Natural Resource-dependent Communities Research Articles

Self-governance mediates small-scale fishing strategies, vulnerability and adaptive response

As global change accelerates, natural resource-dependent communities must respond and adapt. Small-scale fisheries, essential for coastal livelihoods and food security, are considered among the most vulnerable of these coupled social-ecological systems. While previous studies have examined vulnerability and adaptation in fisheries at the individual, household, and community level, these scales of organization are inconsistent with many of the legal and regulatory frameworks that function in practice to mediate behavior, decision-making, and adaptation. Here, we use cooperative- and privately-owned fishing enterprises in Northwest Mexico as a case study to examine how different forms of marine self-governance experience and respond to climate shocks. Leveraging social-ecological network methods to examine changes in fisheries participation and vulnerability during a recent period of pronounced regional oceanographic change, our analysis suggests that: 1) different forms of SSF self-governance (and the fishing strategies and harvest portfolios with which they are associated) help determine the impacts of and response to environmental change; and 2) that there may be important trade-offs between short-term responses which function to prevent or mitigate lost fishing revenue and long-term changes in climate vulnerability. In particular large fishing cooperatives, predicted to be highly vulnerable on the basis of network theoretic metrics, exceeded expectations (maintaining or increasing resource revenues) while demonstrating a degree of path dependency that may function to increase sensitivity and undermine resilience as climate change progresses. In providing an empirical evaluation of how self-governance arrangements characterized by different group sizes, access regimes and levels of cooperation respond to system perturbation, we aim to advance common pool resource theory while offering targeted guidance for the development of more nuanced and equitable climate adaptation policies.

Second impact syndrome: The influence of climate change and increased disaster frequency on livelihoods and adaptive capacity in rural Haiti

The frequency of disasters increases each decade to the point that compound disasters form and inflict devastating and sometimes permanent damage. Compound disaster research has focused primarily on damage to critical infrastructure in industrialized nations. Compound climate-related events in natural resource-dependent communities receive less scholarly attention. These events are increasing with climate change. We address this problem with a framework founded on a decade of collaboration with rural Haitian communities and a year of fieldwork. In Camp Perrin, Haiti, destruction from Hurricane Matthew was immediately followed by a months-long drought. The compound disaster that formed altered relationships between people and the environment and between one another. People could no longer rely on intergenerational knowledge of rainfall patterns, and their crops failed repeatedly, depleting household reserve. Our Second Impact Syndrome (SIS) framework traces the impacts of this and other compound climate-related disasters on adaptive capacity and livelihoods. Symptoms and processes seen in compound disasters parallel current understanding of repeat brain trauma from literature on SIS in neurological systems. In disasters, SIS alters human relationships with the landscape, produces uncertainty of what constitutes an adaptive strategy, increases dependence on outside intervention, and can cause lasting system transformation. This framework is readily applicable for disaster risk reduction through the identification of symptoms to address and potential solutions at the human-environmental interface. The SIS framework also forms a common platform upon which local communities and outside entities can better understand, discuss, and respond to compound disasters.

Breaking Down Barriers

In the Kootenay region of British Columbia (BC), mining has historically been a male dominated sector. Natural resource dependent communities, such as those found in the Kootenay region, have traditionally lacked employment opportunities for women. In addition, women choosing to pursue careers in the mining sector can face numerous challenges. As part of the larger Regional Workforce Development in Rural BC project, this research focuses on ways to build a more gender diverse mining workforce in the Kootenay region. Building connections to planning theory and practice in the region, the paper investigates the opportunities available to women in rural resource communities, and the challenges they face regarding employment in the mining sector. Results show that in the Kootenay region there may be a shift occurring in mining company culture. More progressive policies and respectful workplace culture, combined with gender-oriented planning initiatives, appear to create a more gender inclusive mining sector. The results also show significant challenges associated with social infrastructure and supports, specifically a lack of child care spots, high rental and real estate prices, and the lack of opportunities for further education for women who want to enter the Kootenay mining workforce.

The Zoom Where It Happens: Using a Virtual, Mixed-Methods Focus Group Approach to Assess Community Well-Being in Natural Resource Contexts

In response to the growing interest in the health of natural resource-dependent communities, numerous methods have been used to monitor community well-being. However, many existing approaches lack the ability to compare well-being metrics across space and over time while maintaining community voices and perspectives in their own well-being assessment. This manuscript describes the development and implementation of a virtual methodological approach to gathering both quantitative and qualitative data about community well-being in natural resource contexts. We demonstrate application of the approach with commercial fishing communities in relation to long-term socioeconomic monitoring of the California marine protected area network. The approach involved conducting focus groups with commercial fishing “community-experts” in eighteen major California ports. Due to pandemic conditions at the time of data collection, focus groups were held online over Zoom, but the method could also be conducted in-person when health and safety protocols allow. The focus groups were guided by a well-being assessment tool, which included quantitative questions where fishing community-experts were asked to rate their port along environmental, economic, and social aspects of community well-being. An open-ended qualitative discussion followed the rating exercise for each question, after which participants were asked to re-rate the question to produce deliberative, consensus-based ratings. We describe considerations of and insights from the implementation of this approach. Future researchers and practitioners may want to consider the benefits of this approach based on two factors: (1) the mixed-methods focus groups provided a means to develop quantitative well-being metrics comparable across communities and time and introduced rich qualitative information about the context of and conditions in communities across a large spatial area; and (2) the virtual format of the focus group led to lower research costs, offered greater flexibility in scheduling, and received positive feedback from participants who communicated the benefits of being able to participate in the research experience from the comfort and convenience of their own homes. Even as COVID-19 restrictions are lifted, researchers and practitioners may want to consider keeping virtual engagement approaches as a tool in their methodological toolbox, which can open up new avenues for connection and understanding.

The Livelihoods Vulnerability of Farmers in Upstream and Downstream Areas in Facing Natural Disasters in South Kalimantan, Indonesia

This study applied the Livelihood Vulnerability Index to developing countries’ agricultural and natural resource-dependent communities. The index is involved in a comparative analysis of the vulnerability of upstream and downstream communities in Banjar District, which is expected to bear some of the most severe impacts of climate change in South Kalimantan. The major components indices […]

Farmers adapt to climate change irrespective of stated belief in climate change: a California case study

Farmers are front-line workers managing climatic change. As in many parts of the world, climate change in northern California is threatening natural resource-dependent communities by exacerbating droughts, heatwaves, and wildfires. This article draws on ethnographic methods, including 108 interviews with crop and livestock farmers and key informants, to query climate change experience, belief, and response in rural northeastern California. I find that farmers recognize and describe climate changes that match the meteorologic evidence of anthropogenic climate change, but attribute these changes to weather cycles and harsh geographies. However, irrespective of their belief in anthropogenic climate change, farmers implement climate adaptations—many of these practices with mitigation co-benefits, bolstering growing evidence that climate change belief and action are not tightly coupled. To accelerate farmer adaptation, this work suggests that policy and programming focus on actions and outcomes, rather than reshaping belief.

Household Livelihood Vulnerability to Climate Change in West China.

Climate change disproportionately affects natural resource-dependent communities in the ecologically vulnerable regions of western China. This study used the household livelihood vulnerability index under the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (HLV-IPCC) to assess vulnerability. Data were collected from 823 households in Ningxia, Gansu, Guangxi, and Yunnan provinces, these being ecologically vulnerable regions in China. With a composite HLVI-IPCC and multiple regression model, the factors that affect households’ adaptive capability to HLVI-IPCC was estimated. Results indicate that Ningxia is the most vulnerable community, while Guangxi is the least vulnerable community across all indices. Moreover, Gansu has the heaviest sensitivity and exposure to climate change, whereas Ningxia has the highest adaptive capability to climate change. In addition, the age of household head and distance of the home to the town center had significant negative impacts on households’ adaptive capacity to HLVI-IPCC. The results also suggest that the HLVI assessment can provide an effective tool for local authorities to formulate prioritizing strategies with promoting climate-resilient development and increasing long-term adaptive capacity.

Drivers of Climate Change Risk Perceptions among Diverse Forest Stakeholders in Maine, USA

Climate change is impacting forest ecosystems, which support key ecosystem services and the general well-being of natural resource-dependent communities in Northeastern, USA. Understanding the determinants of climate change risk perceptions among forest resource stakeholders is critical to eliciting broad support for adaptation. We examined social-psychological drivers of climate change risk perceptions using hierarchical regression based on an online survey of 211 forest stakeholders, representing a wide range of subsectors, in Maine, USA. Using the climate change risk perceptions model (CCRPM), we explained 70% of the variance in risk perception. Political orientation, belief in climate change, social norms, affect, and experience with weather-related impacts were all significant predictors of perceived risk. Mediation results demonstrate that experience with weather-related impacts influences risk perceptions indirectly via attribution and holistic affect. This study advances our understanding of the social-psychological determinants of climate change risk perceptions, with implications for communication and outreach strategies.

Influence of socio-environmental risks on natural resource dependent socio-ecological systems in Central Himalaya

The fragile landscape of Himalaya harbors a wide range of natural resource dependent communities. However, they are the primary receivers for any adverse social and environmental changes. The study explored the impact of climate variability, disaster, migration, and wildlife on resource utilization pattern of two natural resource dependent Socio-Ecological Systems (SESs) in the Central Himalaya. Integrated SES framework-based household survey and non-parametric statistical tests (Pearson's Chi-square test of homogeneity and Mann–Whitney U tests) were used to draw the conclusions. Results indicated that resource dependency and socio-environmental risks are heterogeneously distributed in the SESs. Climate change and wildlife intrusion were the most widespread risks causing agricultural decline, forest, and water degradation. Whereas the impact of migration and disasters were localized. However, an overall negative impact of risks on resource dependency was ubiquitously perceived. Diverse coping, disengagement, and adaptive responses were observed that indicated resilience of resource dependent SESs in the Central Himalaya.

How adaptive capacity shapes the Adapt, React, Cope response to climate impacts: insights from small-scale fisheries

As the impacts of climate change on human society accelerate, coastal communities are vulnerable to changing environmental conditions. The capacity of communities and households to respond to these changes (i.e., their adaptive capacity) will determine the impacts of climate and co-occurring stressors. To date, empirical evidence linking theoretical measures of adaptive capacity to community and household responses remains limited. Here, we conduct a global meta-analysis examining how metrics of adaptive capacity translate to human responses to change (Adapt, React, Cope response) in 22 small-scale fishing case studies from 20 countries (n = 191 responses). Using both thematic and qualitative comparative analysis, we evaluate how responses to climate, environmental, and social change were influenced by domains of adaptive capacity. Our findings show that adaptive responses at the community level only occurred in situations where the community had Access to Assets, in combination with other domains including Diversity and Flexibility, Learning and Knowledge, and Natural Capital. In contrast, Access to Assets was nonessential for adaptive responses at the household level. Adaptive households demonstrated Diversity and Flexibility when supported by strong Governance or Institutions and were often able to substitute Learning and Knowledge and Natural Capital with one another. Standardized metrics of adaptive capacity are essential to designing effective policies promoting resilience in natural resource-dependent communities and understanding how social and ecological aspects of communities interact to influence responses. Our framework describes how small-scale fishing communities and households respond to environmental changes and can inform policies that support vulnerable populations.

Localism "Reimagined": Building a Robust Localist Paradigm for Overcoming Emerging Conservation Challenges.

Governance gaps at both the federal and state level increasingly necessitate local action and remain a key driver of community-based solutions. A localist paradigm-encompassing models such as community-based management, citizen science, and cooperative research-offers a promising approach for bridging governance gaps by engaging citizens, co-producing knowledge, fostering trust, and developing innovative solutions to address complex conservation challenges. Yet, despite notable successes, significant barriers constrain widespread implementation of localist approaches. This is particularly evident in natural resource-dependent communities. Rural communities are increasingly faced with a range of conservation challenges related to rapid climate and land-use changes but often they lack the capacity to support locally based initiatives to better anticipate, plan for, and mitigate these changes. We examined four diverse conservation cases based on localist approaches in Maine, USA, to bring to the fore key factors that influence outcomes in different social-ecological contexts. We compared cases along three frequently discussed dimensions-governance systems, social adaptive capacities, and technology and data characteristics and found that localist outcomes vary widely depending on key metrics within each of these dimensions. There is no single way to advance localism, but we offer multiple ways to incorporate a community-based perspective into management. This synthesis of data from our collective participatory research projects provides guidance to maximize the potential of localist conservation approaches in complex social and biophysical arenas.

Coastal Ecosystem Services, Social Equity, and Blue Growth: A Case Study from South-Eastern Bangladesh

By employing empirical and secondary data (qualitative and quantitative), this study demonstrates how social equity (with its three dimensions) can meaningfully address the conservation of the coastal social–ecological system (SES), without losing diverse ecosystem services (ES) in south-east coastal Bangladesh. Based on this proposition, this study assesses the available ES and identifies the drivers responsible for ES changes, arguing for the application of social equity for resource conservation. The findings show that communities along Bangladesh’s south-eastern coast use several ES for food, medicine, income, livelihoods, and cultural heritage. However, this valuable ecosystem is currently experiencing numerous threats and stressors of anthropogenic and natural origin. In particular, large-scale development activities, driven by the blue growth agenda, and neoliberalism policy, pose a risk to the local communities by degrading coastal ecosystem services. Escaping this situation for coastal natural resource-dependent communities in Bangladesh will require a transformation in the governance structure. Implementing the Small-Scale Fisheries (SSF) Guidelines that call for initiating policy change to deliver social justice to small-scale fisheries would help to address coastal ecosystem service conservation in Bangladesh.

Goal-Driven or Data-Driven? Inventory of Sustainability Indicator Initiatives in Rural Canada

This article seeks to address knowledge gaps on sustainability indicators (SIs) in rural and natural resource-dependent communities, considering how they are used to contextualize sustainable development priorities and support local governance. We build on recent scholarship on the potentials of SIs for stimulating societal transformation, extending this inquiry into rural and resource-based communities which have been under-represented in SI research. The governance challenges facing rural Canada, as well as its geographic and socio-economic diversity, provide a unique context for examining these issues. We provide relatively uncommon synthetic findings by compiling an inventory of SI initiatives across 39 rural communities and regions of Canada. Using the Community Capital Framework, we examine grey literature and academic publications related to each initiative spanning from 1999–2019 to determine the breadth of sustainable development priorities considered. Informed by collaborative and multi-level governance frameworks, we explore how these initiatives are used to support multi-stakeholder collective action. This article finds that rural Canadian SI initiatives prioritize socio-cultural capital, with relatively fewer economic and ecological indicators, while identifying a typology of SI use and inter-related governance dynamics informing how these priorities and indicators are determined. Although some initiatives display highly collaborative and bottom-up processes, many rural Canadian SI initiatives are characterized by a data-driven approach that, when met with local capacity gaps, fails to contextualize standardized datasets to reflect rural realities. We encourage more in-depth investigation of these findings and comparison of Canadian experiences to other jurisdictions.

The Goldilocks view: Support and skepticism of the impacts and pace of unconventional oil and gas development in the Bakken Shale of the United States

Residents of rural communities with histories of booms and busts in natural resource extraction often have divergent and simultaneously complex views on whether continued development of such industries is desirable. For instance, while many residents appreciate the economic benefits generated by these industries, some are also skeptical about disruptions resulting from expanding or continuing resource extraction. We use social representation theory and a mini-boom/bust framework to examine Bakken Shale residents’ perceptions of current and continued development of the oil and gas industry, including the role of industrial legacy and environmental concerns. Data from our 2016 survey indicates that about one in four residents see oil and gas development as positive for their community, but at the same time, felt relief that the most recent boom slowed in pace. We refer to this as the Goldilocks View of Development and see it as evidence of support for a mini-bust. In terms of continued development of the industry as represented by the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline, we found a high level of support for construction, and that political party, belonging to a local organization, and trust in industry to address spills are key predictors of such support. As natural resource dependent communities such as those in the Bakken Shale continue to experience unconventional oil and gas development in a mini-boom/bust context, it is important to understand residents’ perceptions so that state and local governments can develop policies towards the industry that address local concerns.

Characterisation of ecosystem-based adaptations to drought in the central cattle corridor of Uganda

Ecosystems provide climate-change adaptation opportunities including ecosystem services, adaptation benefits and livelihood improvement especially for natural resource dependent communities. To contribute to the understanding of location specific adaptation processes of predominantly agro-pastoralists, a study was carried out in the central cattle corridor of Uganda to characterise ecosystem-based drought Adaptations. A cross sectional survey using semi-structured questionnaires, focus group discussions and key informant interviews were employed among 183 randomly selected households. The ecosystem-based adaptations (EbAs) to perceived drought impacts were characterised basing on ecosystem services, adaptation benefits to drought and livelihood improvement categories unveiling the different proportions of each EbA under each category. Water shortage and intense heat were the major perceived drought impacts. The use of drought resistant shade trees, water reservoirs and dams, and alternative ecosystem-based livelihoods were the majorly utilised EbAs. The alternative ecosystem-based livelihoods were the mostly used EbA dominating all the three categories. The utilisation of drought resistant shade trees dominated the ecosystem services and adaptation benefits categories, whereas the use of water reservoirs and dams were the mostly used EbA for livelihood improvement. These EbAs should be incorporated in climate-change adaptation policies and initiatives, while considering their subsequent dominating categories to enhance farmers’ resilience.

Perceptions of Local Vulnerability and the Relative Importance of Climate Change in Rural Ecuador

Rural, natural resource dependent communities are especially vulnerable to climate change, and their input is critical in developing solutions, but the study of risk perception within and among vulnerable communities remains underdeveloped. Our multi-disciplinary research team used a mixed-methods approach to document, analyze, and conceptualize the interacting factors that shape vulnerability and to explore community members’ perceptions of the role and relative importance of climate change compared to other factors in three rural communities in Ecuador. Economic instability, lack of access to basic services, and environmental degradation are perceived as greater threats to community well being than increasing seasonal variability and flooding. Programs and policies directed at climate change adaptation should integrate climate and non-climate related stressors. Our findings also point to a greater need for collaboration across public health, poverty alleviation, and environmental management fields through practical research targeting assistance to vulnerable populations.

The importance of cultural ecosystem services in natural resource-dependent communities: Implications for management

In defining cultural ecosystem services as the recreational, aesthetic, and spiritual benefits people obtain from ecosystems, the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment conveyed a key aspect of nature-society relationships. Yet, it is reasonable to suppose that this aspect may apply more to to contexts where people enjoy more leisure time to admire a scenic vista or recreate in nature. How relevant is this aspect of nature-society relationships for people who rely more on natural resources, or provisioning ecosystem services, for livelihoods? We integrated qualitative and quantitative field research methods to examine how people in natural resource-dependent communities perceived the importance of different ecosystem services to wellbeing. We found that people with varying degrees of dependence on coastal, marine, and terrestrial provisioning ecosystem services perceived cultural ecosystem services—particularly scenic beauty, biodiversity, and space to recreate—as very important to wellbeing, and also perceived increases in wellbeing following interventions to foment small-scale tourism and conservation. In terms of global ecosystem management, our findings imply that (1) aesthetics and recreation matter, even if these cultural ecosystem services appear more often in the literature, (2) more efforts may be taken to make cultural ecosystem services more accessible, (3) small-scale tourism and conservation interventions may be reconsidered as potential means to increase wellbeing, and (4) reframing ecosystem management as explicit efforts to augment wellbeing may help to garner more widespread support and participation.

Following the fish inland: understanding fish distribution networks for rural development and nutrition security

In developing countries, small-scale fisheries are both a pivotal source of livelihood and essential for the nutritional intake of larger food insecure populations. Distribution networks that move fish from landing sites to coastal and inland consumers offer entry points to address livelihood enhancement and food security objectives of rural development initiatives. To be able to utilize fish distribution networks to address national development targets, a sound understanding of how local systems function and are organized is imperative. Here we present an in-depth examination of a domestic market chain in Timor-Leste that supplies small-pelagic fish to coastal and inland communities. We present the market chain’s different commodity flows and its distributive reach, and show how social organization strongly influences people’s access to fish, by determining availability and affordability. We suggest there is potential to advance Timor-Leste’s food and nutrition security targets by engaging with local influential actors and existing social relations across fish distribution networks. We argue that in addition to developing improvements to fish distribution infrastructure, utilizing existing or locally familiar practices, organization and social capital offers opportunity for long term self-sufficiency. Livelihood and food security improvement initiatives involving natural resource-dependent communities are more likely to succeed if they incorporate rural development perspectives, which frame directly targeted interventions (‘intentional’ development) within broader structural contexts (‘immanent’ development).

Community-Based Governance and Sustainability in the Paraguayan Pantanal

The megadiverse biome of the Paraguayan Pantanal is in danger due to the expansion of cattle ranching and agricultural frontiers that threaten not only the fragile equilibrium of natural resources, but also that of local governance and cultural identities. As a consequence, weak governance stresses the relations between natural resource-dependent communities, generating socio-environmental conflicts. This perception study seeks to find community-based governance models for sustainability in the context of Paraguayan wetlands. According to the organizational principles of community-based natural resource management (CBNRM), we applied qualitative approaches with the use of the Governance Analytical Framework (GAF) to identify problems and social norms. Our findings suggest that the Yshiro indigenous self-organized group (Unión de las Comunidades Indígenas de la Nación Yshiro (UCINY)) can be considered as a model for community-based governance. Besides, we discovered that this specific governance model is highly threatened by the impact of the national neo-extractive economy.

The contribution of community forestry to climate change adaptive capacity in tropical dry forests: lessons from Myanmar

While community forestry (CF) is increasingly promoted as a climate change adaptation strategy, few analyses have examined the contribution of CF to adaptive capacity. We used a sustainable livelihood approach and Ostrom's design principles for managing commons, to assess how CF confers climate change adaptive capacity in two communities in Myanmar. Our findings indicate that CF provides tangible contributions to human and social capital, by increasing landless and female forest users' knowledge of forest management. However, CF has yet to enhance the physical, financial, and natural capital within these communities. The major challenges preventing the enhancement of socioeconomic benefits include limited community participation and weak institutional systems for monitoring and conflict resolution. We argue that CF increases community engagement in natural resource management, but in the absence of effective monitoring and decision-making, socioeconomic benefits to communities from CF programs may be limited. Our results elucidate important factors limiting the uptake and progress of CF as a viable climate change adaptation strategy in Southeast Asia, and indicate that comparative research is needed to better understand the factors that influence CF efficacy in forest- and natural resource-dependent communities globally.