Randell Heather
Department of Sociology, Brown University, and National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center.
Rural Sociol. 2017 Sep;82(3):548-573. doi: 10.1111/ruso.12144. Epub 2016 Nov 10.
Forced migration due to development projects or environmental change impacts livelihoods, as affected households are faced with new-and often less favorable-environmental, social, and economic conditions. This article examines changing livelihood strategies among a population of rural agricultural households displaced by the Belo Monte Dam in the Brazilian Amazon. Using longitudinal data, I find that many households used compensation payments to concentrate income generation efforts on the most lucrative strategies-cacao and cattle production and business or rental income. Poorer households and those that received the least compensation were more likely to continue relying on agricultural wage labor-a less desirable income source associated with not owning land or with persons needing to supplement income with additional work as a day laborer. Results also indicate that the amount of compensation received by most households was sufficient to enable them to make productive investments beyond attaining replacement land and housing. Many households invested in assets such as agricultural infrastructure, cattle, rental houses, or tractors-all of which directly contribute to future income. Displacement compensation, similar to remittances or conditional cash transfers, can therefore act as an important infusion of capital to promote socioeconomic development and poverty reduction.
由于发展项目或环境变化导致的被迫迁移会影响生计，因为受影响的家庭面临着新的——而且往往更不利的——环境、社会和经济条件。本文研究了巴西亚马逊地区因贝洛蒙特大坝而流离失所的农村农业家庭群体中不断变化的生计策略。利用纵向数据，我发现许多家庭利用赔偿金将创收努力集中在最有利可图的策略上——可可和养牛生产以及商业或租金收入。较贫困的家庭以及那些获得赔偿金最少的家庭更有可能继续依赖农业工资劳动——这是一种不太理想的收入来源，与没有土地或需要通过做日工来补充收入的人有关。结果还表明，大多数家庭获得的赔偿金额足以使他们能够进行生产性投资，而不仅仅是获得替代土地和住房。许多家庭投资于农业基础设施、牛、出租房或拖拉机等资产——所有这些都直接有助于未来的收入。因此，与汇款或有条件现金转移类似，流离失所赔偿可以作为一种重要的资本注入，以促进社会经济发展和减贫。
