Collaborative environmental governance: Achieving collective action in social-ecological systems

Coupling coordination between new urbanisation and carbon emissions in China

The strategic coordination of a new urbanisation and carbon emissions (NU-CE) systems in China is essential for advancing low-carbon urbanisation and sustainable urban planning. This paper introduces an improved coupling coordination degree (CCD) model, spatial auto-correlation and other methods to evaluate past and future states of coordination. The data, which are collected from the period 2010-2019 and 30 provinces in China, demonstrate the temporal and spatial evolution characteristics of the NU-CE coupling relationship. The relevant results are fourfold. (1) The level of NU in China continues to rise, alongside significant spatial heterogeneity, which is particularly evident in the eastern coastal areas. (2) The CE subsystem fluctuates slightly, also revealing differences between the southern and northern regions, where Shanxi and Inner Mongolia have the lowest levels. (3) The NU-CE CCD in each province continuously improved during the study period, which is closely related to different development stages and geographic locations. As a result, a ladder-type pattern of gradual decline emerges from the eastern coastal region to central and western regions. (4) NU-CE CCD has significant positive spatial correlation characteristics. The high-high CCD area exhibits a tendency to shift towards the central region, and the low-low cluster area from the southwest to the northwest region. (5) Finally, the grey GM(1,1) prediction model is used to predict the CCD of 30 provinces in 2020-2024. The findings illustrate a growing state of NU-CE coordination and strengthening spatial correlations in the future. Based on the findings of this study, a series of policy suggestions for improving China's new urbanisation and carbon emissions is proposed.

A game theoretical model for the stimulation of public cooperation in environmental collaborative governance

Digital technologies provide a convenient way for the public to participate in environmental governance. Therefore, by means of a two-stage evolutionary model, a new mechanism for promoting public cooperation is proposed to accomplish environmental collaborative governance. Interactive effects of government-enterprise environmental governance are firstly explored, which is the external atmosphere for public behaviour. Second, the evolutionary dynamics of public behaviour is analysed to reveal the internal mechanism of the emergence of public cooperation in environmental collaborative governance projects. Simulations reveal that the interaction of resource elements between government and enterprise is an important basis for environmental governance performance, and that governments can improve this as well as public cooperation by increasing the marginal governance propensity. Similarly, an increase in the government's fixed expenditure item of environmental governance can also significantly improve government-enterprise performance and public cooperation. And finally, the effect of government's marginal incentive propensity on public environmental governance is moderated by enterprises' marginal environmental governance propensity, so that simply increasing the government's marginal incentive propensity cannot improve the evolutionary stable state of public behaviour under the scenario where enterprises' marginal environmental governance propensity is low.

Socio-technical networks of infrastructure management: Network concepts and motifs for studying digitalization, decentralization, and integrated management

Networked infrastructure systems - including energy, transportation, water, and wastewater systems - provide essential services to society. Globally, these services are undergoing major transformative processes such as digitalization, decentralization, or integrated management. Such processes not only depend on technical changes in infrastructure systems but also include important social and socio-technical dimensions. In this article, we propose a socio-technical network perspective to study the ensemble of social actors and technical elements involved in an infrastructure system, and their complex relations. We conceptualize structurally explicit socio-technical networks of networked infrastructure systems based on methodological considerations from network analysis and draw on concepts from socio-technical system theories and social-ecological network studies. Based on these considerations, we suggest analytical methods to study basic network concepts such as density, reciprocity, and centrality in a socio-technical network. We illustrate socio-technical motifs, i.e., meaningful sub-structures in socio-technical networks of infrastructure management. Drawing on these, we describe how infrastructure systems can be analyzed in terms of digitalization, decentralization, and integrated management from a socio-technical network perspective. Using the example of urban wastewater systems, we illustrate an empirical application of our approach. The results of an empirical case study in Switzerland demonstrate the potential of socio-technical networks to promote a deeper understanding of complex socio-technical relations in networked infrastructure systems. We contend that such a deeper understanding could improve management practices of infrastructure systems and is becoming even more important for enabling future data-driven, decentralized, and more integrated infrastructure management.

Untangling social-ecological interactions: A methods portfolio approach to tackling contemporary sustainability challenges in fisheries

Meeting the objectives of sustainable fisheries management requires attention to the complex interactions between humans, institutions and ecosystems that give rise to fishery outcomes. Traditional approaches to studying fisheries often do not fully capture, nor focus on these complex interactions between people and ecosystems. Despite advances in the scope and scale of interactions encompassed by more holistic methods, for example ecosystem-based fisheries management approaches, no single method can adequately capture the complexity of human-nature interactions. Approaches that combine quantitative and qualitative analytical approaches are necessary to generate a deeper understanding of these interactions and illuminate pathways to address fisheries sustainability challenges. However, combining methods is inherently challenging and requires understanding multiple methods from different, often disciplinarily distinct origins, demanding reflexivity of the researchers involved. Social-ecological systems' research has a history of utilising combinations of methods across the social and ecological realms to account for spatial and temporal dynamics, uncertainty and feedbacks that are key components of fisheries. We describe several categories of analytical methods (statistical modelling, network analysis, dynamic modelling, qualitative analysis and controlled behavioural experiments) and highlight their applications in fisheries research, strengths and limitations, data needs and overall objectives. We then discuss important considerations of a methods portfolio development process, including reflexivity, epistemological and ontological concerns and illustrate these considerations via three case studies. We show that, by expanding their methods portfolios, researchers will be better equipped to study the complex interactions shaping fisheries and contribute to solutions for sustainable fisheries management.

The Evolution of Polycentric Governance in the Galapagos Small-Scale Fishing Sector

Addressing the multiple anthropogenic and non-anthropogenic factors affecting small-scale fisheries requires collaboration from diverse regions, geographical scales, and administrative levels in order to prevent a potential misfit between governance systems and the socio-ecological problems they address. While connecting actors and stakeholders is challenging, as they often hold opposing perceptions and goals, unveiling the network configurations of governance systems remains one effective way to explore collaborative alliances in light of the diverse drivers of change present in small-scale fishery systems. This study employed descriptive statistics, exponential random graph models (ERGMs), and qualitative data analysis to explore preferential attachments of new nodes to well-positioned nodes within the Galapagos small-scale fishery governance system network and the propensity of cross-sectoral reciprocity and cross-sectoral open triads formation in the network. Our findings identified significant players and network configurations that might be essential in the collaboration diffusion and robustness of the Galapagos small-scale fishery sector governance system.

Do governance networks build collaborative capacity for sustainable development? Insights from Solomon Islands

To build capacity for addressing complex sustainable development challenges, governments, development agencies, and non-governmental organizations are making substantial investments in governance networks. Yet, enthusiasm for establishing governance networks is not always matched by empirical evidence on their effectiveness. This gap challenges these groups to know whether investing in governance networks is worth their time and effort; a weighing-up that is particularly critical in contexts of limited resources. Through a qualitative case study in Solomon Islands, we evaluate the extent to which a governance network, called the Malaita Provincial Partners for Development, contributed to four dimensions of collaborative governance capacity: individual, relational, organizational, and institutional. We find that the network made moderate contributions to individual, relational and organizational capacity, while institutional capacity remained low despite the presence of the network. Based on these findings, we argue that governance networks are not a panacea. Continued efforts are needed to establish when, how, and in what contexts collaborative networks are effective for building collaborative capacity for sustainable development.

Spatiotemporal Change of Eco-Environmental Quality in the Oasis City and Its Correlation with Urbanization Based on RSEI: A Case Study of Urumqi, China

As an important node city of “The Belt and Road” strategy, Urumqi has a non-negligible impact on the ecological environment in the process of rapid development. It is of great significance to understand the coupling and coordination between urbanization and the ecological environment for regional sustainable development. However, previous studies on the coupling coordination degree (CCD) model of urbanization and ecological environment are limited, and they ignore the endogenous relationship between the two. Therefore, this study aims to introduce an econometric model, the panel vector autoregression model (PVAR), to further explore the relationship between them and the influencing mechanism. Firstly, urbanization and ecological environment were evaluated objectively by the comprehensive nighttime light index (CNLI) and remote sensing ecological index (RSEI), respectively. Then, the coupling coordination degree of urbanization and the ecological environment were evaluated comprehensively by a typical coupling coordination degree model. Finally, the PVAR model is used to analyze the interaction between the two systems and the mechanism of action. The results showed that: (1) in the recent 25 years, the mean value of RSEI in Urumqi decreased gradually, and the overall ecological environment deteriorated, but the differences among districts and counties were still significant; (2) the urbanization level of Urumqi is on the rise, while UC, DBC(B), and MD have the highest increase in CNLI although they are at a low level; and (3) in the interactive relationship between urbanization and the ecological environment, the development of Urumqi’s ecological environment is mainly affected by its development inertia, and the development of urbanization is limited by the ecological environment. This study fills the gap in the study of the interaction mechanism between urbanization and the ecological environment and provides a new perspective for the study of sustainable urban development worldwide.

Intermediary Organizations in Nature Conservation Initiatives: The Case of the EU-Funded LIFE Programme

This study was aimed to identify intermediary organizations active in nature conservation initiatives by adopting a multi-level (ML) and network governance (NG) framework and using social network analysis (SNA). We identified 256 coordinating beneficiaries and 1090 associated beneficiaries connected through 8310 project relations and financed through the EU-funded LIFE Programme from 2014 to 2020. Our results evidence a central component of the network where organizations from Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom play a central role. In contrast, peripheral components return a framework of partnerships mainly constituted by actors of the same country (68%). Moreover, the characterization by type of actor confirms the widespread implementation of a multi-level governance approach in LIFE-Nature (NAT) projects, evidencing the significant presence of non-governmental organizations and foundations, mainly at a national level, in nature conservation initiatives. Our findings reveal that the intermediary capacity of key actors should be further reinforced, particularly toward the promotion of transnational cooperation and cross-sector alliances, by encouraging the involvement of stakeholders operating at the ground level (i.e., provincial and municipal levels).

Integrating Land Use, Ecosystem Service, and Human Well-Being: A Systematic Review

Global change, population growth, and urbanization have been exerting a severe influence on the environment, including the social system and ecosystem. To find solutions based on nature, clarifying the complicated mechanisms and feedback among land use/land cover changes, ecosystem services, and human well-being, is increasingly crucial. However, the in-depth linkages among these three elements have not been clearly and systematically illustrated, present research paths have not been summarized well, and the future research trends on this topic have not been reasonably discussed. In this sense, the purpose of this paper is to provide an insight into how land use/land cover changes, ecosystem services, and human well-being are linked, as well as their relationships, interacting ways, applications in solving ecological and socioeconomic problems, and to reveal their future research trends. Here, we use a systematic literature review of the peer-reviewed literature to conclude the state of the art and the progress, emphasize the hotspot, and reveal the future trend of the nexus among the three aspects. Results show that (1) ecosystem services are generally altered by the changes in land use type, spatial pattern, and intensity; (2) the nexus among land use change, ecosystem services, and human well-being is usually used for supporting poverty alleviation, ecosystem health, biodiversity conservation, and sustainable development; (3) future research on land use/land cover changes, ecosystem services, and human well-being should mainly focus on strengthening multiscale correlation, driving force analysis, the correlation among different group characteristics, land use types and ecosystem service preferences, and the impact of climate change on ecosystem services and human well-being. This study provides an enhanced understanding of the nexus among the three aspects and a reference for future studies to mitigate the relevant problems.

How deep to dig: effects of web-scraping search depth on hyperlink network analysis of environmental stewardship organizations

Social network analysis (SNA) tools and concepts are essential for addressing many environmental management and sustainability issues. One method to gather SNA data is to scrape them from environmental organizations' websites. Web-based research can provide important opportunities to understand environmental governance and policy networks while potentially reducing costs and time when compared to traditional survey and interview methods. A key parameter is 'search depth,' i.e., how many connected pages within a website to search for information. Existing research uses a variety of depths and no best practices exist, undermining research quality and case study comparability. We therefore analyze how search depth affects SNA data collection among environmental organizations, if results vary when organizations have different objectives, and how search depth affects social network structure. We find that scraping to a depth of three captures the majority of relevant network data regardless of an organization's focus. Stakeholder identification (i.e., who is in the network) may require less scraping, but this might under-represent network structure (i.e., who is connected). We also discuss how scraping web-pages of local programs of larger organizations may lead to uncertain results and how our work can combine with mixed methods approaches.

Efficiency of Water Pollution Control Based on a Three-Stage SBM-DEA Model

With the growing severity of water pollution issues, the prevention and control of water pollution became highly complicated and challenging, and the investment in water pollution control has been constantly increased. Scientific evaluation of efficiency is critical to recognize whether the investments in water pollution control are effective. However, most studies could not exclude the influences of external environmental and random factors when evaluating the efficiency of water pollution control, resulting in biased results. To overcome this shortcoming, this study employed a three-stage SBM-DEA (slacks-based measure-data envelopment analysis) model to determine the efficiency of water pollution control efforts in a city of China from 2003 to 2017. The results showed that water quality in the study area has been significantly improved due to those pollution control efforts. The influences from external environmental and stochastic factors have led to an underestimation of the efficiency of water pollution control in the first stage. After excluding these effects in the second stage, the adjusted efficiency of water pollution control showed a fluctuating upward trend in the third stage, reflecting the true effectiveness of efforts to prevent and control water pollution in the study cities, with an average efficiency of 0.87. Finally, several suggestions for enhancing the efficiency of water pollution control in Chengde were proposed.

Structural equation modeling reveals decoupling of ecological and self-perceived outcomes in a garden box social-ecological system

It is well known that green urban commons enhance mental and physical well-being and improve local biodiversity. We aim to investigate how these outcomes are related in an urban system and which variables are associated with better outcomes. We model the outcomes of an urban common-box gardening-by applying the Social-Ecological Systems (SES) framework. We expand the SES framework by analyzing it from the perspective of social evolution theory. The system was studied empirically through field inventories and questionnaires and modeled quantitatively by Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). This method offers powerful statistical models of complex social-ecological systems. Our results show that objectively evaluated ecological outcomes and self-perceived outcomes are decoupled: gardening groups that successfully govern the natural resource ecologically do not necessarily report many social, ecological, or individual benefits, and vice versa. Social capital, box location, gardener concerns, and starting year influenced the changes in the outcomes. In addition, the positive association of frequent interactions with higher self-perceived outcomes, and lack of such association with relatedness of group members suggests that reciprocity rather than kin selection explains cooperation. Our findings exemplify the importance of understanding natural resource systems at a very low "grassroot" level.

Scientific mobilization of keystone actors for biosphere stewardship

The biosphere crisis requires changes to existing business practices. We ask how corporations can become sustainability leaders, when constrained by multiple barriers to collaboration for biosphere stewardship. We describe how scientists motivated, inspired and engaged with ten of the world's largest seafood companies, in a collaborative process aimed to enable science-based and systemic transformations (2015-2021). CEOs faced multiple industry crises in 2015 that incentivized novel approaches. New scientific insights, an invitation to collaborate, and a bold vision of transformative change towards ocean stewardship, created new opportunities and direction. Co-creation of solutions resulted in new knowledge and trust, a joint agenda for action, new capacities, international recognition, formalization of an organization, increased policy influence, time-bound goals, and convergence of corporate change. Independently funded scientists helped remove barriers to cooperation, provided means for reflection, and guided corporate strategies and actions toward ocean stewardship. By 2021, multiple individuals exercised leadership and the initiative had transitioned from preliminary and uncomfortable conversations, to a dynamic, operational organization, with capacity to perform global leadership in the seafood industry. Mobilizing transformational agency through learning, collaboration, and innovation represents a cultural evolution with potential to redirect and accelerate corporate action, to the benefit of business, people and the planet.

Sub-national climate change risk assessment: A case analysis for Tibet and its prefecture-level cities

Avoiding climate change from exceeding its critical threshold is a serious challenge facing humanity at present and in the future. As the mode of global cooperative action is stranded, multi-center and multi-level efforts are needed to deal with global warming in the future. In order to provide information for the formulation of low-carbon development policies, it is essential to assess the maintain or cross of climate change threshold on different scales. In this study, the carbon footprint calculated based on the process coefficient approach is systematically integrated with the climate change indicator of the planetary boundaries framework improved with the goals of the Paris Agreement to identify the climate change risks of Tibet and its prefecture-level cities from 2000 to 2017. Moreover, the main driving factors behind carbon footprint were analyzed. The findings showed that: (1) Since 2000, Tibet's CO₂ emissions have demonstrated steady and rapid increase. The sector composition is dominated by cement production-related and transportation sector-related emissions. The type composition is dominated by diesel-related, process-related, and coal-related emissions. There are significant differences in CO₂ emissions among all prefecture-level cities, with Lhasa having the largest contribution. (2) Except for Lhasa and Shannan's CO₂ emissions that have crossed their critical threshold of climate change and are in an unsafe state, Tibet and other prefecture-level cities have not yet crossed their critical threshold. (3) Except for Ngari, per capita GDP, energy intensity, population size, and carbon intensity positively affect the increase of CO₂ emissions in Tibet and its prefecture-level cities. Our study helps actors at less aggregated scales to determine appropriate policy strengths based on globally agreed goals and ambitions in the process of responding to global warming in a bottom-up manner.

An integrative framework for transformative social change: a case in global wildlife trade

To achieve a sustainable future, it is imperative to transform human actions collectively and underlying social structures. Decades of research in social sciences have offered complementary insights into how such transformations might occur. However, these insights largely remain disjunct and of limited scope, such that strategies for solving global environmental challenges remain elusive. There is a need to integrate approaches focusing on individuals and social structures to understand how individual actions influence and are in turn influenced by social structures and norms. In this paper, we synthesize a range of insights across different schools of thought and integrate them in a novel framework for transformative social change. Our framework explains the relationships among individual behaviors, collective actions, and social structures and helps change agents guide societal transitions toward environmental sustainability. We apply this framework to the global wildlife trade-which presents several distinct challenges of human actions, especially amidst the Covid-19 pandemic-and identify pathways toward transformative change. One key distinction we make is between different individual actions that comprise the practice itself (e.g., buying wildlife products; private action) and those that push for a broader system change in practice (e.g., signaling (dis)approval for wildlife consumption; social-signaling action, and campaigning for policies that end unsustainable wildlife trade; system-changing action). In general, transformative change will require an integrative approach that includes both structural reforms and all three classes of individual action.

Dynamic Flood Resilience Typology: A Systemic Transitional Adaptation from Peitou Plateau, Taiwan

Resilience practice is a place-based activity. This study incorporates the notion of “Transitional Progress” as an available scoping tool pin-pointing the human-habitat domain; the critical human resilience build-up can be identified by the site-specific and locally adapted practice as the residents’ perception and interaction within the local geographical character are examined. The assessment framework is proposed as a measurable process, followed by an adaptive cycle valuation performed for each of the scales at the different transitional stages. This resilience varies from the degree and time exposed to flood and the resident’s respective responses regarding people, community, and place; accordingly, the semi-structured interview documented respondents’ self-evaluation from the Peitou Plateau in Taipei. The study ascertained that in the face of climate risks: (1) adaptive measures aided and enhanced the information gathered for risk impact is based on the residents’ perception of the habitat and human domain (2) adaptive capacity assessment is an effective mean in understanding residents’ mitigation will and confidence, and (3) community ability to reflect on past actual time scenario. Most importantly, the assessment framework contributes to understanding local adaptation practice and contributes toward the sustainability of the urbanity.

Self-Reported Effects of the Covid-19 Pandemic on Stewardship Organizations and Their Activities in Southeast New England, USA

In many communities, regions, or landscapes, there are numerous environmental groups working across different sectors and creating stewardship networks that shape the environment and the benefits people derive from it. The make-up of these networks can vary, but generally include organizations of different sizes and capacities. As the Covid-19 pandemic (2020 to the present) shuts down businesses and nonprofits, catalyzes new initiatives, and generally alters the day-to-day professional and personal lives, it is logical to assume that these stewardship networks and their environmental work are impacted; exactly how, is unknown. In this study, we analyze the self-reported effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on stewardship groups working in southeast New England, USA. Stewardship organizations were surveyed from November 2020 to April 2021 and asked, among other questions, "How is Covid-19 affecting your organization?" We analyzed responses using several qualitative coding approaches. Our analysis revealed group-level impacts including changes in group capacity, challenges in managing access to public green spaces, and altered forms of volunteer engagement. These results provide insights into the varied effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and government responses such as stay-at-home orders and social distancing policies on stewardship that can inform the development of programs to reduce negative outcomes and enhance emerging capacities and innovations.

Polycentric Environmental Governance to Achieving SDG 16: Evidence from Southeast Asia and Eastern Africa

Effective environmental governance is deemed essential in advancing the Sustainable Development Goals. However, environmental dimensions have no specific reference across the SDG 16 targets and indicators. In achieving SDG 16—the realization of peace, justice, and strong institution, polycentric environmental governance involving multiple actors across scales deserves thoughtful consideration. This study illustrates the potential of a polycentric approach to environmental governance in achieving SDG 16, using case studies of forest, watershed, and transboundary bushland and seascape management in Southeast Asia and Eastern Africa, namely Vietnam, Indonesia, and the Kenya–Somalia cross-border. By highlighting four key elements of polycentric governance namely, political will, legal framework, support from higher-level governance and capacity building, the case studies demonstrate that polycentric governance play a significant role in achieving three environment-relevant SDG 16 targets, yet these targets are silent about environmental governance dimensions. Since many conflicts arise from the environment and natural resources sector, we suggest that (i) polycentric environmental governance be strongly pursued to achieve SDG 16, and (ii) SDG 16 includes indicators specifically directed on polycentric environment and natural resource governance.

Opposing trends in fisheries portfolio diversity at harvester and community scales signal opportunities for adaptation

Understanding mechanisms that promote social-ecological resilience can inform future adaptation strategies. Among seafood dependent communities, these can be illuminated by assessing change among fisheries portfolios. Here, in collaboration with a Coast Salish Nation in British Columbia, Canada, we used expert Indigenous knowledge and network analyses to chronicle differences in fisheries portfolios pre and post a social-ecological regime shift. We then evaluated key drivers of change using semi-structured interviews. We found that while portfolios decreased in diversity of seafood types harvested and consumed among individuals overtime, portfolios increased in their diversification at the community level because more similar seafoods within less diverse individual portfolios were more commonly harvested and consumed by the Nation as a whole. Thus, diversity can operate simultaneously in opposing directions at different scales of organization. Experts identified four key mechanisms driving these changes, including commercial activities controlled by a centralized governance regime, intergenerational knowledge loss, adaptive learning to new ecological and economic opportunities, and the trading of seafood with other Indigenous communities. Unexpectedly, increased predation by marine mammals was also flagged as a key driver of change. Adaptation strategies that support access to and governance of diverse fisheries, exchange of seafoods among communities, and knowledge transfer among generations would promote social-ecological resilience, food security, and community well-being.

Participação e transdisciplinaridade em Ecosaúde: a perspectiva da análise de redes sociais

Resumo A Ecosaúde usa abordagens participativas e transdisciplinares com o intuito de compreender as inter-relações entre os componentes dos sistemas socioecológicos e como estas interações influenciam a saúde das populações humanas. O objetivo do artigo é usar a Análise de Redes Sociais (ARS) para entender o papel das relações de colaboração entre os diversos atores envolvidos nos processos participativos e transdisciplinares em projetos de Ecosaúde. Apresentamos um conjunto de indicadores de ARS para caracterizar a evolução e a equidade de participação e diferenciar a inter e a transdisciplinaridade. A análise foi feita com base na rede de colaboração entre os atores da Iniciativa de Liderança em Ecosaúde para as Enfermidades Transmitidas por Vetores (ETV) na América Latina e Caribe. O processo participativo ficou mais intenso ao longo do projeto, com mais sujeitos envolvidos e um número crescente de colaborações. A cooperação entre os atores das ciências sociais, ambientais e da saúde é pouco equitativa; assim, predominam as ciências da saúde. Os poucos cientistas ambientais presentes estão, porém, ativamente envolvidos em colaborações interdisciplinares. A abordagem tem aplicação ampla para estudar a participação e a transdisciplinaridade em projetos sobre saúde e meio ambiente.

Participation and transdisciplinarity in Ecohealth: a social network analysis perspective

Abstract Ecohealth uses participatory and transdisciplinary approaches to understand the relationships between the components of socio-ecological systems and how these interactions influence the health of human populations. This article aims to use Social Network Analysis (SNA) to understand the role of collaborative relationships between the various actors involved in participatory and transdisciplinary processes in Ecohealth projects. We present a set of SNA indicators to characterize the evolution and equity of participation and to differentiate inter- and transdisciplinarity. The analysis was based on the collaboration network among the members of the Iniciativa Para el Liderazgo y Desarrollo del Campo de Ecosalud y Enfermedades Transmitidas por Vectores (ETV) en América Latina y el Caribe. The participatory process intensified throughout the project, with more individuals involved and increasing collaborations. Cooperation between members from social, environmental, and health sciences is unbalanced and health scientists predominate. The few environmental scientists are, however, actively involved in interdisciplinary collaborations. The proposed approach has wide application to study participation and transdisciplinarity in projects about health and environment.

A Case Of Affordances-Collaborative Governance Using Smartphones

This study attempts to explore the contextual factors that play a significant role in promoting collaborative governance using mobile phones in developing countries. The study utilises review of academic literature and experts’ opinion to identify critical conversion factors and their interrelationship. Affordance Theory is used as a theoretical lens to identify eight significant factors covering development of infrastructure, citizen up-skilling, cost of access, ease of use, reliable infrastructure, ensured privacy & security, process accountability and a standardised m-governance policy. A combination of Total Interpretative Structure Modelling (TISM) and Cross-impact matrix multiplication applied to classification (MICMAC) analysis is employed to prioritise these conversion factors and classify them based on their dependence and driving power. A priority-based hierarchical model is proposed for establishing a sustainable m-governance ecosystem.

Conceptualizing ecosystem services using social-ecological networks

Social-ecological networks (SENs) represent the complex relationships between ecological and social systems and are a useful tool for analyzing and managing ecosystem services. However, mainstreaming the application of SENs in ecosystem service research has been hindered by a lack of clarity about how to match research questions to ecosystem service conceptualizations in SEN (i.e., as nodes, links, attributes, or emergent properties). Building from different disciplines, we propose a typology to represent ecosystem service in SENs and identify opportunities and challenges of using SENs in ecosystem service research. Our typology provides guidance for this growing field to improve research design and increase the breadth of questions that can be addressed with SEN to understand human-nature interdependencies in a changing world.

Impacts of Decentralized Environmental Governance on Andean Bear Conservation in Colombia

Decentralized environmental governance has become increasingly common across much of Latin America and in developing countries more generally, yet the impacts of decentralization on wildlife conservation remain unclear. Decentralized environmental governance is thought to improve efficiency, local compliance, and democratic potential of natural resource management. However, wildlife conservation, especially that of large mammals, poses unique challenges in the context of decentralized governance: wildlife conservation is often expensive, requires large expanses of contiguous habitat, and often offers few economic benefits. We analyzed Colombia's decentralized environmental governance and its performance in conserving a contentious and border-crossing wildlife species, the Andean bear (Tremarctos ornatus). We considered both decentralized institutions and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs). This analysis is informed by 67 semi-structured interviews with conservation practitioners in Colombia. We found inconsistent program implementation across the country and little information exchange among institutions. These issues quite likely contribute to exacerbated human-bear conflict and thus more Andean bear deaths suggesting that the successful coordination of large-scale wildlife conservation may yet require the leadership of strong central institutions. A few international NGOs were working to improve Andean bear conservation in Colombia, but we saw little involvement at the national level of Colombian NGOs-some of whom felt they were being unfairly outcompeted by international elites. We recommend a greater engagement with Colombian NGOs (by both donors and international NGOs) as a means through which to ensure the integrity of Andean bear conservation into the future.

Evolution of cooperation in costly institutions exhibits Red Queen and Black Queen dynamics in heterogeneous public goods

Public goods are often subject to heterogeneous costs, such as the necessary costs to maintain the public goods infrastructure. However, the extent to which heterogeneity in participation cost can affect groups' ability to provide public goods is unclear. Here, by introducing a mathematical model, I show that when individuals face a costly institution and a free institution to perform a collective action task, the existence of a participation cost promotes cooperation in the costly institution. Despite paying for a participation cost, costly cooperators, who join the costly institution and cooperate, can outperform defectors who predominantly join a free institution. This promotes cooperation in the costly institution and can facilitate the evolution of cooperation in the free institution. For small profitability of the collective action, cooperation in a costly institution but not the free institution evolves. However, individuals are doomed to a winnerless red queen dynamics in which cooperators are unable to suppress defection. For large profitabilities, cooperation in both the costly and the free institution evolves. In this regime, cooperators with different game preferences complement each other to efficiently suppress defection in a black queen dynamic.

An Outcome-Oriented, Social–Ecological Framework for Assessing Protected Area Effectiveness

Both the number and the extent of protected areas have grown considerably in recent years, but evaluations of their effectiveness remain partial and are hard to compare across cases. To overcome this situation, first, we suggest reserving the term effectiveness solely for assessing protected area outcomes, to clearly distinguish this from management assessments (e.g., sound planning). Second, we propose a multidimensional conceptual framework, rooted in social–ecological theory, to assess effectiveness along three complementary dimensions: ecological outcomes (e.g., biodiversity), social outcomes (e.g., well-being), and social–ecological interactions (e.g., reduced human pressures). Effectiveness indicators can subsequently be evaluated against contextual and management elements (e.g., design and planning) to shed light on management performance (e.g., cost-effectiveness). We summarize steps to operationalize our framework to foster more holistic effectiveness assessments while improving comparability across protected areas. All of this can ensure that protected areas make real contributions toward conservation and sustainability goals.

Can Deliberative Democracy Favor a Flourishing Relationship Between Humans and Carnivores?

There is considerable interest in improving participatory governance in decision-making processes for the conservation of biodiversity and management of conflicts between humans and wildlife. Among the various modes of participatory governance, deliberative democracy has received virtually no attention for decisions focused on conserving biodiversity. This is surprising given that deliberative democracy is an important branch of democratic theory and is associated with decision-making processes that have been successfully applied to a wide range of complicated decisions across diverse cultural settings. Moreover, deliberative democracy has several distinctive properties that would seem to make it well-suited for many conservation decisions. First, deliberative democracy is better-designed than other processes to handle cases where the object of conservation appears to be insufficiently valued by those who have the most detrimental impacts on its conservation. Second, deliberative democracy engenders a rich kind of representation and impartiality that is nearly impossible to achieve with participatory governance focused on managing conflicts among hyper-engaged stakeholders. Here, we review the principles of deliberative democracy, outline procedures for its application to carnivore conservation, and consider its likelihood to favor carnivore conservation.

Collaborations in Environmental Initiatives for an Effective “Adaptive Governance” of Social–Ecological Systems: What Existing Literature Suggests

Moving from the scientific literature on the evaluation of environmental projects and programs, this study identifies how and under which conditions collaborations in environmentally sustainable projects are considered effective for the adaptive governance of SES. The method adopted is a systematic literature review based on the quantitative and qualitative analysis of 56 articles selected through specific queries on the SCOPUS database and published from 2004 to 2020. Results of the quantitative analysis identify conditions able to evaluate collaborations, highlighting the need to adopt a transdisciplinary approach analysing both social and ecological challenges and assessing both social and ecological results. Moreover, they suggest preferring using primary data involving multi-sector and multi-scale actors and enlarging the geographical context to the most vulnerable countries. The results of the qualitative analysis provide specific recommendations for collaborations being effective when related to communication, equity, foresight, and respect, which need to be further strengthened by all actors. Multiplicity in visions and approaches should be seen as a resource able to stimulate creativity in social arrangements and environmental practices, making collaborations in environmental projects instrumental for the effectiveness of adaptive governance of SES.

Does polycentricity fit? Linking social fit with polycentric governance in a large-scale marine protected area

Scholars have theorized that polycentricity may produce benefits that promote effective, sustainable governance of complex social-ecological systems. Yet, little empirical research exists exploring whether and how these benefits emerge and what additional outcomes polycentric governance systems produce. This paper presents an empirical examination of Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument (PMNM), one of the longest-standing and largest marine protected areas in the world. Monument governance is structured as a polycentric system, including semi-autonomous decision-making groups and governance actors that interact across jurisdiction, geography, and decision-making levels. Through analysis of qualitative empirical data, we explore whether and how PMNM functions as theory predicts, with a particular focus on social fit and how it has evolved over time. Findings indicate that PMNM largely exhibits social fit for governance actors, and they add empirical support and additional nuance to theoretical understandings of functional polycentricity. Specifically, the case suggests additional contextual features that might promote social fit, including sufficient time and resources, clear communication and shared understanding, and socially astute and strategically savvy governance actors holding key governance positions. The article demonstrates that social fit can increase or decrease over time, and that different actors may perceive its presence and extent differently. These findings suggest avenues for additional research into how the enabling conditions of polycentric governance systems and the contextual features that enliven those systems in practice may interact and affect functionality and other outcomes.

Protected area, easement, and rental contract data reveal five communities of land protection in the United States

Land protection efforts represent large societal investments and are critical to biodiversity conservation. Land protection involves a complex mosaic of areas managed by multiple organizations, using a variety of mechanisms to achieve different levels of protection. We develop an approach to synthesize, describe, and map this land protection diversity over large spatial scales. We use cluster analysis to find distinct "communities" of land protection based on the organizations involved, the strictness of land protection, and the protection mechanisms used. We also associate identified land protection communities with socioenvironmental variables. Applying these methods to describe land protection communities in counties across the coterminous United States, we recognize five different land protection communities. Two land protection communities occur in areas with low human population size at higher elevations and include a large amount of protected land primarily under federal management. These two community types are differentiated from one another by the particular federal agencies involved, the relative contributions of smaller actors, and the amount of protection by designations vs. conservation easements or covenants. Three remaining land protection communities have less overall protection. Land in one community is primarily protected by federally managed rental contracts and government managed easements; another is managed by a diversity of non-federal actors through fee-ownership and easements; and the third stands out for having the lowest amount of formally recorded protection overall. High elevation and poor quality soils are over-represented in U.S. protected lands. Rental contracts help fill in gaps in counties with high productivity soil while the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service fills in gaps in low-elevation counties. Counties with large numbers of threatened species have more and stricter protection, particularly by regional entities like water management districts. The ability to synthesize and map land protection communities can help conservation planners tailor interventions to local contexts, position local agencies to approach collaborations more strategically, and suggest new hypotheses for researchers regarding interactions among different protection mechanisms.

Linking Fishing Behavior and Ecosystem Dynamics Using Social and Ecological Network Models

One goal of ecosystem-based management is studying an ecosystem and its people, the socio-ecological system, in a qualitative and quantitative modeling approach that can provide management agencies with possible outcomes of their actions using scenario forecasting. Ecosystem-based fisheries management strives to use the socio-ecological system approach, including direct and indirect impacts on multiple species including the behavioral responses of fishers after a regulatory change (a gillnet ban). Here, we link fisher behavioral networks with a mass-balanced food-web ECOPATH network model of an estuarine ecosystem and its commercial fisheries for an analysis of fishing impacts after a gillnet ban on multiple species using ECOSIM. We modeled fisher behavioral networks using reported catches of species from individual fishers along with the gear fished to create nodes in a gear/species affiliation network. Individual fishers with common gear/species use are indicative of common fishing behavior. When such fishers have high network centrality and are engaged in multiple gear/species fisheries, they can transition to other gear/species fisheries along “switching pathways” when facing a regulatory change. We used an index of joint gear participation to identify likely gear switching pathways, and we predicted changes in fishing effort after a gill net ban. We simulated the gill net ban in ECOSIM under two scenarios of fishing effort: Scenario 1, gill net fishing effort of 0%; Scenario 2, gill net fishing effort of 0% with increased effort in the alternative gear fisheries using the predicted switching pathways for the affiliation network. Scenario 1 predicted an increase in flounder (Paralichthys spp.) biomass over a decade. Under Scenario 2, fishers targeting flounders were predicted to switch from gill nets to pound nets. Scenario 2 predicted a 7% decline in flounder biomass over ten years, rather than an increase in flounders. The gillnet ban with increased effort due to switching is predicted to have the opposite effect on the conservation goal, which was to increase flounder stocks. Fishery management that incorporates a socio-ecological approach modeling both fisher behaviors and multi-species ecosystem responses can reveal single-species responses that are in the opposite direction of the anticipated management goals.

Waxing power, waning pollution: The effect of COVID-19 on Russian environmental policymaking

Like most countries globally, COVID-19 continues to have a demonstrable health, economic, and environmental impact on Russia. The purpose of this paper is to examine the possible ramifications for environmental quality in Russia during and following the coronavirus pandemic. Our work builds on the framework of Elinor Ostrom, as we argue that the pandemic and subsequent lockdown in Russia has highlighted the need for a more polycentric, de-centralized approach to environmental protection. We provide evidence for this point using a novel econometric strategy: given the tight centralization of environmental policymaking, we proxy for de facto decentralization using the amount of influence a regional governor has at the federal level. Using timely data on pollution in major Russian cities both before and during the pandemic, we employ an instrumental variable analysis which shows that pollution in a particular Russian region is negatively related to the amount of influence a Russian governor has at the federal level. Thus, the more powerful a governor is in their ability to set their own course, the better results they have in environmental quality. We conclude that Russia's environmental policy needs a fundamental rethink - and extensive decentralization - in a post-COVID-19 world.

Multiple social network influences can generate unexpected environmental outcomes

Understanding the function of social networks can make a critical contribution to achieving desirable environmental outcomes. Social-ecological systems are complex, adaptive systems in which environmental decision makers adapt to a changing social and ecological context. However, it remains unclear how multiple social influences interact with environmental feedbacks to generate environmental outcomes. Based on national-scale survey data and a social-ecological agent-based model in the context of voluntary private land conservation, our results suggest that social influences can operate synergistically or antagonistically, thereby enabling behaviors to spread by two or more mechanisms that amplify each other's effects. Furthermore, information through social networks may indirectly affect and respond to isolated individuals through environmental change. The interplay of social influences can, therefore, explain the success or failure of conservation outcomes emerging from collective behavior. To understand the capacity of social influence to generate environmental outcomes, social networks must not be seen as 'closed systems'; rather, the outcomes of environmental interventions depend on feedbacks between the environment and different components of the social system.

Improvement Path for Resource-Constrained Cities Identified Using an Environmental Co-Governance Assessment Framework Based on BWM-mV Model

Global warming and extreme weather have increased most people’s awareness of the problem of environmental destruction. In the domain of sustainable development, environmental governance has received considerable scholarly attention. However, protecting and improving the environment requires not only substantial capital investment but also cooperation among stakeholders. Therefore, based on the network structure of stakeholders, the best–worst method (BWM) and modified Vlsekriterijumska Optimizacija I Kompromisno Resenje method were combined to form an environmental co-governance assessment framework that can be used to evaluate the effects of various policies and identify strategies for further improvement through data analysis (henceforth the BWM-mV model). This mechanism is not only useful for evaluating the effectiveness of environmental governance policies but also for generating suggestions to enhance these policies. Hence, the BWM-mV model is particularly suitable for local governments with limited resources in time, money, or labor. Pingxiang City Government is currently subject to such limitations and was therefore selected as the subject of an empirical case study. The results of this study revealed that the aspects (i.e., criteria) the Pingxiang City Government should urgently improve on pertain to a high-quality information communication platform (C₁₃) and smooth joint decision-making by stakeholders (C₂₄).

How Can We Mitigate Power Imbalances in Collaborative Environmental Governance? Examining the Role of the Village Facilitation Team Approach Observed in West Kalimantan, Indonesia

Researchers have focused on collaborative governance as an effective measure to realise sustainable natural resource management through the participation of various stakeholders. However, the literature has indicated that issues such as power imbalances tend to undermine the effectiveness of collaborative governance. Powerful actors represented by the government tend to control collaborative processes and produce benefits for dominant groups, while less empowered local communities are often deprived of opportunities for livelihood improvement. Although numerous researchers have analysed the key factors that influence the processes and outcomes of collaborative governance, few have identified a concrete measure to reduce the risk of failure, particularly when managing power imbalances in developing countries. This study explored a methodology to address the power imbalances in collaborative governance based on a case study of a participatory peatland fire prevention project implemented in West Kalimantan Province, Indonesia. Semi-structured interviews and questionnaire surveys conducted with project participants suggested that measures such as establishing a joint team of government officers and villagers, providing a common facilitation training programme, training villagers as facilitators, promoting equal knowledge sharing, and allowing villagers to make their own decisions mitigated the power imbalances between the two groups.

Governance Challenges at the Interface of Food Security and Biodiversity Conservation: A Multi-Level Case Study from Ethiopia

Ensuring food security while also protecting biodiversity requires a governance system that can address intra- and intersectoral complexity. In this paper, we sought to explore the governance challenges surrounding food security and biodiversity conservation through an empirical study in Jimma zone, southwestern Ethiopia. We used bottom-up snowball sampling to identify stakeholders and then held semi-structured interviews with 177 stakeholders across multiple levels of governance. We also conducted 24 focus group discussions with local people. Data were transcribed and thematically analyzed for its contents. Challenges in the structure of institutions and policy incoherence were the key challenges identified for the governance of food security and biodiversity conservation. The challenges around institutional structure included incompatibilities of the nature of governing institutions with the complexity inherent within and between the two sectors examined. Incoherences in policy goals, instruments, and contradictions of policy output relative to the actual problems of food security and biodiversity further hampered effective governance of food security and biodiversity conservation. Notably, many of the challenges that influenced an individual sector also posed a challenge for the integrated governance of food security and biodiversity conservation, often in a more pronounced way. Based on our findings, we argue that governance in our case study area requires a more integrated and collaborative approach that pays attention to institutional interplay in order to ensure institutional fit and consistency across policy goals.

The WaterProtect governance guide: Experiences from seven agricultural and drinking water production catchments across Europe

Although collaborative, multi-level and adaptive governance is put forward as the right approach to manage water resources, it remains a challenge for local water managers to engage with multiple understandings and perspectives and to move towards more transdisciplinary approaches in water governance. In this research, we address this need by proposing a practical guide for water governance assessment and improvement, existing of three successive steps, i.e. (1) an assessment of water governance, (2) the implementation of a multi-actor process and (3) an evaluation of achievements. This guide is tested in the seven action labs of the WaterProtect project, which have in common that they are drinking water catchments suffering from agricultural pollution throughout Europe. By implementing the guide in the different action labs, we find that water managers appreciated the integrated approach of the guide, helping them in the efficient organization of the water governance process while taking into account the human dimension. Furthermore action lab leaders evaluated the governance guide as being hands-on and practical, allowing them to redirect and open up the governance process. Despite this, they welcomed the presence of a facilitator, who boosted the local action lab leaders' confidence and motivation to put things into motion. Looking at the results, we find that over the different action labs a lot of progress has been made towards intermediary goals, however that an improvement of the water quality cannot be expected in the short time frame of a project. We therefore recommend improving the design of the guide with insights from transition management, which will allow local water managers to better address change at different time-scale levels.

The ecological outcomes of collaborative governance in large river basins: Who is in the room and does it matter?

Although collaborative governance has been presented as central in environmental management, it does not guarantee sustainable natural resources management. Due to methodological challenges and a lack of robust interdisciplinary data, few studies have linked collaborative processes to ecological outcomes. This paper contributes to that research effort by investigating whether the relative involvement of different interest groups in deliberations matters from an ecological perspective. To that end, this interdisciplinary paper links social and ecological indicators across two large French river basins in a dataset spanning 25 years. We find that the presence of different interest groups - agricultural, industrial and NGOs - during deliberations, is linked to different ecological outcomes. Most notably, the composition of present members does not play the same role depending on the type of pollution source studied (e.g. point and/or diffuse sources).

Achieving Social and Ecological Outcomes in Collaborative Environmental Governance: Good Examples from Swedish Moose Management

Collaborative governance approaches have been suggested as strategies to handle wicked environmental problems. Evaluations have found promising examples of effective natural resource governance, but also highlighted the importance of social-ecological context and institutional design. The aim of this study was to identify factors that contribute to the achievement of social and ecological sustainability within Swedish moose (Alces alces) management. In 2012, a multi-level collaborative governance regime was implemented to decrease conflicts among stakeholders. We carried out semi-structured interviews with six ‘good examples’ (i.e., Moose Management Groups that showed positive social and ecological outcomes). We found that ‘good examples’ collectively identified existing knowledge gaps and management challenges and used their discretionary power to develop procedural arrangements that are adapted to the social-ecological context, their theory of change, and attributes of local actors. This contributed to the creation of bridging social capital and principled engagement across governance levels. Thus, our results indicate the existence of higher-order social learning as well as a positive feedback from within-level collaboration dynamics to between-level collaboration. Furthermore, our study illustrates the importance of institutional flexibility to utilize the existing knowledge across stakeholder groups and to allow for adaptations based on the social learning process.

Values Matter: The Role of Key Nodes of Social Networks in an Environmental Governance Case from Taiwan

Social networks and related social processes play a critical role in natural resources and environmental governance. In this paper, an environmental governance case is analyzed from a social network perspective. We explore how social networks of proponents for and opponents against environmental regulations are formed and developed and how these social networks facilitate or hinder environmental regulations in different periods. The results reveal that government leaders with political power, the key node of the social network, can connect specific networks with their value orientation and can therefore influence the structure and development of networks, which significantly affect subsequent policy formation and governance results. Social networks affect and are affected by the processes and results of environmental governance. Consequently, actors in key positions and value orientations of the community to which they belong to play a critical role; this finding has rarely been discussed in past analyses of social networks.

A conceptual model of the social-ecological system of nature-based solutions in urban environments

This article provides a perspective on nature-based solutions. First, the argument is developed that nature-based solutions integrate social and ecological systems. Then, theoretical considerations relating to relational values, multifunctionality, transdisciplinarity, and polycentric governance are briefly outlined. Finally, a conceptual model of the social-ecological system of nature-based solutions is synthesised and presented. This conceptual model comprehensively defines the social and ecological external and internal systems that make up nature-based solutions, and identifies theoretical considerations that need to be addressed at different stages of their planning and implementation The model bridges the normative gaps of existing nature-based solution frameworks and could be used for consistent, comprehensive, and transferable comparisons internationally. The theoretical considerations addressed in this article inform practitioners, policymakers, and researchers about the essential components of nature-based solutions. The conceptual model can facilitate the identification of social and ecological interconnections within nature-based solutions and the range of stakeholders and disciplines involved.

Evolving Institutional Arrangements for use of an ecosystem approach in restoring Great Lakes Areas of Concern

The 1987 Canada-U.S. Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement required Remedial Action Plans (RAPs) be collaboratively generated between local stakeholders and government agencies to implement an ecosystem approach in cleaning up 43 historically polluted Areas of Concern (AOCs) throughout the Laurentian Great Lakes. The institutional arrangements that have emerged over the past 35 years to foster an ecosystem approach in RAPs are expected to have changed over time and be varied in some aspects—reflecting unique socio-ecological contexts of each AOC—while also sharing some characteristics that were either derived from the minimally prescribed framework or developed convergently. Here we surveyed institutional arrangements to describe changes over time relevant to advancing an ecosystem approach in restoring beneficial uses in the 43 AOCs. While eight AOCs evidenced little institutional change, the remaining 35 AOCs demonstrated a growing involvement of local organizations in RAPs, which has enhanced local capacity and ownership and helped strengthen connections to broader watershed initiatives. We also noted an expansion of strategic partnerships that has strengthened science-policy-management linkages and an increasing emphasis on sustainability among RAP institutions. Our study details how institutional arrangements in a decentralized restoration program have evolved to implement an ecosystem approach and address new challenges