Improving forest management through participatory monitoring: a comparative case study of four community-based forestry organizations in the Western United States

2011 ◽  
pp. 266-287
Author(s):  
Heidi L. Ballard ◽  
Victoria Sturtevant ◽  
Maria E. Fernandez-Gimenez
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Forest Management ◽  
Western United States ◽  
Comparative Case Study ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Participatory Monitoring

Relative influence of contextual factors on deliberation and development of cooperation in community-based forest management in Ontario, Canada

2014 ◽  
Vol 44 (1) ◽  
pp. 64-70 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Robson
Keyword(s):  
Forest Management ◽  
Contextual Factors ◽  
Relative Influence ◽  
Comparative Case Study ◽  
State Agencies ◽  
Contextual Influences ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Advisory Committees ◽  
Community Institutions

Co-management of forests has been reported from more than fifty countries and stakeholder advisory committees have become central to forest planning in Canada. Scientists tend to agree that local users are capable of self-organising to manage resources more effectively than state agencies alone, whether jointly with governments or with considerable autonomy. Little, however, is known about how the network of contextual influences helps, hinders, or overrides the deliberation that facilitates the development of cooperation critical for co-management success. The objectives of the paper are to identify the relative influence of contextual factors, participants’ sense of control over contextual factors, and effects on performance. In a comparative case study of two stakeholder advisory committees in Ontario, Canada, the objectives are addressed by identifying and analysing advisory committee thinking about consensus building using network analysis of group cognitive maps. The paper concludes with three lessons regarding how the mix of hierarchical, market, and community institutions that influence community-based deliberation can be coordinated for effective forest management.

scholarly journals Complexity, Evaluation and the Effectiveness of Community-based Interventions to Reduce Health Inequalities

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Matheson ◽  
Kevin Dew ◽  
Jacqueline Cumming
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Health Inequalities ◽  
Comparative Case Study ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
Intervention Effectiveness ◽  
Community Based Interventions ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Theoretical Understanding ◽  
System Perspective

Reducing health inequalities has been part of the New Zealand government's agenda since the early 1990s. As a result, interventions have been implemented nationally with the explicit goal of reducing health inequalities. This paper describes findings from a comparative case study of two community-based interventions - carried out in different New Zealand communities. Complexity theory was used as an analytic tool to examine the case data, and provided a systematic way in which to explore 'local' issues by taking a 'whole system' perspective. The findings showed that two important influences on the successful implementation of the interventions were the existence and capacity of local organisations and their relationships with government agencies. The analysis provided a dynamic picture of shared influences on the interventions in different communities and in doing so offered insight into intervention effectiveness. It is argued in this article that, for examining intervention effectiveness, it is essential to have a theoretical understanding of the behaviour of the complex system in which they are implemented. This theoretical understanding has implications for the appropriate design of interventions to reduce health inequalities, and in turn should lead to more meaningful ways to evaluate them.

scholarly journals Complexity, Evaluation and the Effectiveness of Community-based Interventions to Reduce Health Inequalities

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Matheson ◽  
Kevin Dew ◽  
Jacqueline Cumming
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Health Inequalities ◽  
Comparative Case Study ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
Intervention Effectiveness ◽  
Community Based Interventions ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Theoretical Understanding ◽  
System Perspective

Reducing health inequalities has been part of the New Zealand government's agenda since the early 1990s. As a result, interventions have been implemented nationally with the explicit goal of reducing health inequalities. This paper describes findings from a comparative case study of two community-based interventions - carried out in different New Zealand communities. Complexity theory was used as an analytic tool to examine the case data, and provided a systematic way in which to explore 'local' issues by taking a 'whole system' perspective. The findings showed that two important influences on the successful implementation of the interventions were the existence and capacity of local organisations and their relationships with government agencies. The analysis provided a dynamic picture of shared influences on the interventions in different communities and in doing so offered insight into intervention effectiveness. It is argued in this article that, for examining intervention effectiveness, it is essential to have a theoretical understanding of the behaviour of the complex system in which they are implemented. This theoretical understanding has implications for the appropriate design of interventions to reduce health inequalities, and in turn should lead to more meaningful ways to evaluate them.

scholarly journals Trilha Verde da Maria Fumaça: patrimônio ferroviário e turismo no Vale do Jequitinhonha

2016 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rosalia Aparecida Moreira ◽  
Hugo Rodrigues Araujo
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Qualitative Analysis ◽  
The United States ◽  
Local Economy ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Descriptive Case Study ◽  
Practical Applications ◽  
Structured Questionnaire

Em 1986, foi criado nos Estados Unidos a Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, entidade sem fins lucrativos com a missão de contribuir para conservação do patrimônio ferroviário, transformando os ramais abandonados em trilhas ferroviárias destinadas, exclusivamente, para caminhantes, ciclistas e cavaleiros. Com essa perspectiva, há 15 anos iniciou-se uma mobilização comunitária para transformar o antigo Ramal Ferroviário Corinto-Diamantina, localizado no Vale do Jequitinhonha/MG, na primeira trilha ferroviária do Brasil, denominada Trilha Verde da Maria Fumaça - TVMF. Além da conservação dos bens ferroviários, a TVMF busca a dinamização da economia local através do Turismo de Base Comunitária. Este artigo corresponde a um estudo de caso da TVMF, de caráter exploratório-descritivo. A pesquisa envolveu revisão bibliográfica e entrevista do gestor da ONG Caminhos da Serra, utilizando questionário semiestruturado. A análise qualitativa dos dados permitiu obter resultados que proporcionam o entendimento sobre a TVMF, contribuem para a abertura da discussão sobre trilhas ferroviárias no Brasil e fornecem informações para subsidiar aplicações práticas em outras ferrovias que se encontram abandonadas. Trilha Verde da Maria Fumaça: railroad heritage and tourism in the Vale do Jequitinhonha (Brazil). In 1986, the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy was created in the United States, a nonprofit organization with a mission to contribute to conservation of the railway heritage, turning extensions abandoned on rails trails, designed exclusively for walkers, cyclists and riders. With this perspective, 15 years ago a community began a mobilization to transform the old Railway Corinto-Diamantina, located in Vale do Jequitinhonha / MG, into the first rail trails in Brazil, called Trilha Verde da Maria Fumaça - TVMF. In addition to the conservation of rail assets, TVMF seeks to stimulate the local economy through the Community Based Tourism. This article is an exploratory and descriptive case study of TVMF. The research involved literature review and interview questions for the manager of the NGO Caminhos da Serra, by using semi-structured questionnaire. Through qualitative analysis of data it was possible to get results that provide an understanding of the TVMF, contribute to opening the discussion about rails trails in Brazil, and provide information to support practical applications in other railways that are abandoned. KEYWORDS: Railway Tourism; Sustainable Tourism; Rails Trails.

Writing for Love and Money on Three Continents

2019 ◽  
pp. 33-48
Author(s):  
Kate Vieira
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Literacy Learning ◽  
The United States ◽  
Comparative Case Study ◽  
Transnational Families ◽  
Study Approach ◽  
Methodological Choices ◽  
Political Borders

This chapter tells the story of the research. It first lays out the research question: How do transnational families’ experiences with migration-driven literacy learning shift across their lifespans in relation to changing political borders, economic circumstances, and technologies? It then describes the field sites in which the question was addressed: Latvia, Brazil, and the United States. Next, it outlines the reasoning behind the author’s methodological choices. Specifically, it elaborates on the author’s use of a comparative case study approach to develop the book’s central concept, “migration-driven literacy learning.” In doing so, the chapter describes how the project entailed both “reasearching across lives” and “researching across continents.” Finally, it offers a brief overview of the rest of the book.

scholarly journals Market-Based Conservation for Better Livelihoods? The Promises and Fallacies of REDD+ in Tanzania

Land ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 119 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andreas Scheba
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Nature Conservation ◽  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Forest Management ◽  
National Level ◽  
Policy Reforms ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Alternative Livelihood ◽  
Governance Institutions

Governments, multilateral organisations, and international conservation NGOs increasingly frame nature conservation in terms that emphasise the importance of technically managing and economically valuing nature, and introducing markets for ecosystem services. New mechanisms, such as REDD+, have been incorporated in national-level policy reforms, and have been piloted and implemented in rural project settings across the Global South. By reflecting on my research on REDD+ implementation in two case study villages in Tanzania, the paper argues that the emergence and nature of market-based conservation are multi-faceted, complex, and more profoundly shaped by structural challenges than is commonly acknowledged. The paper identifies three particularly important challenges: the politics surrounding the establishment of community-based forest management; the mismatch between formal governance institutions and actual practices on the ground; and the fickleness of income from carbon sales and alternative livelihood opportunities. I argue that these challenges are not merely teething troubles, but they question fundamental assumptions of market-based conservation, more generally. I end with reference to better ideas for achieving sustainable development.

Fragility curves for toppling of railroad locomotives

2020 ◽  
Vol 36 (4) ◽  
pp. 1623-1644
Author(s):  
Bruce F Maison
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Size Effect ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Fragility Curves ◽  
Western United States ◽  
Passenger Cars ◽  
Strong Earthquakes ◽  
Ground Shaking ◽  
Seismic Regions

Three locomotives that overturned (toppled) during strong earthquakes (>6.5M) are used as computer analytical case studies. The locomotives were at rest or traveling very slowly at the time of the earthquakes. Fragility curves are presented relating ground shaking intensity to likelihood of toppling. Supplemental studies determine the influence of various parameters, including track gauge, damping, sway-roll period, and size effect. The shaking intensities necessary for standard gauge (56.5 in) locomotives to topple are much greater than the median intensities of 2475-year earthquakes representative of those in high seismic regions of the western United States. A general conclusion is that standard gauge locomotives at rest are not susceptible to toppling in such earthquakes (≪50% chance). This can be expected to be the case as well for freight and passenger cars having sizes and slenderness similar to the case study locomotives. The study also provides insights about the toppling fragility of other large unanchored objects having similar proportions.

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