Co-Producing Narratives and Indicators as Catalysts for Adaptive Governance of a Common-Pool Resource within a Protected Area
Date
2023-09-23
Authors
Roux, Dirk
Taplin, Megan
Smit, Izak
Novellie, Peter
Russell, Ian
Nel, Jeanne Lindsay
Freitag, Stef
Rosenberg, Eureta
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Springer
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Abstract
The theory and practice of adaptive management and adaptive governance have been widely studied in the complex social
contexts that mediate how humans interact with ecosystems. Adaptive governance is thought to enable adaptive management
in such contexts. In this study, we examine four often-used principles of adaptive governance (polycentric institutions,
collaboration, social learning and complexity thinking) to develop a framework for reflecting on adaptive governance of a
social-ecological system—the Knysna Estuary in South Africa. This estuary is a priority for biodiversity conservation, as
well as a common-pool resource central to livelihoods. We used the framework to structure dialogue on the extent to which
the four principles of adaptive governance were being applied in the management of the Knysna Estuary. The dialogue
included diverse stakeholders, from those who have the power to influence adaptive management to those most dependent
on the resource for their livelihoods. Based on a combination of theory and current reality we then identified eight indicators
that could be used to guide a transition towards improved adaptive governance of the estuary. These indicators were assessed
and supported by most stakeholders. The main contributions of our research are (a) a process for combining theory and
stakeholder dialogue to reflect on adaptive governance of a social-ecological system; (b) a set of indicators or conditions that
emerged from our participatory process that can be used for reflexive monitoring and adaptation of adaptive governance of
Knysna Estuary; and (c) a real-world example of seeking complementary links between adaptive governance and adaptive
management to promote effective management of complex social-ecological systems
Description
The version of record of this article, first published in Environmental Management, is available online at Publisher’s website: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-023-01884-z
Keywords
Adaptive management, Stakeholder dialogue, Governance indicators, Knysna Estuary, Principle-based framework, Social learning
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DOI
10.1007/s00267-023-01884-z