Diverse values of nature for sustainability
- Pascual, Unai, Balvanera, Patricia, Anderson, Christopher B, Chaplin-Kramer, Rebecca, Christie, Michael, González-Jiménez, David, Martin, Adrian, Raymond, Christopher M, Termansen, Mette, Vatn, Arild, Athayde, Simone, Baptiste, Brigitte, Barton, Davin N, Jacobs, Sander, Kelemen, Eszter, Kumar, Ritesh, Lazos, Elena, Mwampamba, Tuyeni H, Nakangu, Barbara, O’Farrell, Patrick, Subramanian, Suneetha M, van Noordwijk, Meine, Ahn, SoEun, Amaruzaman, Sacha, Amin, Ariane M, Arias-Arévalo, Paola, Arroyo-Robles, Gabriela, Cantú-Fernández, Mariana, Castro, Antonio J, Contreras, Victoria, de Vos, Alta, Dendoncker, Nicolas, Engel, Stefanie, Eser, Uta, Faith, Daniel P, Filyushkina, Anna, Ghazi, Houda, Gómez-Baggethun, Erik, Gould, Rachelle K, Guibrunet, Louise, Gundimeda, Haripriya, Hahn, Thomas, Harmáčková, Zuzana V, Hernández-Blanco, Marcello, Horcea-Milcu, Andra-loana, Huambachano, Mariaelena, Wicher, Natalia L H, Aydın, Cem I, Islar, Mine, Koessler, Ann-Kathrin, Kenter, Jasper O, Kosmus, Marina, Lee, Heera, Leimona, Beria, Lele, Sharachchandra, Lenzi, Dominic, Lliso, Bosco, Mannetii, Lelani M, Merçon, Juliana, Monroy-Sais, Ana S, Mukherjee, Nibedita, Muraca, Barbara, Muradian, Roldan, Murali, Ranjini, Nelson, Sara H, Nemogá-Soto, Gabriel R, Ngouhouo-Poufoun, Jonas, Niamir, Aidin, Nuesiri, Emmanuel, Nyumba, Tobias O, Özkaynak, Begüm, Palomo, Ignacio, Pandit, Ram, Pawłowska-Mainville, Agnieszka, Porter-Bolland, Luciano, Quaas, Martin, Rode, Julian, Rozzi, Ricardo, Sachdeva, Sonya, Aibek, Samakov, Schaafsma, Marije, Sitas, Nadia, Ungar, Paula, Yiu, Evonne, Yoshida, Yuki, Zent, Eglee
- Authors: Pascual, Unai , Balvanera, Patricia , Anderson, Christopher B , Chaplin-Kramer, Rebecca , Christie, Michael , González-Jiménez, David , Martin, Adrian , Raymond, Christopher M , Termansen, Mette , Vatn, Arild , Athayde, Simone , Baptiste, Brigitte , Barton, Davin N , Jacobs, Sander , Kelemen, Eszter , Kumar, Ritesh , Lazos, Elena , Mwampamba, Tuyeni H , Nakangu, Barbara , O’Farrell, Patrick , Subramanian, Suneetha M , van Noordwijk, Meine , Ahn, SoEun , Amaruzaman, Sacha , Amin, Ariane M , Arias-Arévalo, Paola , Arroyo-Robles, Gabriela , Cantú-Fernández, Mariana , Castro, Antonio J , Contreras, Victoria , de Vos, Alta , Dendoncker, Nicolas , Engel, Stefanie , Eser, Uta , Faith, Daniel P , Filyushkina, Anna , Ghazi, Houda , Gómez-Baggethun, Erik , Gould, Rachelle K , Guibrunet, Louise , Gundimeda, Haripriya , Hahn, Thomas , Harmáčková, Zuzana V , Hernández-Blanco, Marcello , Horcea-Milcu, Andra-loana , Huambachano, Mariaelena , Wicher, Natalia L H , Aydın, Cem I , Islar, Mine , Koessler, Ann-Kathrin , Kenter, Jasper O , Kosmus, Marina , Lee, Heera , Leimona, Beria , Lele, Sharachchandra , Lenzi, Dominic , Lliso, Bosco , Mannetii, Lelani M , Merçon, Juliana , Monroy-Sais, Ana S , Mukherjee, Nibedita , Muraca, Barbara , Muradian, Roldan , Murali, Ranjini , Nelson, Sara H , Nemogá-Soto, Gabriel R , Ngouhouo-Poufoun, Jonas , Niamir, Aidin , Nuesiri, Emmanuel , Nyumba, Tobias O , Özkaynak, Begüm , Palomo, Ignacio , Pandit, Ram , Pawłowska-Mainville, Agnieszka , Porter-Bolland, Luciano , Quaas, Martin , Rode, Julian , Rozzi, Ricardo , Sachdeva, Sonya , Aibek, Samakov , Schaafsma, Marije , Sitas, Nadia , Ungar, Paula , Yiu, Evonne , Yoshida, Yuki , Zent, Eglee
- Date: 2023
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/415612 , vital:71270 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-023-06406-9"
- Description: Twenty-five years since foundational publications on valuing ecosystem services for human well-being, addressing the global biodiversity crisis still implies confronting barriers to incorporating nature’s diverse values into decision-making. These barriers include powerful interests supported by current norms and legal rules such as property rights, which determine whose values and which values of nature are acted on. A better understanding of how and why nature is (under)valued is more urgent than ever. Notwithstanding agreements to incorporate nature’s values into actions, including the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) and the UN Sustainable Development Goals, predominant environmental and development policies still prioritize a subset of values, particularly those linked to markets, and ignore other ways people relate to and benefit from nature. Arguably, a ‘values crisis’ underpins the intertwined crises of biodiversity loss and climate change, pandemic emergence and socio-environmental injustices. On the basis of more than 50,000 scientifc publications, policy documents and Indigenous and local knowledge sources, the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) assessed knowledge on nature’s diverse values and valuation methods to gain insights into their role in policymaking and fuller integration into decisions. Applying this evidence, combinations of values-centred approaches are proposed to improve valuation and address barriers to uptake, ultimately leveraging transformative changes towards more just (that is, fair treatment of people and nature, including inter- and intragenerational equity) and sustainable futures.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2023
- Authors: Pascual, Unai , Balvanera, Patricia , Anderson, Christopher B , Chaplin-Kramer, Rebecca , Christie, Michael , González-Jiménez, David , Martin, Adrian , Raymond, Christopher M , Termansen, Mette , Vatn, Arild , Athayde, Simone , Baptiste, Brigitte , Barton, Davin N , Jacobs, Sander , Kelemen, Eszter , Kumar, Ritesh , Lazos, Elena , Mwampamba, Tuyeni H , Nakangu, Barbara , O’Farrell, Patrick , Subramanian, Suneetha M , van Noordwijk, Meine , Ahn, SoEun , Amaruzaman, Sacha , Amin, Ariane M , Arias-Arévalo, Paola , Arroyo-Robles, Gabriela , Cantú-Fernández, Mariana , Castro, Antonio J , Contreras, Victoria , de Vos, Alta , Dendoncker, Nicolas , Engel, Stefanie , Eser, Uta , Faith, Daniel P , Filyushkina, Anna , Ghazi, Houda , Gómez-Baggethun, Erik , Gould, Rachelle K , Guibrunet, Louise , Gundimeda, Haripriya , Hahn, Thomas , Harmáčková, Zuzana V , Hernández-Blanco, Marcello , Horcea-Milcu, Andra-loana , Huambachano, Mariaelena , Wicher, Natalia L H , Aydın, Cem I , Islar, Mine , Koessler, Ann-Kathrin , Kenter, Jasper O , Kosmus, Marina , Lee, Heera , Leimona, Beria , Lele, Sharachchandra , Lenzi, Dominic , Lliso, Bosco , Mannetii, Lelani M , Merçon, Juliana , Monroy-Sais, Ana S , Mukherjee, Nibedita , Muraca, Barbara , Muradian, Roldan , Murali, Ranjini , Nelson, Sara H , Nemogá-Soto, Gabriel R , Ngouhouo-Poufoun, Jonas , Niamir, Aidin , Nuesiri, Emmanuel , Nyumba, Tobias O , Özkaynak, Begüm , Palomo, Ignacio , Pandit, Ram , Pawłowska-Mainville, Agnieszka , Porter-Bolland, Luciano , Quaas, Martin , Rode, Julian , Rozzi, Ricardo , Sachdeva, Sonya , Aibek, Samakov , Schaafsma, Marije , Sitas, Nadia , Ungar, Paula , Yiu, Evonne , Yoshida, Yuki , Zent, Eglee
- Date: 2023
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/415612 , vital:71270 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-023-06406-9"
- Description: Twenty-five years since foundational publications on valuing ecosystem services for human well-being, addressing the global biodiversity crisis still implies confronting barriers to incorporating nature’s diverse values into decision-making. These barriers include powerful interests supported by current norms and legal rules such as property rights, which determine whose values and which values of nature are acted on. A better understanding of how and why nature is (under)valued is more urgent than ever. Notwithstanding agreements to incorporate nature’s values into actions, including the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) and the UN Sustainable Development Goals, predominant environmental and development policies still prioritize a subset of values, particularly those linked to markets, and ignore other ways people relate to and benefit from nature. Arguably, a ‘values crisis’ underpins the intertwined crises of biodiversity loss and climate change, pandemic emergence and socio-environmental injustices. On the basis of more than 50,000 scientifc publications, policy documents and Indigenous and local knowledge sources, the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) assessed knowledge on nature’s diverse values and valuation methods to gain insights into their role in policymaking and fuller integration into decisions. Applying this evidence, combinations of values-centred approaches are proposed to improve valuation and address barriers to uptake, ultimately leveraging transformative changes towards more just (that is, fair treatment of people and nature, including inter- and intragenerational equity) and sustainable futures.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2023
Signposts on the road toward transformative governance: how a stronger focus on diverse values can enhance environmental policies
- Keleman, Eszter, Subramanian, Suneetha M, de Vos, Alta, Amaruzaman, Sacha, Porter-Bolland, Luciana, Islar, Mine, Kosmus, Marina, Nakangu, Barbara, Nuesiri, Emmanuel, Robles, Gabriela A, Yiu, Evonne, Emerton, Lucy, Zólyomi, Ágnes
- Authors: Keleman, Eszter , Subramanian, Suneetha M , de Vos, Alta , Amaruzaman, Sacha , Porter-Bolland, Luciana , Islar, Mine , Kosmus, Marina , Nakangu, Barbara , Nuesiri, Emmanuel , Robles, Gabriela A , Yiu, Evonne , Emerton, Lucy , Zólyomi, Ágnes
- Date: 2023
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/415927 , vital:71301 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cosust.2023.101351"
- Description: Transformative change toward sustainability is increasingly recognized as inevitable to avoid the collapse of socioecological systems. However, for a deep and system-wide transformation, governance approaches and policymaking need to be changed too. This paper discusses how a diverse value approach in environmental policymaking could be undertaken to foster transformative governance that can further lead to system-wide transitions. Based on the analysis of different policy options’ transformative potential, we argue that the more diverse values addressed by a policy instrument, the bigger its transformative potential. Weaving values into policy decision-making is possible at several junctures of the policy process, but context-specificities should always be considered, and capacities must be enhanced at all levels, both for public and private actors.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2023
- Authors: Keleman, Eszter , Subramanian, Suneetha M , de Vos, Alta , Amaruzaman, Sacha , Porter-Bolland, Luciana , Islar, Mine , Kosmus, Marina , Nakangu, Barbara , Nuesiri, Emmanuel , Robles, Gabriela A , Yiu, Evonne , Emerton, Lucy , Zólyomi, Ágnes
- Date: 2023
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/415927 , vital:71301 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cosust.2023.101351"
- Description: Transformative change toward sustainability is increasingly recognized as inevitable to avoid the collapse of socioecological systems. However, for a deep and system-wide transformation, governance approaches and policymaking need to be changed too. This paper discusses how a diverse value approach in environmental policymaking could be undertaken to foster transformative governance that can further lead to system-wide transitions. Based on the analysis of different policy options’ transformative potential, we argue that the more diverse values addressed by a policy instrument, the bigger its transformative potential. Weaving values into policy decision-making is possible at several junctures of the policy process, but context-specificities should always be considered, and capacities must be enhanced at all levels, both for public and private actors.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2023
The Southern African Program on Ecosystem Change and Society: an emergent community of practice
- Biggs, Reinette, Reyers, Belinda, Blanchard, Ryan, Clements, Hayley S, Cockburn, Jessica J, Cumming, Graeme S, Cundill, Georgina, de Vos, Alta, Dziba, Luthando E, Esler, Karen J, Fabricius, Christo, Hamann, Maike, Henriksson, Rebecka, Kotschy, Karen, Lindborg, Regina, Luvuno, Linda, Masterson, Vanessa A, Nel, Jeanne L, O'Farrell, Patrick, Palmer, Carolyn G, Pereira, Laura, Pollard, Sharon, Preiser, Rika, Roux, Dirk J, Scholes, Robert J, Selomane, Odirlwe, Shackleton, Charlie M, Shackleton, Sheona E, Sitas, Nadia, Slingsby, Jasper A, Spierenburg, Marja, Tengö, Maria
- Authors: Biggs, Reinette , Reyers, Belinda , Blanchard, Ryan , Clements, Hayley S , Cockburn, Jessica J , Cumming, Graeme S , Cundill, Georgina , de Vos, Alta , Dziba, Luthando E , Esler, Karen J , Fabricius, Christo , Hamann, Maike , Henriksson, Rebecka , Kotschy, Karen , Lindborg, Regina , Luvuno, Linda , Masterson, Vanessa A , Nel, Jeanne L , O'Farrell, Patrick , Palmer, Carolyn G , Pereira, Laura , Pollard, Sharon , Preiser, Rika , Roux, Dirk J , Scholes, Robert J , Selomane, Odirlwe , Shackleton, Charlie M , Shackleton, Sheona E , Sitas, Nadia , Slingsby, Jasper A , Spierenburg, Marja , Tengö, Maria
- Date: 2023
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/401330 , vital:69726 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1080/26395916.2022.2150317"
- Description: Sustainability-focused research networks and communities of practice have emerged as a key response and strategy to build capacity and knowledge to support transformation towards more sustainable, just and equitable futures. This paper synthesises insights from the development of a community of practice on social-ecological systems (SES) research in southern Africa over the past decade, linked to the international Programme on Ecosystem Change and Society (PECS). This community consists of a network of researchers who carry out place-based SES research in the southern African region. They interact through various cross-cutting working groups and also host a variety of public colloquia and student and practitioner training events. Known as the Southern African Program on Ecosystem Change and Society (SAPECS), its core objectives are to: (1) derive new approaches and empirical insights on SES dynamics in the southern African context; (2) have a tangible impact by mainstreaming knowledge into policy and practice; and (3) grow the community of practice engaged in SES research and governance, including researchers, students and practitioners. This paper reflects on experiences in building the SAPECS community, with the aim of supporting the development of similar networks elsewhere in the world, particularly in the Global South.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2023
- Authors: Biggs, Reinette , Reyers, Belinda , Blanchard, Ryan , Clements, Hayley S , Cockburn, Jessica J , Cumming, Graeme S , Cundill, Georgina , de Vos, Alta , Dziba, Luthando E , Esler, Karen J , Fabricius, Christo , Hamann, Maike , Henriksson, Rebecka , Kotschy, Karen , Lindborg, Regina , Luvuno, Linda , Masterson, Vanessa A , Nel, Jeanne L , O'Farrell, Patrick , Palmer, Carolyn G , Pereira, Laura , Pollard, Sharon , Preiser, Rika , Roux, Dirk J , Scholes, Robert J , Selomane, Odirlwe , Shackleton, Charlie M , Shackleton, Sheona E , Sitas, Nadia , Slingsby, Jasper A , Spierenburg, Marja , Tengö, Maria
- Date: 2023
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/401330 , vital:69726 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1080/26395916.2022.2150317"
- Description: Sustainability-focused research networks and communities of practice have emerged as a key response and strategy to build capacity and knowledge to support transformation towards more sustainable, just and equitable futures. This paper synthesises insights from the development of a community of practice on social-ecological systems (SES) research in southern Africa over the past decade, linked to the international Programme on Ecosystem Change and Society (PECS). This community consists of a network of researchers who carry out place-based SES research in the southern African region. They interact through various cross-cutting working groups and also host a variety of public colloquia and student and practitioner training events. Known as the Southern African Program on Ecosystem Change and Society (SAPECS), its core objectives are to: (1) derive new approaches and empirical insights on SES dynamics in the southern African context; (2) have a tangible impact by mainstreaming knowledge into policy and practice; and (3) grow the community of practice engaged in SES research and governance, including researchers, students and practitioners. This paper reflects on experiences in building the SAPECS community, with the aim of supporting the development of similar networks elsewhere in the world, particularly in the Global South.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2023
Drowning in data, thirsty for information and starved for understanding: A biodiversity information hub for cooperative environmental monitoring in South Africa
- MacFadyen, Sandra, Allsopp, Nicky, Altwegg, Res, Archibald, Sally, Botha, Judith, Bradshaw, Karen L, Carruthers, Jane, De Klerk, Helen, de Vos, Alta, Distiller, Greg, Foord, Stefan, Freitag-Ronaldson, Stefanie, Gibbs, Richard, Hamer, Michelle, Landi, Pietro, MacFayden, Duncan, Manuel, Jeffrey, Midgley, Guy, Moncrieff, Glenn, Munch, Zahn, Mutanga, Onisimo, Sershen, Nenguda, Rendani, Ngwenya, Mzabalazo, Parker, Daniel M, Peel, Mike, Power, John, Pretorius, Joachim, Ramdhani, Syd, Robertson, Mark P, Rushworth, Ian, Skowno, Andrew, Slingsby, Jasper, Turner, Andrew, Visser, Vernon, van Wageningen, Gerhard, Hui, Cang
- Authors: MacFadyen, Sandra , Allsopp, Nicky , Altwegg, Res , Archibald, Sally , Botha, Judith , Bradshaw, Karen L , Carruthers, Jane , De Klerk, Helen , de Vos, Alta , Distiller, Greg , Foord, Stefan , Freitag-Ronaldson, Stefanie , Gibbs, Richard , Hamer, Michelle , Landi, Pietro , MacFayden, Duncan , Manuel, Jeffrey , Midgley, Guy , Moncrieff, Glenn , Munch, Zahn , Mutanga, Onisimo , Sershen , Nenguda, Rendani , Ngwenya, Mzabalazo , Parker, Daniel M , Peel, Mike , Power, John , Pretorius, Joachim , Ramdhani, Syd , Robertson, Mark P , Rushworth, Ian , Skowno, Andrew , Slingsby, Jasper , Turner, Andrew , Visser, Vernon , van Wageningen, Gerhard , Hui, Cang
- Date: 2022
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/415624 , vital:71271 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2022.109736"
- Description: The world is firmly cemented in a notitian age (Latin: notitia, meaning data) – drowning in data, yet thirsty for information and the synthesis of knowledge into understanding. As concerns over biodiversity declines escalate, the volume, diversity and speed at which new environmental and ecological data are generated has increased exponentially. Data availability primes the research and discovery engine driving biodiversity conservation. South Africa (SA) is poised to become a world leader in biodiversity conservation. However, continent-wide resource limitations hamper the establishment of inclusive technologies and robust platforms and tools for biodiversity informatics. In this perspectives piece, we bring together the opinions of 37 co-authors from 20 different departments, across 10 SA universities, 7 national and provincial conservation research agencies, and various institutes and private conservation, research and management bodies, to develop a way forward for biodiversity informatics in SA. We propose the development of a SA Biodiversity Informatics Hub and describe the essential components necessary for its design, implementation and sustainability. We emphasise the importance of developing a culture of cooperation, collaboration and interoperability among custodians of biodiversity data to establish operational workflows for data synthesis. However, our biggest challenges are misgivings around data sharing and multidisciplinary collaboration.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2022
- Authors: MacFadyen, Sandra , Allsopp, Nicky , Altwegg, Res , Archibald, Sally , Botha, Judith , Bradshaw, Karen L , Carruthers, Jane , De Klerk, Helen , de Vos, Alta , Distiller, Greg , Foord, Stefan , Freitag-Ronaldson, Stefanie , Gibbs, Richard , Hamer, Michelle , Landi, Pietro , MacFayden, Duncan , Manuel, Jeffrey , Midgley, Guy , Moncrieff, Glenn , Munch, Zahn , Mutanga, Onisimo , Sershen , Nenguda, Rendani , Ngwenya, Mzabalazo , Parker, Daniel M , Peel, Mike , Power, John , Pretorius, Joachim , Ramdhani, Syd , Robertson, Mark P , Rushworth, Ian , Skowno, Andrew , Slingsby, Jasper , Turner, Andrew , Visser, Vernon , van Wageningen, Gerhard , Hui, Cang
- Date: 2022
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/415624 , vital:71271 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2022.109736"
- Description: The world is firmly cemented in a notitian age (Latin: notitia, meaning data) – drowning in data, yet thirsty for information and the synthesis of knowledge into understanding. As concerns over biodiversity declines escalate, the volume, diversity and speed at which new environmental and ecological data are generated has increased exponentially. Data availability primes the research and discovery engine driving biodiversity conservation. South Africa (SA) is poised to become a world leader in biodiversity conservation. However, continent-wide resource limitations hamper the establishment of inclusive technologies and robust platforms and tools for biodiversity informatics. In this perspectives piece, we bring together the opinions of 37 co-authors from 20 different departments, across 10 SA universities, 7 national and provincial conservation research agencies, and various institutes and private conservation, research and management bodies, to develop a way forward for biodiversity informatics in SA. We propose the development of a SA Biodiversity Informatics Hub and describe the essential components necessary for its design, implementation and sustainability. We emphasise the importance of developing a culture of cooperation, collaboration and interoperability among custodians of biodiversity data to establish operational workflows for data synthesis. However, our biggest challenges are misgivings around data sharing and multidisciplinary collaboration.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2022
How many people globally actually use non-timber forest products?
- Shackleton, Charlie M, de Vos, Alta
- Authors: Shackleton, Charlie M , de Vos, Alta
- Date: 2022
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/403200 , vital:69933 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.forpol.2021.102659"
- Description: Non-timber forest products (NTFPs) are widely used wild, biological products harvested from rural and urban landscapes for household subsistence, income and culture, thereby contributing to human wellbeing. Estimates of the numbers of people making use of, or being dependent on, NTFPs vary widely, and global estimates to date have excluded urban populations and also NTFP users in the Global North. Additionally, most global or continental estimates are two or more decades old, and hence do not account for significant worldwide changes in societies, cultures, economies and landscapes since the estimates were made. Here we collate more recent empirical studies reporting the number of NTFP users at fine scales that we extrapolate up for three broad regions, viz. rural areas of the Global South, urban areas of the Global South, and the Global North, as the basis for estimating the number of NTFP users globally. We calculate the lower and upper bounds, as well a median estimate. We find the lowest and median approximations to be 3.5 billion and 5.76 billion users globally, respectively, based on conservative approaches. This is more than double and triple, respectively, the oft cited and dated figure of 1.6 billion. Moreover, we find that only half of the global NTFP users are located in rural regions of the Global South, and that the other half are in urban areas and the Global North, showing that NTFPs are of importance across socio-economic and geographic regions, not just in remote and underdeveloped villages of the Global South. With such large numbers of users around the world, it is imperative that the supply, management, conservation and safeguarding of the values of NTFPs take a more central place in sectoral and development policies.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2022
- Authors: Shackleton, Charlie M , de Vos, Alta
- Date: 2022
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/403200 , vital:69933 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.forpol.2021.102659"
- Description: Non-timber forest products (NTFPs) are widely used wild, biological products harvested from rural and urban landscapes for household subsistence, income and culture, thereby contributing to human wellbeing. Estimates of the numbers of people making use of, or being dependent on, NTFPs vary widely, and global estimates to date have excluded urban populations and also NTFP users in the Global North. Additionally, most global or continental estimates are two or more decades old, and hence do not account for significant worldwide changes in societies, cultures, economies and landscapes since the estimates were made. Here we collate more recent empirical studies reporting the number of NTFP users at fine scales that we extrapolate up for three broad regions, viz. rural areas of the Global South, urban areas of the Global South, and the Global North, as the basis for estimating the number of NTFP users globally. We calculate the lower and upper bounds, as well a median estimate. We find the lowest and median approximations to be 3.5 billion and 5.76 billion users globally, respectively, based on conservative approaches. This is more than double and triple, respectively, the oft cited and dated figure of 1.6 billion. Moreover, we find that only half of the global NTFP users are located in rural regions of the Global South, and that the other half are in urban areas and the Global North, showing that NTFPs are of importance across socio-economic and geographic regions, not just in remote and underdeveloped villages of the Global South. With such large numbers of users around the world, it is imperative that the supply, management, conservation and safeguarding of the values of NTFPs take a more central place in sectoral and development policies.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2022
Landscape drivers of mammal habitat use and richness in a protected area and its surrounding agricultural lands
- Bellón, Beatriz, Henry, Dominic AW, Renaud, Pierre-Cyril, Roque, Fabio de O, Santos, Cyntia Cavalcante, Melo, Isabel, Arvor, Damien, de Vos, Alta
- Authors: Bellón, Beatriz , Henry, Dominic AW , Renaud, Pierre-Cyril , Roque, Fabio de O , Santos, Cyntia Cavalcante , Melo, Isabel , Arvor, Damien , de Vos, Alta
- Date: 2022
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/415873 , vital:71296 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2022.107989"
- Description: Protected areas (PAs) are key to conserving biodiversity and ecosystem services globally, but their effectiveness increasingly depends on the ability of the surrounding agricultural areas to support biodiversity and secure connectivity at the landscape level. This requires monitoring the broader multi-use landscapes in which PAs exist and identifying the landscape characteristics that support rich, functional wildlife communities. Here, we investigated the species richness and habitat use patterns of a mammal community in relation to different landscape variables and land use and land cover (LULC) types in a PA and its surrounding agricultural lands in the Cerrado. We first used a hierarchical multi-species occupancy model with input camera trap data and eight landscape variables (vegetation productivity, phenology, and heterogeneity, distance to water, roads and settlements, and the PA, slope, and elevation) to estimate the species richness and habitat use of 29 mammal species across the landscape. We then analyzed the relationships between the species richness and habitat use and the landscape variables at the site level, as well as the distribution of species at the landscape level in relation to the different natural and agricultural LULC types.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2022
- Authors: Bellón, Beatriz , Henry, Dominic AW , Renaud, Pierre-Cyril , Roque, Fabio de O , Santos, Cyntia Cavalcante , Melo, Isabel , Arvor, Damien , de Vos, Alta
- Date: 2022
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/415873 , vital:71296 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2022.107989"
- Description: Protected areas (PAs) are key to conserving biodiversity and ecosystem services globally, but their effectiveness increasingly depends on the ability of the surrounding agricultural areas to support biodiversity and secure connectivity at the landscape level. This requires monitoring the broader multi-use landscapes in which PAs exist and identifying the landscape characteristics that support rich, functional wildlife communities. Here, we investigated the species richness and habitat use patterns of a mammal community in relation to different landscape variables and land use and land cover (LULC) types in a PA and its surrounding agricultural lands in the Cerrado. We first used a hierarchical multi-species occupancy model with input camera trap data and eight landscape variables (vegetation productivity, phenology, and heterogeneity, distance to water, roads and settlements, and the PA, slope, and elevation) to estimate the species richness and habitat use of 29 mammal species across the landscape. We then analyzed the relationships between the species richness and habitat use and the landscape variables at the site level, as well as the distribution of species at the landscape level in relation to the different natural and agricultural LULC types.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2022
Lessons from COVID-19 for wildlife ranching in a changing world
- Clements, Hayley S, Child, Matthew F, Lindeque, Lehman, Lunderstedt, Kyra, de Vos, Alta
- Authors: Clements, Hayley S , Child, Matthew F , Lindeque, Lehman , Lunderstedt, Kyra , de Vos, Alta
- Date: 2022
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/415886 , vital:71297 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-022-00961-1"
- Description: The COVID-19 pandemic provided an opportunity to assess the impacts of a global disturbance on conservation land uses and learn from responses to the crisis to enable more resilient conservation systems. To understand socio-economic responses of diverse wildlife working lands to COVID-19, we surveyed owners and managers of 78 private wildlife ranches (wildlife working lands), 23 agricultural farms (conventional working lands) and six public protected areas (conventional conservation lands) in South Africa. Most protected areas lost more than 75% of their revenues during 2020, while most agricultural farms lost less than 10%. The impact on wildlife ranches was more varied. Ranches with more diverse activities, particularly mixed wildlife–agriculture systems, lost less revenue, shifting their activities from those heavily impacted (international ecotourism, trophy hunting) to those less afected (for example, wildlife meat, livestock). This adaptive capacity suggests that wildlife-based enterprises could represent key ecosystem-based adaptations, providing lessons for integrated global policies that seek to incorporate private land models in the 2030 Biodiversity Framework.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2022
- Authors: Clements, Hayley S , Child, Matthew F , Lindeque, Lehman , Lunderstedt, Kyra , de Vos, Alta
- Date: 2022
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/415886 , vital:71297 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-022-00961-1"
- Description: The COVID-19 pandemic provided an opportunity to assess the impacts of a global disturbance on conservation land uses and learn from responses to the crisis to enable more resilient conservation systems. To understand socio-economic responses of diverse wildlife working lands to COVID-19, we surveyed owners and managers of 78 private wildlife ranches (wildlife working lands), 23 agricultural farms (conventional working lands) and six public protected areas (conventional conservation lands) in South Africa. Most protected areas lost more than 75% of their revenues during 2020, while most agricultural farms lost less than 10%. The impact on wildlife ranches was more varied. Ranches with more diverse activities, particularly mixed wildlife–agriculture systems, lost less revenue, shifting their activities from those heavily impacted (international ecotourism, trophy hunting) to those less afected (for example, wildlife meat, livestock). This adaptive capacity suggests that wildlife-based enterprises could represent key ecosystem-based adaptations, providing lessons for integrated global policies that seek to incorporate private land models in the 2030 Biodiversity Framework.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2022
Social-ecological change: insights from the Southern African Program on Ecosystem Change and Society
- Biggs, Reinette, Clements, Hayley S, Cumming, Graeme S, Cundill, Georgina, de Vos, Alta, Hamann, Maike, Luvuno, Linda, Roux, Dirk J, Selomane, Odirlwe, Blanchard, Ryan, Cockburn, Jessica J, Dziba, Luthando E, Esler, Karen J, Fabricius, Christo, Henriksson, Rebecka, Kotschy, Karen, Lindborg, Regina, Masterson, Vanessa A, Nel, Jeanne L, O'Farrell, Patrick, Palmer, Carolyn G, Pereira, Laura, Pollard, Sharon, Preiser, Rika, Scholes, Robert J, Shackleton, Charlie M, Shackleton, Sheona E, Sitas, Nadia, Slingsby, Jasper A, Spierenburg, Maria, Tengö, Maria, Reyers, Belinda
- Authors: Biggs, Reinette , Clements, Hayley S , Cumming, Graeme S , Cundill, Georgina , de Vos, Alta , Hamann, Maike , Luvuno, Linda , Roux, Dirk J , Selomane, Odirlwe , Blanchard, Ryan , Cockburn, Jessica J , Dziba, Luthando E , Esler, Karen J , Fabricius, Christo , Henriksson, Rebecka , Kotschy, Karen , Lindborg, Regina , Masterson, Vanessa A , Nel, Jeanne L , O'Farrell, Patrick , Palmer, Carolyn G , Pereira, Laura , Pollard, Sharon , Preiser, Rika , Scholes, Robert J , Shackleton, Charlie M , Shackleton, Sheona E , Sitas, Nadia , Slingsby, Jasper A , Spierenburg, Maria , Tengö, Maria , Reyers, Belinda
- Date: 2022
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/399817 , vital:69561 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1080/26395916.2022.2097478"
- Description: Social-ecological systems (SES) research has emerged as an important area of sustainability science, informing and supporting pressing issues of transformation towards more sustainable, just and equitable futures. To date, much SES research has been done in or from the Global North, where the challenges and contexts for supporting sustainability transformations are substantially different from the Global South. This paper synthesises emerging insights on SES dynamics that can inform actions and advance research to support sustainability transformations specifically in the southern African context. The paper draws on work linked to members of the Southern African Program on Ecosystem Change and Society (SAPECS), a leading SES research network in the region, synthesizing key insights with respect to the five core themes of SAPECS: (i) transdisciplinary and engaged research, (ii) ecosystem services and human well-being, (iii) governance institutions and management practices, (iv) spatial relationships and cross-scale connections, and (v) regime shifts, traps and transformations. For each theme, we focus on insights that are particularly novel, interesting or important in the southern African context, and reflect on key research gaps and emerging frontiers for SES research in the region going forward. Such place-based insights are important for understanding the variation in SES dynamics around the world, and are crucial for informing a context-sensitive global agenda to foster sustainability transformations at local to global scales.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2022
Social-ecological change: insights from the Southern African Program on Ecosystem Change and Society
- Authors: Biggs, Reinette , Clements, Hayley S , Cumming, Graeme S , Cundill, Georgina , de Vos, Alta , Hamann, Maike , Luvuno, Linda , Roux, Dirk J , Selomane, Odirlwe , Blanchard, Ryan , Cockburn, Jessica J , Dziba, Luthando E , Esler, Karen J , Fabricius, Christo , Henriksson, Rebecka , Kotschy, Karen , Lindborg, Regina , Masterson, Vanessa A , Nel, Jeanne L , O'Farrell, Patrick , Palmer, Carolyn G , Pereira, Laura , Pollard, Sharon , Preiser, Rika , Scholes, Robert J , Shackleton, Charlie M , Shackleton, Sheona E , Sitas, Nadia , Slingsby, Jasper A , Spierenburg, Maria , Tengö, Maria , Reyers, Belinda
- Date: 2022
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/399817 , vital:69561 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1080/26395916.2022.2097478"
- Description: Social-ecological systems (SES) research has emerged as an important area of sustainability science, informing and supporting pressing issues of transformation towards more sustainable, just and equitable futures. To date, much SES research has been done in or from the Global North, where the challenges and contexts for supporting sustainability transformations are substantially different from the Global South. This paper synthesises emerging insights on SES dynamics that can inform actions and advance research to support sustainability transformations specifically in the southern African context. The paper draws on work linked to members of the Southern African Program on Ecosystem Change and Society (SAPECS), a leading SES research network in the region, synthesizing key insights with respect to the five core themes of SAPECS: (i) transdisciplinary and engaged research, (ii) ecosystem services and human well-being, (iii) governance institutions and management practices, (iv) spatial relationships and cross-scale connections, and (v) regime shifts, traps and transformations. For each theme, we focus on insights that are particularly novel, interesting or important in the southern African context, and reflect on key research gaps and emerging frontiers for SES research in the region going forward. Such place-based insights are important for understanding the variation in SES dynamics around the world, and are crucial for informing a context-sensitive global agenda to foster sustainability transformations at local to global scales.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2022
Towards SDG 15.3: The biome context as the appropriate degradation monitoring dimension
- Xoxo, Sinetemba, Mantel, Sukhmani K, de Vos, Alta, Mahlaba, Bawinile, le Maître, David, Tanner, Jane L
- Authors: Xoxo, Sinetemba , Mantel, Sukhmani K , de Vos, Alta , Mahlaba, Bawinile , le Maître, David , Tanner, Jane L
- Date: 2022
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/415961 , vital:71304 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envsci.2022.07.008"
- Description: Accurate and reliable estimation of terrestrial ecosystem degradation is critical to meeting the challenge of reversing land degradation. Remote sensing data (especially land productivity dynamics) is commonly used to estimate land degradation, and this study uses the TRENDS.EARTH toolbox for the period covering 2000–2018, demonstrating the benefit of tracking the degradation process (SDG 15.3.1) at a biophysical unit. Contributing to the country’s SDG 15.3.1 monitoring, anthropogenic degradation was estimated based on RESTREND land productivity, biome-specific land cover trends, and soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks. Underlying degradation was evaluated by reclassifying a 28-year national land cover change dataset to match the UNCCD land cover legend. Analysis results indicate that land productivity changes (especially in stable grasslands, afforested, and cropland areas) mainly influenced the degradation status of the biome (19.9% degraded and 25.6% improvement). Global datasets also suggest that land cover and SOC had a minimal contribution (more than 2%) to anthropogenic degradation dynamics in the biome between 2000 and 2018. The GIS analysis showed that long-term, the major contributors to the biome’s underlying 9% anthropogenic degradation were woody proliferation into the Grassland Biome, urban expansion, and wetland drainage.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2022
- Authors: Xoxo, Sinetemba , Mantel, Sukhmani K , de Vos, Alta , Mahlaba, Bawinile , le Maître, David , Tanner, Jane L
- Date: 2022
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/415961 , vital:71304 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envsci.2022.07.008"
- Description: Accurate and reliable estimation of terrestrial ecosystem degradation is critical to meeting the challenge of reversing land degradation. Remote sensing data (especially land productivity dynamics) is commonly used to estimate land degradation, and this study uses the TRENDS.EARTH toolbox for the period covering 2000–2018, demonstrating the benefit of tracking the degradation process (SDG 15.3.1) at a biophysical unit. Contributing to the country’s SDG 15.3.1 monitoring, anthropogenic degradation was estimated based on RESTREND land productivity, biome-specific land cover trends, and soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks. Underlying degradation was evaluated by reclassifying a 28-year national land cover change dataset to match the UNCCD land cover legend. Analysis results indicate that land productivity changes (especially in stable grasslands, afforested, and cropland areas) mainly influenced the degradation status of the biome (19.9% degraded and 25.6% improvement). Global datasets also suggest that land cover and SOC had a minimal contribution (more than 2%) to anthropogenic degradation dynamics in the biome between 2000 and 2018. The GIS analysis showed that long-term, the major contributors to the biome’s underlying 9% anthropogenic degradation were woody proliferation into the Grassland Biome, urban expansion, and wetland drainage.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2022
Futures analysis
- Hichert, Tanya, Biggs, Reinette, de Vos, Alta
- Authors: Hichert, Tanya , Biggs, Reinette , de Vos, Alta
- Date: 2021
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , book chapter
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/433871 , vital:73006 , ISBN 9781000401516 , https://library.oapen.org/handle/20.500.12657/49560
- Description: Futures analysis methods can help people to think constructively and systematically about the future and advance our understanding of change and uncertainty in complex social-ecological systems (SES). This is important because there is not one single predictable future but multiple ones, depending on the complex, unpredictable interplays and interactions of actors, institutions, ecological processes and other elements of the system and its dynamics. Actively developing ideas, images and/or stories about different futures can enable us to make different choices and take different actions in the present in relation to, for example, risk mitigation, adaptation, resource allocation and strategy development, which can help build more sustainable and just futures.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021
- Authors: Hichert, Tanya , Biggs, Reinette , de Vos, Alta
- Date: 2021
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , book chapter
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/433871 , vital:73006 , ISBN 9781000401516 , https://library.oapen.org/handle/20.500.12657/49560
- Description: Futures analysis methods can help people to think constructively and systematically about the future and advance our understanding of change and uncertainty in complex social-ecological systems (SES). This is important because there is not one single predictable future but multiple ones, depending on the complex, unpredictable interplays and interactions of actors, institutions, ecological processes and other elements of the system and its dynamics. Actively developing ideas, images and/or stories about different futures can enable us to make different choices and take different actions in the present in relation to, for example, risk mitigation, adaptation, resource allocation and strategy development, which can help build more sustainable and just futures.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021
Participatory data collection
- de Vos, Alta, Preiser, Rika, Masterson, Vanessa A
- Authors: de Vos, Alta , Preiser, Rika , Masterson, Vanessa A
- Date: 2021
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , book chapter
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/433842 , vital:73004 , ISBN 9781000401516 , https://library.oapen.org/handle/20.500.12657/49560
- Description: Participatory mapping (direct-to-digital participatory mapping, 3D-participatory mapping, participatory GIS), photovoice, transect walks, ranking exercises, focus group discussions, Venn diagrams, matrix scoring, ecograms, timelines, Q-methodology, community mapping, participatory videography, photo elicitation, seasonal calendars, participatory action research, participatory rural appraisal, participant observation, arts-based methods.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021
- Authors: de Vos, Alta , Preiser, Rika , Masterson, Vanessa A
- Date: 2021
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , book chapter
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/433842 , vital:73004 , ISBN 9781000401516 , https://library.oapen.org/handle/20.500.12657/49560
- Description: Participatory mapping (direct-to-digital participatory mapping, 3D-participatory mapping, participatory GIS), photovoice, transect walks, ranking exercises, focus group discussions, Venn diagrams, matrix scoring, ecograms, timelines, Q-methodology, community mapping, participatory videography, photo elicitation, seasonal calendars, participatory action research, participatory rural appraisal, participant observation, arts-based methods.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021
Scenario development
- Hichert, Tanya, Biggs, Reinette, de Vos, Alta, Peterson, Garry
- Authors: Hichert, Tanya , Biggs, Reinette , de Vos, Alta , Peterson, Garry
- Date: 2021
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , book chapter
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/433857 , vital:73005 , ISBN 9781000401516 , https://library.oapen.org/handle/20.500.12657/49560
- Description: Scenario development connects to various other methods, but in particular to futures analysis (Chapter 10) as it is also regarded as a futures analysis method. It warrants a separate chapter in addition to the other futures analysis methods (described in Chapter 10) because of its importance and widespread use. Scenario development also connects to facilitated dialogues (Chapter 9), serious games (Chapter 12), participatory modelling and planning (Chapter 13), dynamical systems modelling (Chapter 26) and agent-based modelling (Chapter 28).
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021
- Authors: Hichert, Tanya , Biggs, Reinette , de Vos, Alta , Peterson, Garry
- Date: 2021
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , book chapter
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/433857 , vital:73005 , ISBN 9781000401516 , https://library.oapen.org/handle/20.500.12657/49560
- Description: Scenario development connects to various other methods, but in particular to futures analysis (Chapter 10) as it is also regarded as a futures analysis method. It warrants a separate chapter in addition to the other futures analysis methods (described in Chapter 10) because of its importance and widespread use. Scenario development also connects to facilitated dialogues (Chapter 9), serious games (Chapter 12), participatory modelling and planning (Chapter 13), dynamical systems modelling (Chapter 26) and agent-based modelling (Chapter 28).
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021
Synthesis and emerging frontiers in social-ecological systems research methods
- Schluter, Maja, Biggs, Reinette, Clements, Hayley, de Vos, Alta, Maciejewski, Kristine, Preiser, Rika
- Authors: Schluter, Maja , Biggs, Reinette , Clements, Hayley , de Vos, Alta , Maciejewski, Kristine , Preiser, Rika
- Date: 2021
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , book chapter
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/433887 , vital:73007 , ISBN 9781000401516 , https://library.oapen.org/handle/20.500.12657/49560
- Description: Social-ecological systems (SES) research is a rapidly emerging new research domain within the broader emerging area of sustainability science. It is largely a problem-driven and action-oriented field, motivated by the immense sustainability and equity-related challenges facing society (see Chapter 1). Social-ecological systems research is based on an understanding that SES are complex adaptive systems (CAS), where social and ecological dynamics are deeply intertwined, and give rise to features and problems that cannot be understood or addressed by studying these dimensions in isolation (see Chapter 2). The field draws on and combines methods from both natural and social sciences, and combines quantitative and qualitative approaches. As such, SES research is characterised by epistemological and methodological pluralism, which is challenging for those entering the field and has complex implications for the research process, methods and ethical considerations to be taken into account in SES research (see Chapter 3). This book aims to clarify and synthesise this plurality by providing an introduction to SES research (Part 1), and the diversity of methods currently used in the field (Part 2). The aim of this final chapter (Part 3) is to provide a synthesis of the current landscape of SES methods, critically reflect on the methods with respect to their ability to address systemic features of SES and discuss some of the most common methodological challenges associated with the complex adaptive and intertwined nature of SES. Based on this synthesis, we identify methodological gaps and discuss novel methods and method combinations that may help to address these gaps and move the field forward.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021
- Authors: Schluter, Maja , Biggs, Reinette , Clements, Hayley , de Vos, Alta , Maciejewski, Kristine , Preiser, Rika
- Date: 2021
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , book chapter
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/433887 , vital:73007 , ISBN 9781000401516 , https://library.oapen.org/handle/20.500.12657/49560
- Description: Social-ecological systems (SES) research is a rapidly emerging new research domain within the broader emerging area of sustainability science. It is largely a problem-driven and action-oriented field, motivated by the immense sustainability and equity-related challenges facing society (see Chapter 1). Social-ecological systems research is based on an understanding that SES are complex adaptive systems (CAS), where social and ecological dynamics are deeply intertwined, and give rise to features and problems that cannot be understood or addressed by studying these dimensions in isolation (see Chapter 2). The field draws on and combines methods from both natural and social sciences, and combines quantitative and qualitative approaches. As such, SES research is characterised by epistemological and methodological pluralism, which is challenging for those entering the field and has complex implications for the research process, methods and ethical considerations to be taken into account in SES research (see Chapter 3). This book aims to clarify and synthesise this plurality by providing an introduction to SES research (Part 1), and the diversity of methods currently used in the field (Part 2). The aim of this final chapter (Part 3) is to provide a synthesis of the current landscape of SES methods, critically reflect on the methods with respect to their ability to address systemic features of SES and discuss some of the most common methodological challenges associated with the complex adaptive and intertwined nature of SES. Based on this synthesis, we identify methodological gaps and discuss novel methods and method combinations that may help to address these gaps and move the field forward.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021
The influence of biophysical and socio-economic factors on the effectiveness of private land conservation areas in preventing natural land cover loss across South Africa
- Shumba, Tafadzwa, de Vos, Alta, Biggs, Reinette, Esler, Karen J, Clements, Hayley S
- Authors: Shumba, Tafadzwa , de Vos, Alta , Biggs, Reinette , Esler, Karen J , Clements, Hayley S
- Date: 2021
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/415940 , vital:71302 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gecco.2021.e01670"
- Description: There is increasing interest in the potential of private land conservation areas (PLCAs) as a complementary biodiversity conservation strategy to state-owned protected areas. However, there is limited understanding of how the diverse social-ecological contexts of PLCAs influence their effectiveness in conserving biodiversity. Here, we investigated how the effectiveness of South African PLCAs in conserving biodiversity varied across social-ecological contexts, using natural land cover as a proxy. Social-ecological contexts were represented by biophysical and legal factors (distance to towns and roads, elevation, slope, terrain ruggedness, rainfall, PLCA size, distance to state-owned national parks, and presence of legal protection) and, for a subset of commercially-operated PLCAs, management factors (adopted business model, and profitability).
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021
- Authors: Shumba, Tafadzwa , de Vos, Alta , Biggs, Reinette , Esler, Karen J , Clements, Hayley S
- Date: 2021
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/415940 , vital:71302 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gecco.2021.e01670"
- Description: There is increasing interest in the potential of private land conservation areas (PLCAs) as a complementary biodiversity conservation strategy to state-owned protected areas. However, there is limited understanding of how the diverse social-ecological contexts of PLCAs influence their effectiveness in conserving biodiversity. Here, we investigated how the effectiveness of South African PLCAs in conserving biodiversity varied across social-ecological contexts, using natural land cover as a proxy. Social-ecological contexts were represented by biophysical and legal factors (distance to towns and roads, elevation, slope, terrain ruggedness, rainfall, PLCA size, distance to state-owned national parks, and presence of legal protection) and, for a subset of commercially-operated PLCAs, management factors (adopted business model, and profitability).
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021
The practice and design of social-ecological systems research
- de Vos, Alta, Maciejewski, Kristine, Bodin, Orjan, Norstrom, Albert, Schluter, Maja, Tengo, Maria
- Authors: de Vos, Alta , Maciejewski, Kristine , Bodin, Orjan , Norstrom, Albert , Schluter, Maja , Tengo, Maria
- Date: 2021
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , book chapter
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/433826 , vital:73003 , ISBN 9781000401516 , https://library.oapen.org/handle/20.500.12657/49560
- Description: Studying social-ecological systems (SES) can be a challenging task, as explained in Chapter 2. Phenomena of interest and characteristics of SES research result from both social and ecological processes, and complicated feedback dynamics blur the distinction between cause and effect (Young et al. 2006). Furthermore, multiple causal processes may be operating simultaneously, outcomes are strongly influenced by the system’s context and it is difficult to determine system boundaries (Bodin and Prell 2011).
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021
- Authors: de Vos, Alta , Maciejewski, Kristine , Bodin, Orjan , Norstrom, Albert , Schluter, Maja , Tengo, Maria
- Date: 2021
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , book chapter
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/433826 , vital:73003 , ISBN 9781000401516 , https://library.oapen.org/handle/20.500.12657/49560
- Description: Studying social-ecological systems (SES) can be a challenging task, as explained in Chapter 2. Phenomena of interest and characteristics of SES research result from both social and ecological processes, and complicated feedback dynamics blur the distinction between cause and effect (Young et al. 2006). Furthermore, multiple causal processes may be operating simultaneously, outcomes are strongly influenced by the system’s context and it is difficult to determine system boundaries (Bodin and Prell 2011).
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021
What are social-ecological systems and social-ecological systems research
- Biggs, Reinette, Clements, Hayley, de Vos, Alta, Folke, Carl, Manyani, Amanda, Maciejewski, Kristine, Martin-Lopez, Berta, Preiser, Rika, Selomane, Odirilwe, Schluter, Maja
- Authors: Biggs, Reinette , Clements, Hayley , de Vos, Alta , Folke, Carl , Manyani, Amanda , Maciejewski, Kristine , Martin-Lopez, Berta , Preiser, Rika , Selomane, Odirilwe , Schluter, Maja
- Date: 2021
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , book chapter
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/433900 , vital:73008 , ISBN 9781000401516 , https://library.oapen.org/handle/20.500.12657/49560
- Description: The period since the Second World War has been marked by rapid and accelerating changes to many aspects of human society and the environment (Clark, Crutzen, and Schellnhuber 2004; Steffen et al. 2011; Steffen et al. 2015a). There is accumulating evidence and rising concern about the potential consequences these changes hold for key Earth system processes at a global scale, and human well-being and prosperity into the future (Krausmann et al. 2013; Steffen et al. 2015b). The Anthropocene, as this new era of extensive human impact on the Earth has come to be known (Crutzen 2006), manifests in a closely intertwined set of social and ecological changes. Technological advances, increasing human population, rising levels of wealth and consumption, and the institutional arrangements we have developed to govern our economies and societies interplay with one another, and drastically affect the Earth’s climate, biological diversity, fresh-water and biogeochemical flows, and levels of novel pollutants in the environment (Steffen et al. 2015a). These environmental changes, in turn, contribute to increasingly frequent and severe droughts (Dai 2013; Trenberth et al. 2014), floods (Milly et al. 2002; Nicholls 2004), heatwaves (Guo et al. 2018; Oliver et al. 2018) and the emergence of novel pathogens such as SARS-CoV-2 (Everard et al. 2020; O ’Callaghan-Gordo and Antò 2020; Schmeller, Courchamp, and Killeen 2020) that can lead to massive societal disruption and hardship, especially among the poor (Wheeler and Von Braun 2013; Barbier and Hochard 2018).
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021
- Authors: Biggs, Reinette , Clements, Hayley , de Vos, Alta , Folke, Carl , Manyani, Amanda , Maciejewski, Kristine , Martin-Lopez, Berta , Preiser, Rika , Selomane, Odirilwe , Schluter, Maja
- Date: 2021
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , book chapter
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/433900 , vital:73008 , ISBN 9781000401516 , https://library.oapen.org/handle/20.500.12657/49560
- Description: The period since the Second World War has been marked by rapid and accelerating changes to many aspects of human society and the environment (Clark, Crutzen, and Schellnhuber 2004; Steffen et al. 2011; Steffen et al. 2015a). There is accumulating evidence and rising concern about the potential consequences these changes hold for key Earth system processes at a global scale, and human well-being and prosperity into the future (Krausmann et al. 2013; Steffen et al. 2015b). The Anthropocene, as this new era of extensive human impact on the Earth has come to be known (Crutzen 2006), manifests in a closely intertwined set of social and ecological changes. Technological advances, increasing human population, rising levels of wealth and consumption, and the institutional arrangements we have developed to govern our economies and societies interplay with one another, and drastically affect the Earth’s climate, biological diversity, fresh-water and biogeochemical flows, and levels of novel pollutants in the environment (Steffen et al. 2015a). These environmental changes, in turn, contribute to increasingly frequent and severe droughts (Dai 2013; Trenberth et al. 2014), floods (Milly et al. 2002; Nicholls 2004), heatwaves (Guo et al. 2018; Oliver et al. 2018) and the emergence of novel pathogens such as SARS-CoV-2 (Everard et al. 2020; O ’Callaghan-Gordo and Antò 2020; Schmeller, Courchamp, and Killeen 2020) that can lead to massive societal disruption and hardship, especially among the poor (Wheeler and Von Braun 2013; Barbier and Hochard 2018).
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021
Effectiveness of private land conservation areas in maintaining natural land cover and biodiversity intactness
- Shumba, Tafadzwa, de Vos, Alta, Biggs, Reinette, Esler, Karen J, Ament, Judith M, Clements, Hayley S
- Authors: Shumba, Tafadzwa , de Vos, Alta , Biggs, Reinette , Esler, Karen J , Ament, Judith M , Clements, Hayley S
- Date: 2020
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/415852 , vital:71294 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gecco.2020.e00935"
- Description: Private land conservation areas (PLCAs) are increasingly looked to for meeting the deficit left by state-owned protected areas in reaching global conservation targets. However, despite the increasing extent and recognition of PLCAs as a complementary conservation strategy, little research has been done to quantify their effectiveness; a critical consideration if they are to be counted towards international biodiversity conservation targets. The long history of PLCAs in South Africa provides an interesting case study to address this knowledge gap. Here, we quantified the effectiveness of South African PLCAs by comparing losses in natural land cover and biodiversity intactness within PLCAs with different levels of protection to that of unprotected control points. Points within PLCAs were matched with unprotected control points to test the prediction that if PLCAs offer effective protection, losses in natural land cover and biodiversity intactness would be significantly lower within their boundaries in comparison to unprotected controls exposed to similar conditions. Consequences of natural land cover loss on biodiversity intactness were thus assessed, thus advancing standard approaches for quantifying effectiveness.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2020
- Authors: Shumba, Tafadzwa , de Vos, Alta , Biggs, Reinette , Esler, Karen J , Ament, Judith M , Clements, Hayley S
- Date: 2020
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/415852 , vital:71294 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gecco.2020.e00935"
- Description: Private land conservation areas (PLCAs) are increasingly looked to for meeting the deficit left by state-owned protected areas in reaching global conservation targets. However, despite the increasing extent and recognition of PLCAs as a complementary conservation strategy, little research has been done to quantify their effectiveness; a critical consideration if they are to be counted towards international biodiversity conservation targets. The long history of PLCAs in South Africa provides an interesting case study to address this knowledge gap. Here, we quantified the effectiveness of South African PLCAs by comparing losses in natural land cover and biodiversity intactness within PLCAs with different levels of protection to that of unprotected control points. Points within PLCAs were matched with unprotected control points to test the prediction that if PLCAs offer effective protection, losses in natural land cover and biodiversity intactness would be significantly lower within their boundaries in comparison to unprotected controls exposed to similar conditions. Consequences of natural land cover loss on biodiversity intactness were thus assessed, thus advancing standard approaches for quantifying effectiveness.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2020
Cost-effectiveness of public policy for the long‐term conservation of private lands: What is the deal?
- Nolte, Christopher, de Vos, Alta, Schöttker, Olivier
- Authors: Nolte, Christopher , de Vos, Alta , Schöttker, Olivier
- Date: 2019
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/415837 , vital:71293 , xlink:href="https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/cost-effectiveness-public-policy-long-term/docview/2326874018/se-2"
- Description: Long-term strategies for private-land conservation are experiencing a surge in scholarly attention. This interest is timely and justified. Globally, many important biodiversity values occur on private lands and are therefore subject to private land use decisions that can threaten their persistence in the absence of protection. Public and private actors spend billions of dollars annually to ensure the long-term protection and enhancement of public ecosystem services on private lands. Many governments recognize and strengthen “privately protected areas” (PPAs) as part of long-term protection obligations under the Aichi Biodiversity Targets (Stolton, Redford, and Dudley, 2014). As public policy makers deliberate over the best strategies to enhance private-land protection, they need to understand how cost-effective these different policy options are, and how they compare to each other.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
- Authors: Nolte, Christopher , de Vos, Alta , Schöttker, Olivier
- Date: 2019
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/415837 , vital:71293 , xlink:href="https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/cost-effectiveness-public-policy-long-term/docview/2326874018/se-2"
- Description: Long-term strategies for private-land conservation are experiencing a surge in scholarly attention. This interest is timely and justified. Globally, many important biodiversity values occur on private lands and are therefore subject to private land use decisions that can threaten their persistence in the absence of protection. Public and private actors spend billions of dollars annually to ensure the long-term protection and enhancement of public ecosystem services on private lands. Many governments recognize and strengthen “privately protected areas” (PPAs) as part of long-term protection obligations under the Aichi Biodiversity Targets (Stolton, Redford, and Dudley, 2014). As public policy makers deliberate over the best strategies to enhance private-land protection, they need to understand how cost-effective these different policy options are, and how they compare to each other.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
Exploring and expanding transdisciplinary research for sustainable and just natural resource management
- Finca, Andiswa, Wolff, Margaret G, Cockburn, Jessica J, de Wet, Christopher J, Bezerra, Joana C, Weaver, Matthew J T, de Vos, Alta, Ralekhetla, Mateboho M, Libala, Notiswa, Mkabile, Qawekazi B, Odume, Oghenekaro N, Palmer, Carolyn G
- Authors: Finca, Andiswa , Wolff, Margaret G , Cockburn, Jessica J , de Wet, Christopher J , Bezerra, Joana C , Weaver, Matthew J T , de Vos, Alta , Ralekhetla, Mateboho M , Libala, Notiswa , Mkabile, Qawekazi B , Odume, Oghenekaro N , Palmer, Carolyn G
- Date: 2019
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/416307 , vital:71337 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-11077-240414"
- Description: Transdisciplinarity is gaining acceptance in sustainability science research as an approach to work across disparate types of knowledge and practices in order to tackle complex social-ecological problems. On paper, transdisciplinarity appears to be substantially helpful, but in practice, participants may remain voiceless and disadvantaged. In this paper, we retrospectively investigate four case studies using recent design principles for transdisciplinary research, to explore a deeper understanding of the practical successes and failures of transdisciplinary research engagement. We show that the transdisciplinary way of working is time consuming, challenging, and insists that researchers and participants contribute reflexively. Careful attention to research design and methodology is central. The acceptance that complexity renders knowledge provisional, and complete honesty about the purpose of the research are critical to building relationships between researchers and participants. Gaining an understanding of the values people hold influences the research process and the possible outcomes toward sustainable and just natural resource management. We suggest that in order to enable sustainable and just natural resource management, transdisciplinary research should include values and ethics in the design, implementation, and reporting of projects.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
- Authors: Finca, Andiswa , Wolff, Margaret G , Cockburn, Jessica J , de Wet, Christopher J , Bezerra, Joana C , Weaver, Matthew J T , de Vos, Alta , Ralekhetla, Mateboho M , Libala, Notiswa , Mkabile, Qawekazi B , Odume, Oghenekaro N , Palmer, Carolyn G
- Date: 2019
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/416307 , vital:71337 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-11077-240414"
- Description: Transdisciplinarity is gaining acceptance in sustainability science research as an approach to work across disparate types of knowledge and practices in order to tackle complex social-ecological problems. On paper, transdisciplinarity appears to be substantially helpful, but in practice, participants may remain voiceless and disadvantaged. In this paper, we retrospectively investigate four case studies using recent design principles for transdisciplinary research, to explore a deeper understanding of the practical successes and failures of transdisciplinary research engagement. We show that the transdisciplinary way of working is time consuming, challenging, and insists that researchers and participants contribute reflexively. Careful attention to research design and methodology is central. The acceptance that complexity renders knowledge provisional, and complete honesty about the purpose of the research are critical to building relationships between researchers and participants. Gaining an understanding of the values people hold influences the research process and the possible outcomes toward sustainable and just natural resource management. We suggest that in order to enable sustainable and just natural resource management, transdisciplinary research should include values and ethics in the design, implementation, and reporting of projects.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
Methods for understanding social-ecological systems: a review of place-based studies
- de Vos, Alta, Biggs, Reinette, Preiser, Rika
- Authors: de Vos, Alta , Biggs, Reinette , Preiser, Rika
- Date: 2019
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/415909 , vital:71299 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-11236-240416"
- Description: In recent years, social-ecological systems (SES) have emerged as a prominent analytical framing with which to investigate pressing sustainability issues associated with the Anthropocene era. Despite the growth of SES research, the lack of a delineated set of methods commonly contributes to disorientation for those entering into a field where methodological pluralism is the norm. We conduct a review of SES research, focusing particularly on methods used in this field. Our results reflect the rapid growth in SES research relative to other publications in relevant subject areas, and suggest a maturation of the field. Whilst institutions investigating SES have been mostly based in the global north, focal SES has been more globally distributed, although key regions, especially island regions, remain poorly studied. Key problems addressed in the studies related to policy, trade, conservation, adaptation, land use change, water, forests, sustainability, urban problems, and governance and institutions. We identified 311 methods, which we grouped into 27 method categories that can serve as a guide to SES research methods for newcomers to the field. We also performed an exploratory assessment of the ability of these methods to account for key features of SES as complex adaptive systems. We found that methods do better at accounting for the relational and context-dependent nature of SES, and least well with complex causality. Our study highlights the plurality of methods used in SES research, and helps highlight key areas in need of further methodological development.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
- Authors: de Vos, Alta , Biggs, Reinette , Preiser, Rika
- Date: 2019
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/415909 , vital:71299 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-11236-240416"
- Description: In recent years, social-ecological systems (SES) have emerged as a prominent analytical framing with which to investigate pressing sustainability issues associated with the Anthropocene era. Despite the growth of SES research, the lack of a delineated set of methods commonly contributes to disorientation for those entering into a field where methodological pluralism is the norm. We conduct a review of SES research, focusing particularly on methods used in this field. Our results reflect the rapid growth in SES research relative to other publications in relevant subject areas, and suggest a maturation of the field. Whilst institutions investigating SES have been mostly based in the global north, focal SES has been more globally distributed, although key regions, especially island regions, remain poorly studied. Key problems addressed in the studies related to policy, trade, conservation, adaptation, land use change, water, forests, sustainability, urban problems, and governance and institutions. We identified 311 methods, which we grouped into 27 method categories that can serve as a guide to SES research methods for newcomers to the field. We also performed an exploratory assessment of the ability of these methods to account for key features of SES as complex adaptive systems. We found that methods do better at accounting for the relational and context-dependent nature of SES, and least well with complex causality. Our study highlights the plurality of methods used in SES research, and helps highlight key areas in need of further methodological development.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019