Natural Resource Management Practices Research Articles

Determinants of adoption of multiple natural resource management practices: a case study from semi-arid tropics of Central India

Determinants of adoption of multiple natural resource management practices: a case study from semi-arid tropics of Central India

Natural resource governance and strategic economic resources: The perspective of Indonesia Raya Incorporated

The study aims to identify and describe the theory of economic development according to the thinking of Indonesia Raya Incorporated (IRI) in managing the interest of natural resources included in strategic economic resources. This study used a qualitative method through a grounded theory approach with constructivism and criticism as the interpretation approach. The data collected through the Focus Group Discussion (FGD) technique was processed using a componential analysis approach. The study results reveal the content of the main variables of economic development, namely the role and function of the government and state enterprises, namely State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) and Regional-Owned Enterprises (ROEs), related to the potential of managing natural resources and other strategic economic resources which are determinants of the economic strata of population or for improving the welfare of the people. These novel findings highlights the significance of natural resource governance and strategic economy, namely the IRI’s perspective on economic development. The theory and conception contribute to deepening knowledge previously proposed in IRI and Murakabi economics. So, this knowledge has implications for natural resources management practices by the government and corporate strategies within the body of SOEs and ROEs in Indonesia and the global world. This includes the possibility of strategies for national and multinational private companies whose main business positions are based on natural resources and strategic economics.

Comparative analysis of forestry systems in the United States and Turkey: Practices, technologies, and challenges

The current study provides a comprehensive comparative analysis of forestry systems in the United States (US) and Turkey, covering various aspects such as forest ownership, natural resources planning, fire management, technological applications, silviculture, forestry education and challenges faced by each country. The findings mainly stems from the author’s first-hand investigations, field observations, and experiences during a postdoctoral research period in the US from 2022 to 2024. Additionally, a variety of information sources, including US forest plans, publications from the US Department of Agriculture Forest Service, relevant peer-reviewed literature, and open-source data, was used in the work employing the verbal analysis method. While certain similarities emerge, particularly in technology utilization and the historical development of forestry education, significant disparities are evident in fire management strategies, land ownership structure, silvicultural practices, and forest planning approaches between the countries. These differences can be attributed to unique environmental and historical conditions, varying economic development levels, and distinct regulatory legislations. The outcomes of this study suggest that there are valuable forestry practices that each country can learn or adopt from the other, emphasizing the potential for mutual exchange and improvement in natural resources management practices.

Traditional ecological knowledge and natural resource management: Some examples from Bangladesh

Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) refers to the knowledge, innovations, and practices of indigenous and local communities around the world. As it includes proven technologies for particular situations, its adoption cuts research costs and time. This paper attempts to find out the scoping of some TEKs on different practices ranging from plain land agriculture, hill farming, agro-biodiversity management, open water fish conservation, disaster management, and other aspects in different situations in Bangladesh. It is an outcome of the authors’ field experiences in the study of local flora, plant uses, and natural resource management practices in the community and a review of related literature. Access to modern facilities, urbanization, and land use changes are now causing many threats to TEK. Documentation and codification of this knowledge and its uses for sustainable development are needed for the betterment of local farmers as well as the preservation of cultural heritage. The knowledge is always changing to cope with socio-cultural needs. So, a fusion of TEK and modern scientific knowledge can help solve the problems encountered in the sustainable management of natural resources. It also needs to be incorporated into school curricula and mainstreamed in the local-level natural resource management planning process. The best practices can also be adopted in natural resource management.

Natural Resource Conflict and Resolution Practice in Nepal

Natural resource conflict and management practices in Nepal have been significant due to the diverse geographical and ecological features as well as socio-economic complexities. Nepal is home to a wide range of natural resources which often become a source of dispute among different stakeholders. The paper explores the conflict associated to Natural resources which covers classes of interest group, disagreements, public protests, physical assaults, and the filing of cases in courts. It has been prepared by collecting data from primary and secondary sources when unstructured observation, focus group discussion and interview with respondent were conducted for primary data and books, journals were used for secondary data. The Balakhu village was selected purposively to study of condition, use pattern of natural resource in the village. Differences between rules and behavior, social relations, and the incompatibility of goals, actions and interactions framed in their specific context and time would be considered in analyzing resource conflict. Such conflict can be resolved by using formal practice of rule and regulation or law and using informal practice of traditional methods.

The Influence of Knickpoint Development and Channel Incision on Riparian Vegetation in Semi‐Arid River Corridors

AbstractHydrogeomorphic processes strongly influence riparian vegetation, but few studies have determined the influence of knickpoint development on these processes. We investigate the influence of knickpoint development and channel incision on flood inundation, channel morphology, and riparian vegetation on the Fremont River in Utah. We conducted topographic surveys (n = 30 transects) and plot‐based vegetation surveys (n = 336) in three 1 km‐long reaches with varying proximities to a human‐created knickpoint. We also developed 1D hydraulic models to assess flood inundation patterns. Our data indicate that knickpoint development affects riparian vegetation composition and abundance through its influence on geomorphic and hydrologic processes. The study reach located just upstream of the knickpoint (R2) had a deeper channel, flooded less frequently, and required higher flows to inundate the floodplain compared to the study reach located 5 km upstream of the knickpoint (R1). Overall mean vegetation abundance (percent cover) was higher in R1 (55.7%) than in R2 (30.1%), and R1 had more occurrences of wet‐adapted (facultative wetland and obligate) species than R2 (198 and 79, respectively). Vegetation in the human‐created abandoned meander reach near the knickpoint (R4) was predominantly dry‐adapted (upland) species. Cross‐reach comparisons and more than 3 m of incision in the knickzone since knickpoint creation indicate that knickpoint development has resulted in channel incision in R2, shifting its vegetation toward more dry‐adapted species reminiscent of the surrounding uplands. This work informs natural resource management practices for habitat in riparian ecosystems and can be applied to rivers in drier regions.

Evaluating green financing mechanisms for natural resource management: Implications for achieving sustainable development goals

China has made noteworthy strides in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including natural resource management. The country’s economic expansion has put more strain on its natural resources during Covid-19 pandemic, which has contributed to environmental deterioration, the extinction of species, and climate change. Consequently, green finance can create new opportunities for assisting natural resource management practices that support environmental, social, and economic sustainability. In order to realize the SDGs, this study employs a hybrid Fuzzy Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) approach based on the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) and Visekriterijumska Optimizacija i Kompromisno Resenje (VIKOR) to assess and prioritize important criteria, sub-criteria, and green financing mechanisms for natural resource management in China. Therefore, this study identified six criteria, eighteen sub-criteria, and six green financing strategies for promoting sustainable development and natural resource management methods in China. According to the Fuzzy AHP findings, financial sustainability (0.192), institutional feasibility (0.176), and environmental impact (0.171) are the most crucial criteria. While, the Fuzzy VIKOR findings reveal that carbon markets, green bonds, and green investment funds are the best financial solutions for reaching sustainable development and effective resource management practices in China. This research enables policymakers, investors, and other stakeholders improve sustainable development and natural resource management in China.

Natural resource management model under governance conflicts in Vietnam: A data-driven analysis

This study supplements the literature of natural resource management under governance confliction context that can reduce the conflicts, strengthen the institutional frameworks, contribute to better governance, more sustainable resource use, and provide better long-term outcomes for the society and ecological system. Governments have devoted great courtesy to the governance conflicting and volatility in a natural resource management structure; however, dealing with this problematic issue is rough. This study seeks to appraise a natural resource management model and its interrelationship under governance conflict in Vietnam. A hybrid of content analysis, fuzzy Delphi method, interpretive structural modeling, and fuzzy decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory is adopted. The results show that there are 22 valid criteria and grouped into five aspects as the hierarchical model, in which the political structure, societal incorporation, and institute externality are the causing aspects. The top importance criteria are indicated as co-management, decentralization, public participation, resilience, and sustainable development, bring such implication for natural resource management practice.

Indonesia’s Renewable Natural Resource Management in the Low-Carbon Transition: A Conundrum in Changing Trajectories

A paradigm shift is required to transform current natural resource management (NRM) in Indonesia’s decision to move into low-carbon development to achieve the greenhouse gas emission target. No study has been conducted to assess whether or not the current approaches are reliable in anticipating the conundrum of the new juncture. We reviewed 10 cases of NRM practices in Indonesia from 2019–2023 collected from the Scopus dataset by integrating the prisoner’s dilemma approach into the socio-ecological framework to analyze the practices and the anticipated gaps. Our finding revealed that socio-economic governance is the dominant view in interpreting the competition between personal and collective interests in NRM. Seeing NRM as an allocation problem and the excessive use of the legal normative approach in interpreting and addressing the problem are flaws in the approach. Combining the prisoner’s dilemma approach with the socio-ecological governance framework enabled us to address the flaws. Promoting polycentric governance that accommodates social trust, reciprocities, and socio-ecological beliefs and reduces uncertainties about ownership and the resources necessary to reduce defective behavior is a solution to transform the structure of the competition. Revising the socio-economic payoff into a socio-ecological value-oriented institution is the strategy to address the conundrum.

Preface

About the ENRSC2021Anthropogenic activities have progressed considerably over the last century, especially after the 1950s. The growth of the world population, industrialization, new technologies, the extension of agricultural activities at all levels due to the growing needs of the world population, the overexploitation of natural resources in different environments, etc., have been and remain the driving force behind an unbalanced model of development that has a negative impact on the environment and on natural resources. Indeed, the world is currently facing challenges at all scales, from micro- to macro-environmental issues. The serious challenges to be taken up are major concerning all physical environments - air, soil, and water. The degradation of habitats by various anthropogenic and/or natural activities has a direct impact on biodiversity and consequently on socio-economic development. The International Conference on Environment & Natural Resources: Challenges and Solutions allowed scientists from different universities and institutes to exchange and debate different themes on the environment and natural resources, their challenges, and probable solutions to reduce the environmental impact and suggest better natural resources management practices. Finally, the current global context proves to us, every day, that we must contribute each from one’s position to the mitigation of negative impacts, and that the urgency is to set up concrete and sustainable-integrated actions.List of Congress Chairs, Keynote speakers, Invited speakers, Editorial Committee, Organizing Committee, Scientific Committee are available in this pdf.

One health the future of rural health?

One health the future of rural health?

Morphometric analysis for sustainable development of natural resource management by using remote sensing and GIS techniques in Tikamgarh District, M.P., Central India

Study of morphometric parameters decides the suitable location and adjustable natural resource management (NRM) practices along with durability and sustainability. Morphometric study of a region provides the various geological, topographical and others parameters which supports during the design and implantations of various water conservation approaches. Garhkundar –Dabar (GKD) watershed having two parts as first treated watershed and second control watershed, located in Tikamgarh District of Madhya Pradesh, Central India was selected for this analysis. ArcGIS ver. 10.3 was used for analysis and found IVth order stream in treated watershed area of 850 ha (8.50 km2) and IInd order stream in control watershed area of 268 ha (2.68 km2). In treated watershed, 19 streams were found in first order while 12, 5 and 1 streams were obtained in second, third and fourth order respectively. Similarly, 6 and 4 streams were found in first and second order respectively in control watershed. This study conclude all aspects of morphometric parameters viz. linear, areal and relief which elaborate the geometric as well as topographic features to support and identified the best location for various conservation interventions and their implementation with a long sustainability. RS and GIS based morphometric analysis provides the way of replication of conservation practices and suggested for sustainable conservation treatment and watershed development.

Rethinking Human–Nature Relationships: Daoism’s Contribution to Transcultural Sociotechnical Imaginaries

Humans’ imaginaries toward nature have profound implications for environmental governance and natural resource management strategies. Driven by relentless technological advancement, such imaginaries have undergone a series of transformations. Through a phenomenological and social constructivist perspective, this article aims to explore and explain the dynamics of transcultural sociotechnical imaginaries found in the connection between Western posthumanism’s relational perspective on humans, nonhuman entities, and agency, on the one hand, and the emphasis on human–nature unity in the Chinese Daoist tradition, on the other hand. We argue that, by displacing an anthropocentric and Eurocentric frame, such transnational deliberation efforts grounded in a relational, geo-centered, and mediated frame offer planetary viewpoints to tackle the vast challenges currently faced by humanity. This discourse provides an alternative way of thinking to approach current environmental governance and natural resource management practices in the context of the increasing interconnectedness and cultural plurality of globalization. Hence, this article suggests exploring the potentials of the ideas of dwelling, landscapes, new ecologies, and mutual embeddedness suggested by Daoism and critical more-than-human geography at a local scale, which will pave the way for pragmatic pluralism and cultivate new attitudinal dispositions and capacity for systemic change. Key Words: Daoism, environmental governance, human–nature relationship, postenlightenment, sociotechnical imaginaries.

Helping feed the world with rice innovations: CGIAR research adoption and socioeconomic impact on farmers

Rice production has increased significantly with the efforts of international research centers and national governments in the past five decades. Nonetheless, productivity improvement still needs to accelerate in the coming years to feed the growing population that depends on rice for calories and nutrients. This challenge is compounded by the increasing scarcity of natural resources such as water and farmland. This article reviews 17 ex-post impact assessment studies published from 2016 to 2021 on rice varieties, agronomic practices, institutional arrangements, information and communication technologies, and post-harvest technologies used by rice farmers. From the review of these selected studies, we found that stress-tolerant varieties in Asia and Africa significantly increased rice yield and income. Additionally, institutional innovations, training, and natural resource management practices, such as direct-seeded rice, rodent control, and iron-toxicity removal, have had a considerable positive effect on smallholder rice farmers’ economic well-being (income and rice yield). Additional positive impacts are expected from the important uptake of stress-tolerant varieties documented in several Asian, Latin American, and African countries.

Principles or Practice? The Impact of Natural Resource Management on Farmer Well-being and Social Connectedness

Ensuring natural resource management (NRM) positively impacts the quality of life of a farmer is important to farmer mental health and persistence with adoption. Evidence suggests the well-being co-benefits of NRM are related to either ‘doing’ NRM practices or applying socioecological systems (SES) principles to guide NRM. We examine the relationship between a common NRM practice—tree planting, and farmer well-being, psychological distress, and social connectedness. Using hierarchical regression models, we test to see if these relationships remain with the addition of a measure of SES principles. Results show that while NRM practice was associated with improved social connectedness, only SES principles were associated with well-being. Neither NRM practice nor SES principles were associated with psychological distress. Both NRM practices and SES principles have the potential to positively impact farmers' lives and ensuring NRM programs have co-benefits to farmer well-being may help to encourage long-term engagement.

Knowledge Test for Rainfed Farmers on Natural Resource Management Practices

Natural resource management (NRM) aims on efficient and sustainable utilization of natural resources. One of the greatest challenges facing the world is meeting the rising demand for food with a sustainable natural resource base. Agriculture, a sector being dependent on natural resources, it is high time to make farmers aware on the importance of NRM which require measuring the knowledge level of farmers on NRM practices for the better dissemination of NRM technologies. The study attempted to construct a knowledge test to measure the knowledge level of rainfed farmers during 2021. Items about NRM were collected from relevant literature and through consultation with experts. One pilot study was conducted in Lingaipalle village of Mahabubnagar district of Telangana for item analysis during September 2021. Item analysis provided item difficulty index, item discrimination index and item validity index. Based on the criteria, a total of 18 items were selected in the final test. To administer the knowledge test, one mark for each correct answer and zero mark for each wrong answer was assigned. Finally, the reliability of the test using split-half method found to be 0.749 indicating that the knowledge test is highly reliable for the present study.

Recent Climate Changes Across the Great Plains and Implications for Natural Resource Management Practices

The Great Plains region plays an important role in providing water and land resources and habitat for wildlife and livestock, crops, energy production, and other critical ecosystem services to support rural livelihoods. The semiarid conditions of the region and tight coupling of livelihood enterprises with ecosystem services creates a situation of increased sensitivity to climate changes and enhanced vulnerability among the rural communities and Native American nations across the region. Recent climate conditions associated with warming trends, and altered atmospheric flows have resulted in rapid onset of drought conditions and other extreme weather events across the region that are changing seasonal patterns of temperature and precipitation and warming trends. Projected climate changes provided in the fourth US National Climate Assessment indicate that potential warming and variability of precipitation will further increase drought and extreme weather events.Recent research and assessment efforts of current and projected climate changes in the Great Plains indicate that rural communities and ecosystems are becoming more vulnerable to changes associated with warming trends, droughts, and increased variability in precipitation. These climate changes are having differential impacts on ecosystem services that are critical to livelihood enterprises. Strategies for how resource managers and the research community can better collaborate and more effectively codesign and coproduce efforts to understand and to respond to these challenges are needed.

Resource allocation to a structural biomaterial: Induced production of byssal threads decreases growth of a marine mussel

Abstract The biomechanics of specialized mechanical structures produced by organisms provides crucial fitness advantages. The energetic cost associated with producing these structural materials and the resulting energetic trade‐off with growth, however, is rarely quantified. We integrate resource allocation to structural material production with an energetic framework by combining an experimental manipulation with an energetic model. Mytilid bivalves produce byssus, a network of collagen‐like threads that tethers individuals to hard substrate. We hypothesized that a manipulation that induces the production of more byssal threads would result in increased energetic cost and decreased growth of the species Mytilus trossulus. In month‐long field experiments in spring and autumn, we severed byssal threads across a range of frequencies (never, weekly, daily), and measured shell and tissue growth. We then quantified the costs associated with the production of byssal threads using a Scope for Growth model. We found that byssal thread removal increased byssal thread production and decreased growth. The cost calculated per byssal thread was similar in the spring and autumn (~1 J/thread), but energy budget calculations differed by season, and depended on thread quantity and seasonal differences in assumptions of metabolic costs. This work demonstrates that the cost of producing a structural material has a substantial effect on mussel energetic state. The energetic cost of producing byssal threads was 2%–8% percent of the energy budget in control groups that had low byssal thread production, and increased six to 11‐fold (up to 47%) in mussels induced to produce threads daily. We propose that characterizing the trade‐off between the cost of biomaterial production and growth has implications for understanding the role of trade‐offs in adaptive evolution, and improved natural resource management and conservation practices. A free Plain Language Summary can be found within the Supporting Information of this article.

Seeking sustainable pathways for fostering agricultural transformation in peninsular India

Sizable populations in developing countries in Asia and Africa live in dryland ecosystems, and agriculture in these areas faces major challenges including water scarcity, land degradation, poor infrastructure and insufficient access to markets. Natural resource management (NRM) interventions offer an important path to sustainable agricultural practices through increasing resource use efficiency, but true efficacy will only be achievable if these initiatives can be scaled up. This paper explores the impact of farm-scale NRM interventions undertaken in the state of Karnataka, India, between 2005 and 2020. NRM technologies such as soil health management, resource use efficiency and improved crop cultivars were demonstrated in more than 50 000 farmers’ fields. Participatory demonstrations and capacity building initiatives were effectively used to co-create innovations for rapid and wide dissemination, and NRM practices involving the soil-nutrient-crop-water continuum were the subject of large-scale demonstrations. The demonstration fields were divided into treated and control fields, and efforts were made to measure cost of cultivation, irrigation application and crop yield. The soil health management interventions helped to enhance crop yield by 10%–60% over the control plots. Technologies specific to resource conservation have helped to conserve soil moisture, reduce irrigation requirement by 50–300 mm and reduce the cost of cultivation by US$ 150 ha−1. Improved cereal, pulse and oil seed cultivars increased crop yield minimum by 15%. Although these results have a large variability, they consistently showed the effectiveness of integrating NRM practices with crop demonstrations. These results are ideal for sensitizing stakeholders and policymakers to the benefits of adopting science-based approaches to NRM interventions in order to bridge yield gaps and address land degradation, food insecurity and poverty in dryland regions in South Asia and globally.

Assessing the impacts of watershed interventions using ground data and remote sensing: a case study in Ethiopia

Quantifying the temporal and spatial changes due to watershed interventions is important for assessing the effectiveness of natural resource management practices on vegetative cover and sediment management. This study assessed the performance of natural resource management in a target site (Aba Gerima) and compared the collateral impacts on neighbouring watersheds in Ethiopia in terms of land-use land-cover change. Changes in the extent of cropland, grassland and shrubland were assessed in the target watershed and the non-treated neighbouring watersheds using temporal satellite imagery. In addition, ground monitoring was applied to quantify the impacts on sediment accumulation, fodder biomass and vegetative cover intensity. The study findings showed substantial changes over the study period: mainly, a change from degraded and barren land to restored vegetation in the target watershed, but a continued trend of land-use change from perennial vegetation to cropland in the neighbouring untreated watersheds. There was a decrease in the rate of conversion of vegetative land cover to cropland in the target watershed, and significant on-site changes in sediment retention, fodder productivity and vegetation intensity. The study findings demonstrate a link between management interventions and improvement in soil and vegetation ecosystem functions. These results not only indicate that watershed-level interventions improve on-site soil and water environmental services but also underline the role of community managed land-use regulations in reducing pressure on natural land-use systems and thereby serve the major goal of up-scaling sustainable land management.