ABSTRACT
Customary ownership and management of natural resources has become a topical theme in Papua New Guinean anthropology, not least because of the rich mineral finds, which have led to fierce struggles over mining royalties and have engendered countless claims for compensation for environmental damages. This chapter discusses the relationship between cultural constructs of ’ownership’ and changing practices of resource management. Cultural concepts of ownership involve much more than a definition of access to natural resources. The chapter deals with the consequences of baitfish royalties for conceptions of marine ownership and describes changing conceptions of land ownership, which involve some different principles. It discusses resource management in relation to group identities based on descent and residence and gives a short historical description of types of leadership.
