Social learning for solving complex problems: a promising solution or wishful thinking? A case study of multi-actor negotiation for the integrated management and sustainable use of the Drentsche Aa area in the Netherlands

2009 ◽  
Vol 19 (6) ◽  
pp. 400-412 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Van Bommel ◽  
N. Röling ◽  
N. Aarts ◽  
E. Turnhout
Proceedings ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (11) ◽  
pp. 609 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonio Trabucco ◽  
Janez Sušnik ◽  
Lydia Vamvakeridou-Lyroudia ◽  
Barry Evans ◽  
Sara Masia ◽  
...  

Land, food, energy, water and climate are linked and interconnected into a Nexus, characterized by complexity and feedbacks. An integrated management of the Nexus is critical to understand conflicts/synergies and secure efficient and sustainable use of resources, especially under climate change. The Nexus perspective is applied to Sardinia, as regional case study, to better understand and improve integrated resource management and relevant policy initiatives. Vulnerability of Sardinia Nexus is assessed under several climate projections by articulated balances of resources (water, energy) availability and sustainable development goals, at regional and sub-regional scales, accounting for demands and conflicts among key economic sectors (agriculture, hydro-power, tourism).


Author(s):  
Philippe Lorino

Pragmatist inquiry involves a group of inquirers who face a break in their experience and pursue existential motives. They must continuously build reciprocal intelligibility. The felicitous outcome requires reciprocal trust, transforming the group of inquirers into a temporary community. The community dimension of inquiry is illustrated through a case study: the implementation of an integrated management information system in an electricity company. It identifies the roles of two types of communities: communities of practice, characterized by common practice, and communities of inquiry, characterized by the diversity of practices but an agreed general concern. The concept of community of inquiry was initially sketched by classic pragmatist authors and later developed by organization scholars, particularly in the field of public management. It is related to Follett’s view of “group organization” as the basis of democratic life and Latour’s concept of “matter of concern.”


2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 205630512110249
Author(s):  
Peer Smets ◽  
Younes Younes ◽  
Marinka Dohmen ◽  
Kees Boersma ◽  
Lenie Brouwer

During the 2015 refugee crisis in Europe, temporary refugee shelters arose in the Netherlands to shelter the large influx of asylum seekers. The largest shelter was located in the eastern part of the country. This shelter, where tents housed nearly 3,000 asylum seekers, was managed with a firm top-down approach. However, many residents of the shelter—mainly Syrians and Eritreans—developed horizontal relations with the local receiving society, using social media to establish contact and exchange services and goods. This case study shows how various types of crisis communication played a role and how the different worlds came together. Connectivity is discussed in relation to inclusion, based on resilient (non-)humanitarian approaches that link society with social media. Moreover, we argue that the refugee crisis can be better understood by looking through the lens of connectivity, practices, and migration infrastructure instead of focusing only on state policies.


Author(s):  
Violeta Cabello ◽  
David Romero ◽  
Ana Musicki ◽  
Ângela Guimarães Pereira ◽  
Baltasar Peñate

AbstractThe literature on the water–energy–food nexus has repeatedly signaled the need for transdisciplinary approaches capable of weaving the plurality of knowledge bodies involved in the governance of different resources. To fill this gap, Quantitative Story-Telling (QST) has been proposed as a science for adaptive governance approach that aims at fostering pluralistic and reflexive research processes to overcome narrow framings of water, energy, and food policies as independent domains. Yet, there are few practical applications of QST and most run on a pan-European scale. In this paper, we apply the theory of QST through a practical case study regarding non-conventional water sources as an innovation for water and agricultural governance in the Canary Islands. We present the methods mixed to mobilize different types of knowledge and analyze interconnections between water, energy, and food supply. First, we map and interview relevant knowledge holders to elicit narratives about the current and future roles of alternative water resources in the arid Canarian context. Second, we run a quantitative diagnosis of nexus interconnections related to the use of these resources for irrigation. This analysis provides feedback to the narratives in terms of constraints and uncertainties that might hamper the expectations posed on this innovation. Thirdly, the mixed analysis is used as fuel for discussion in participatory narrative assessment workshops. Our experimental QST process succeeded in co-creating new knowledge regarding the water–energy–food nexus while addressing some relational and epistemological uncertainties in the development of alternative water resources. Yet, the extent to which mainstream socio-technical imaginaries surrounding this innovation were transformed was rather limited. We conclude that the potential of QST within sustainability place-based research resides on its capacity to: (a) bridge different sources of knowledge, including local knowledge; (b) combine both qualitative and quantitative information regarding the sustainable use of local resources, and (c) co-create narratives on desirable and viable socio-technical pathways. Open questions remain as to how to effectively mobilize radically diverse knowledge systems in complex analytical exercises where everyone feels safe to participate.


2010 ◽  
Vol 22 (6) ◽  
pp. 629-647 ◽  
Author(s):  
Palmira López‐Fresno

PurposeThis paper presents, through the analysis of a case study, a model based on a systemic approach that proved successful for the design and implementation of an integrated management system (IMS) in an airline, and provides guidelines and practical recommendations that may be of use to other sectors of activity when designing and implementing an IMS.Design/methodology/approachData for this paper were collected through direct analysis and implication in the process of implementation of the IMS. Also a literature review was conducted.FindingsTangible and intangible benefits were identified as derived from operating one IMS, such as cost savings, better use of resources, improved internal communication, stronger customer orientation and employee motivation. For these benefits to be realised it is essential to take into account several critical factors and be aware of the challenges accompanying integration of management systems, as detailed in the paper.Practical implicationsThis paper provides guidelines and recommendations for organisations seeking to implement and integrate several standards, being general or sectoral, particularly if they operate in highly complex industry sectors.Originality/valueThis paper incorporates the integration of sectoral standards, which the literature has not covered very widely. The research has wider value through transferable applications and experiences for other industry sectors.


Oryx ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 50 (3) ◽  
pp. 480-488 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul R. Jepson

AbstractSaving species from extinction is a central tenet of conservation, yet success in this endeavour remains unpredictable and elusive, especially where wildlife trade is involved. Influential conservation policy actors operating internationally advocate strong regulatory and enforcement approaches to governance of wildlife trade. However, a broad body of evidence suggests that in some situations positive incentives for sustainable use may achieve better conservation outcomes. This analysis of efforts over 3 decades to avoid the extinction of the Bali starling Leucopsar rothschildi draws on network perspectives from environmental governance and geography, and shows how an international project adopting traditional enforcement approaches generated a ‘prestige of ownership’ dynamic among local elites. This placed trade in Bali starlings above the enforcement competencies of the relevant government authority, leading to the demise of the species. Subsequently, two separate Indonesian initiatives created spaces of regulatory flexibility and embraced traits of the starling's phenotype to construct identities for the species suited to the local context. This enrolled a wider range of stakeholders in the conservation of the species, including bird-keeping elites, and led to significant successes in restoring captive and free-flying populations. This case study highlights the potential of conservation networks that involve non-establishment personnel and, while recognizing the appeal of generic enforcement approaches to politicians, funders and the urban public, it adds to an increasing body of evidence that suggests top-down prescriptive conservation frameworks may undermine the ability of situated conservationists to develop interventions appropriate to their political and cultural realities.


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