised, and since the scope of the study falls within the field of religion and environment, a brief history of global environmentalism and religion‘s entrance into attempts to address mounting global environmental problems will be provided. It will be argued that the worldview of the Berekum people, which is underpinned by their religious mentality, has played and continues to play a key role in their local ecological practices. The traditional ways through which ecological knowledge have been and are currently imparted to the youth will be examined, together with the effectiveness of these methods within a climate of modernity and the influence of Western education and culture in the area. It will be argued that Berekum people strongly believe that indigenous ways for addressing ecological problems are still relevant, and that their methods for doing so have not been completely lost in its rural communities, or in Ghana as a whole. Although it appears that indigenous religious beliefs and practices seem to be waning, with a greater percentage of the indigenous population in the study area having either converted to Christianity or Islam, I argue that indigenous religious beliefs and practices remain covertly active in the life and thought of the people. Finally, I argue that neither modern (scientific) nor traditional modes of addressing current ecological problems are individually adequate, and therefore that a synergy of the two modes is necessary in order for such problems to be tackled fully. However, I will also argue that certain challenges need to be addressed before this integration can be made possible - vi - Contents Table of Contents Acknowledgements ................................................................................................... iii Abstract ...................................................................................................................... v Contents .................................................................................................................... vi CHAPTER 1 GENERAL INTRODUCTION ..................................................... 1 1.1 Introduction ............................................................................................... 1 1.2 Background of the study ........................................................................... 3 1.3 Assisi Declarations .................................................................................... 7 1.4 Statement of the problem .......................................................................... 8 1.5 Aims and objectives ................................................................................ 12 1.6 Research Questions ................................................................................. 13 1.7 Significance of the study ......................................................................... 13 1.8 Theoretical Background of the study ...................................................... 14 1.9 Research Methodology............................................................................ 15 1.9.1 Research Design ............................................................................. 19 1.9.2 Study Sample ................................................................................. 19 1.9.3 Fieldwork methods ......................................................................... 22 1.9.4 Data Analysis ................................................................................. 25 1.10 Clarification of concepts/terms ............................................................... 28 1.10.1 Tradition (Traditional) .......................................................... 28 1.10.2 Berekum Traditional Area..................................................... 29 1.10.3 Indigenous ............................................................................. 29 1.10.4 Traditional/Indigenous Ecological knowledge ..................... 29 1.10.5 Traditional African Religion ................................................. 30 1.11 Outline of Thesis ..................................................................................... 31 1.12 Summary ................................................................................................. 33 CHAPTER 2 Literature Review......................................................................... 34 2.1 Introduction ............................................................................................. 34 2.2 What is the religion of the African? ........................................................ 34 2.3 Is there a single African Traditional Religion or are there many? .......... 37 2.4 Culture ..................................................................................................... 42 2.5 Environment Conceptualised .................................................................. 46 - vii - 2.6 Environmental Crisis ............................................................................... 49 2.7 Foundation for African environmental ethics ......................................... 51 2.8 Change in local perceptions on traditional conservation methods .......... 54 2.9 Summary ................................................................................................
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