Collective capabilities shape the co-production of nature\u2019s contributions to people in the alpine agricultural system of the Maurienne valley, France

Julia Grosinger,Améline Vallet,Sandra Lavorel,Ignacio Palomo,Nicolas Buclet

doi:10.1007/s10113-021-01840-9

Abstract

Nature’s contributions to people (NCP) do not flow automatically from ecosystems to society, but they result from a co-production process of interactions between societal and ecological systems. In this study, we used the collective capabilities approach to address the social dimensions of co-production of the material NCP of cheese. These are the benefits collective structures retrieve from social-ecological interactions that individuals could not have achieved on their own and which frequently exceed pure instrumental values. Collective structures mobilise different types of social capitals in order to generate these collective capabilities. Here, we specifically investigated linkages between collective capabilities and their contributions to common perceptions and local identities. We conducted 44 semi-structured interviews with two distinct different actors’ groups in a French Alpine agricultural system surrounding the production of the quality labelled Beaufort cow cheese. We analysed the interviews qualitatively and conducted quantitative analyses as well as content and sentiment analysis to identify the different levels and types of collective investment mobilised by actors to generate collective capabilities. We found that collective capabilities involved in NCP co-production contributed to common perceptions and to specific dimensions of local identities. These can be viewed as the results of relational value construction. Further, the analysis suggests that collective capability relies on dense social interactions between actors that contribute to a good quality of life in itself. This study advances previous attempts to further investigate the role of intra-societal relations for NCP co-production.

Highlights

Ecosystems contribute to the multiple facets of people’s good quality of life (Russell et al 2013; Bratman et al 2019)
The objectives of this paper are to (1) unravel co-production activities implemented by actors; (2) identify collective capabilities and associated collective investments of social capital mobilised by actors for different co-production activities and (3) analyse whether actors with specific perceptions and feelings about collective capabilities have specific local identities
We found that most activities which structure, organise and maintain Beaufort production, including the 75% local fodder requirement and the restriction to local cattle breeds, rely on high levels of collective investment

Summary

Introduction

Ecosystems contribute to the multiple facets of people’s good quality of life (Russell et al 2013; Bratman et al 2019). A good quality of life is not exclusively quantified by material outcomes and “on one’s ability to choose the life one has reason to value” (Sen 2000), including in relation to others, as sense of place, belonging and identity are intrinsically collective. This is crucial to understand the complex choices people make, like trade-offs between dimensions of a good quality of life to align with their values (e.g. lower salary vs more leisure time). Co-production activities are tightly linked to actors’ capabilities and their use and access to different capitals, called resources (labour, technology, infrastructure,...) (Leach et al 1999; Fischer and Eastwood 2016; Bruley et al, 2021a)

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