i Patrick W. Staib Anthropology This dissertation is approved, and it ...

Valle, similar to Lazo, has remained a prominent figure in the Sandinista party
and in the community as a whole. He produces coffee conventionally with chemical
fertilizers and herbicides and pays the minimum wage for labor. According to some, he
was lucky to take part in the revolution when he did, but others claim he “worked the
system.” Nevertheless, Valle made the best of the piñata and has elevated his social
standing as a result.
Conclusion
The Sandinista Agrarian Reform programs forever altered the landscape of the mountains
surrounding San Juan del Río Coco. Even though the Sandinistas lacked the foresight to
implement a more effective system, there were positive effects for the community as a
result of confiscating land from former exploiters of the workers and of natural resources.
In fact, Cuba, Vietnam, El Salvador, and Nicaragua are ideal settings for development of
small-scale approaches to ecologically sound farming since they have expansive rural
populations and productive (Rosset and Benjamin 1994; Oxfam 2000; Murray, Raynolds,
and Taylor 2003).
The debate over large-scale versus small-scale approaches to land and resource
management revolves around ideological and class-based preference for which
socioeconomic group controls the majority of resources. While the debate over its effects
is irresolvable and its actual effects irreversible, my observations indicate that there are
more social mobility and cooperation across class than there appeared to be during the
dictatorship era. Present-day Las Segovias has a growing entrepreneurial middle-class
and petit-bourgeoisie that is actively engaged in conservation efforts to preserve precious
resources and the very livelihoods that they depend on.
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