Abstract
Non-governmental organizations improve the social-ecological fit of institutions conserving the Andean bear in Colombia
Highlights
Research has increasingly emphasized the importance of alignment between ecosystems and the institutions that govern them
We examined the spatial fit of the institutional network of heterogeneous conservation actors working to conserve the Andean bear (Tremarctos ornatus) across the Colombian Andes
We examined the social-ecological fit of actors across the Colombian Andes working to conserve the Andean bear
Summary
Research has increasingly emphasized the importance of alignment between ecosystems and the institutions that govern them This “social-ecological fit” is proposed to be a critical facet of resilient social-ecological systems (Cumming et al 2006, Folke et al 2007). Without such fit, institutions may struggle to grasp the true magnitude of ecological problems they face, coordinate their actions enough to manage large-scale issues requiring collective action (Cumming et al 2006), or address environmental externalities (Dupar and Badenoch 2002). Three dimensions of socialecological fit have been distinguished: (1) temporal fit is the degree to which institutions can implement responses to ecological changes within the appropriate time frame; (2) functional fit is concerned with how well links between ecosystem components are accounted for with institutional design; and (3) spatial fit refers to the agreement between institutions and the geographical extents of ecological issues they are trying to manage (Epstein et al 2015)
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