Ecosystem services and social–ecological resilience in transhumance cultural landscapes: learning from the past, looking for a future

Author(s):  
Elisa Oteros-Rozas ◽  
José A. González ◽  
Berta Martín-López ◽  
César A. López ◽  
Carlos Montes
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. e448101119780
Author(s):  
Cristiane Mansur de Moraes Souza

It is now well established in the literature that there is a need to incorporate the concept of sustainability into education at all study levels. However, there is considerable uncertainty expressed concerning how it could best be achieved and how the resilience concept would enhance this idea. This article aims to address this gap. The objective is to explore aspects of socio-ecological resilience, that underlies a university case study. The methodology is exploratory, descriptive, and explanatory. Results demonstrate that civil engagement university activities are an education approach that provides students with experiences that build skills necessary for addressing the challenges of the Anthropocene Epoch. The conclusion of the article emphasizes that the education for the Anthropocene epoch should consider the enhancement of ecosystem services by demonstrating that humans are part of the social-ecological systems; considering interdisciplinarity as a methodological approach; demonstrating the variety of potentials on participation of stakeholders by civil engagement as developing autonomy both on students and stakeholders and developing the ability for proactive attitudes. Is also enhance learning and social learning by civil engagement and participation.


2010 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 259 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cameron Muir ◽  
Deborah Rose ◽  
Phillip Sullivan

A river is like a mirror: it reflects the care given by people whose lives depend upon it. A scald on red ground or the slow death of a river reveals more than troubled ecological relationships – they are signs of broken social relationships. How people take care of social relationships and how they take care of ecological relationships are the same question. In this paper we emphasise the importance that Aboriginal people place on social relationships for good ecological relationships. In the past few decades natural resource managers have sought Indigenous knowledge relevant to Western ideas of environment, and in doing so, created distinctions between ‘ecological’ and ‘social’ knowledge – this is an artificial ‘white-fella’ separation. Additionally, Indigenous knowledge has been treated as if it were a static archive that need only be extracted and applied to resource development and planning. Instead it is dynamic, adaptive and contextual. As a consequence of compartmentalisation and the assumption of timelessness, the importance of social relationships in ecological relationships has been overlooked. Some research has explored similarities between Indigenous knowledge and the Western concept of adaptive management, and raised the possibility of synergy between them. We agree there are possible connections and opportunities for exchange and further learning between Indigenous knowledge and ecological resilience and adaptive management. However, Indigenous knowledge and Western science belong to different world views. An important task is to explore ways of grappling with this ontological challenge. We suggest a conceptual turn around that we believe could assist in opening a dialogue as well as creating a set of foundational principles for robust ecological and social relationships.


2021 ◽  
pp. 725-743
Author(s):  
Katharine F. E. Hogan ◽  
Kirsty L. Nash ◽  
Elena Bennett

Globally, ecosystems provide the equivalent of trillions of dollars every year in the form ecosystem services. These include provisioning, regulating, cultural, and supporting services. People are dependent on ecosystem services, yet their sustainability is at risk due to increasingly rapid global change that impacts the resilience of social-ecological systems at multiple scales. In this chapter, the authors outline the concepts and theory of multisystemic social-ecological resilience. They discuss management principles that embrace cycles of change in social-ecological systems and work with these systems toward sustainability rather than pushing for increased efficiency and stability, which tends to undermine resilience across systems and scales. They explore adaptive management as a framework that supports improved understanding and management of ecosystem services for resilience in light of global change, outlining key topics for questions of research and practice.


Author(s):  
Hallie Eakin ◽  
Helda Morales ◽  
Edwin Castellanos ◽  
Gustavo Cruz-Bello ◽  
Juan F. Barrera

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (13) ◽  
pp. 7227
Author(s):  
Jeannine H. Richards ◽  
Ingrid M. Torrez Luna ◽  
Alberto Vargas

Shade-grown coffee is an important reservoir for tropical biodiversity, but habitat quality hinges on decisions made by farmers. Our research aims to investigate the link between coffee producers’ decisions and outcomes for biodiversity, using epiphytes as our focal group. Using qualitative methods, we interviewed 33 producers in northern Nicaragua to understand how they connect trees and epiphytes on their farms to ecosystem services and how personal values, access to agronomic expertise, labor supply, and financial stability influence decision-making. We used interview responses to construct six producer typologies. Most producers had strong positive attitudes toward trees and associated them with a variety of important ecosystem services. Smallholders were more likely to connect trees with provisioning services, while producers on larger farms and with greater agronomic knowledge emphasized regulating services. Most producers connected epiphytes primarily with aesthetic values. Across demographics, producers emphasized the restorative potential for shade coffee in repairing damage to soil, water, and nutrient cycles caused by other forms of agriculture. The conservation significance and sustainability of this social-ecological system can be maintained and expanded through economic and capacity-building conservation interventions, especially when those can be connected to values already held by farmers.


World ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 374-378
Author(s):  
Farshad Amiraslani

Despite the paramount role of drylands in supporting people’s livelihoods and rendering ecosystem services, legislation on Environmental Impact Assessment has been introduced belatedly after several decades. By exemplifying Iran, the author proposes two main reasons for such a delayed action. First, drylands are misleadingly considered as barren lands where biodiversity is relatively low. In one classification, deserts are even categorized along with rocks. Second, the author emphasizes that drylands have been subjected to unprecedented changes due to the expansion of infrastructure and urbanization that started in the 1970s. These growing pressures have been beyond the ecological resilience of drylands and have not been monitored, assessed, and modified correctly. Further scrutiny regarding EIA undertakings in drylands and the way they can be improved is now needed.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document