Abstract
Our research provides evidence that critical junctures in coupled human and natural systems may stimulate the undertaking of sustainability transition actions in biosphere reserves (BRs). Specifically, we explored whether BRs bolster community resilience, defined according to eight parameters identified in disaster management theory. We found that, based on evidence from five case studies in Spain, BR initiatives enhanced community resilience though governmental obstacles to local community initiatives and increasing telecoupling mediated by the institutional legacy effect of corporatism continues to constrain the ability of BR managers to develop what they perceive as more social-ecologically sustainable landscape management and commodity production.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Explore related subjects
Discover the latest articles and news from researchers in related subjects, suggested using machine learning.References
Alberti M, Asbjornsen H, Baker LA et al (2011) Research on coupled human and natural systems (CHANS): approach, challenges, and strategies. Bull Ecol Soc Am 92:218–228. https://doi.org/10.1890/0012-9623-92.2.218
Bavinck M, Vivekanandan V (2011) Conservation, conflict and the governance of fisher wellbeing: analysis of the establishment of the Gulf of Mannar National Park and Biosphere Reserve. Environ Manag 47:593–602. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-010-9578-z
Berkes F, Ross H (2013) Community resilience: toward an integrated approach. Soc Nat Resour 26:5–20. https://doi.org/10.1080/08941920.2012.736605
Bouamrane M, Spierenburg M, Agrawal A et al (2016) Stakeholder engagement and biodiversity conservation challenges in social-ecological systems: some insights from biosphere reserves in western Africa and France. Ecol Soc. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-08812-210425
Campbell C, Sacchetti S (2017) Editorial: community-based, collaborative solutions to sustainable economic development in and around biosphere reserves. JEOD 6:1–9. https://doi.org/10.5947/jeod.2017.001
Charli-Joseph L, Siqueiros-Garcia JM, Eakin H et al (2018) Promoting agency for social-ecological transformation: a transformation-lab in the Xochimilco social-ecological system. Ecol Soc. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-10214-230246
Coetzee BWT, Gaston KJ, Chown SL (2014) Local scale comparisons of biodiversity as a test for global protected area ecological performance: a meta-analysis. PLoS ONE 9:e105824. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0105824
Collier RB, Collier D (1991) Critical junctures and historical legacies. Shaping the political arena: critical junctures, trade unions, and the State in Latin America. Princeton University Press, Priceton, pp 27–39
Edge S, McAllister ML (2009) Place-based local governance and sustainable communities: lessons from Canadian biosphere reserves. J Environ Plan Manag 52:279–295. https://doi.org/10.1080/09640560802703058
Faulkner L, Brown K, Quinn T (2018) Analyzing community resilience as an emergent property of dynamic social-ecological systems. E&S 23:art24. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-09784-230124
Ferreira A, Zimmermann H, Santos R, von Wehrden H (2018) A social-ecological systems framework as a tool for understanding the effectiveness of biosphere reserve management. Sustainability 10:3608. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10103608
García-Barrios L, Cruz-Morales J, Vandermeer J, Perfecto I (2017) The Azteca Chess experience: learning how to share concepts of ecological complexity with small coffee farmers. Ecol Soc. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-09184-220237
Geels FW, Schot J (2010) The dynamics of socio-technical transitions: a sociotechnical perspective in grin’. In: Rotmans J, Schot J (eds) Transitions to sustainable development: new directions in the study of long term transformative change. Routledge, London
Gunderson LH, Holling CS (eds) (2002) Panarchy: understanding transformations in systems of humans and nature. Island Press, Washington
Hahn T (2011) Self-organized governance networks for ecosystem management: who is accountable? Ecol Soc. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-04043-160218
Herrero C (2017) Biosphere reserves: learning spaces for sustainability. Int J UNESCO Biosph Reserv 1:77–84
Hobbs RJ, Arico S, Aronson J et al (2006) Novel ecosystems: theoretical and management aspects of the new ecological world order. Glob Ecol Biogeogr 15:1–7. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1466-822X.2006.00212.x
Hostetler M, Allen W, Meurk C (2011) Conserving urban biodiversity? Creating green infrastructure is only the first step. Landsc Urban Plan 100:369–371. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landurbplan.2011.01.011
IBE-UNESCO (2015) Concept of governance. In: Int Bur Educ. http://www.ibe.unesco.org/en/geqaf/technicalnotes/concept-governance. Accessed 6 Jun 2021
Jungmeier M, Paul-Horn I, Zollner D et al (2011) Biosphere reserves as a long-term intervention in a region—strategies, processes, topics and principles of different participative planning and management regimes of biosphere reserves. Eco.mont J Prot Mt Areas Res. https://doi.org/10.1553/eco.mont-3-1s29
Kramer DB, Hartter J, Boag AE et al (2017) Top 40 questions in coupled human and natural systems (CHANS) research. E&S 22:art44. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-09429-220244
Lavrakas PJ (2009) Encyclopedia of survey research methods. Sage Publications, Thousand Oaks
Leslie HM, Basurto X, Nenadovic M et al (2015) Operationalizing the social-ecological systems framework to assess sustainability. Proc Natl Acad Sci 112:5979–5984. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1414640112
Liu J, Dietz T, Carpenter SR et al (2007) Complexity of coupled human and natural systems. Science 317:1513–1516. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1144004
Liu J, Yang W, Li S (2016) Framing ecosystem services in the telecoupled anthropocene. Front Ecol Environ 14:27–36. https://doi.org/10.1002/16-0188.1
Liu J, Dietz T, Carpenter SR et al (2021) Coupled human and natural systems: the evolution and applications of an integrated framework: this article belongs to Ambio’s 50th anniversary collection. Theme: anthropocene. Ambio. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13280-020-01488-5
De Lucio JV, Herrero C, Rodríguez B, et al (2019) Claves de éxito de las experiencias de transición a la sostenibilidad en reservas de biosfera: Investigación participativa de casos de ciclo adaptativo e intervención sobre sistemas ecológicos y sociales. Forum de Sostenibilidad Cátedra UNESCO sobre Desarrollo Sostenible de la Universidad del País Vasco UPV/EHU 9
Mbereko A, Kupika OL, Gandiwa E (2017) Linking social and ecological sustainability: an analysis of livelihoods and the hanging natural resources in the Middle Zambezi Biosphere Reserve. J Entrep Organ Divers 6:49–68. https://doi.org/10.5947/jeod.2017.004
McGinnis MD, Ostrom E (2014) Social-ecological system framework: initial changes and continuing challenges. Ecol Soc. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-06387-190230
Méndez PF, Isendahl N, Amezaga JM, Santamaría L (2012) Facilitating transitional processes in rigid institutional regimes for water management and wetland conservation: experience from the Guadalquivir Estuary. Ecol Soc. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-04494-170126
Moore JB, Horti A, Fielding BA (2018) Evaluation of the nutrient content of yogurts: a comprehensive survey of yogurt products in the major UK supermarkets. BMJ Open. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2017-021387
Negev M, Sagie H, Orenstein DE et al (2019) Using the ecosystem services framework for defining diverse human-nature relationships in a multi-ethnic biosphere reserve. Ecosyst Serv 39:100989. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoser.2019.100989
Nykvist B, von Heland J (2014) Social-ecological memory as a source of general and specified resilience. Ecol Soc. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-06167-190247
Onaindia M, Ballesteros F, Alonso G et al (2013) Participatory process to prioritize actions for a sustainable management in a biosphere reserve. Environ Sci Policy 33:283–294. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envsci.2013.05.012
Onaindia M, Herrero C, Hernández A et al (2019) Co-creation of sustainable development knowledge in biosphere reserves. In: Reed MG, Price MF (eds) UNESCO biosphere reserves, 1st edn. Taylor and Francis, pp 269–280
Ostrom E (2005) Understanding institutional diversity. Princeton University Press, Princeton
Oteros-Rozas E, Martín-López B, Daw TM et al (2015) Participatory scenario planning in place-based social-ecological research: insights and experiences from 23 case studies. Ecol Soc. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-07985-200432
Patel S, Rogers M, Amlôt R, Rubin G (2017) What do we mean by ‘Community Resilience’? A systematic literature review of how it is defined in the literature. PLOS Curr. https://doi.org/10.1371/currents.dis.db775aff25efc5ac4f0660ad9c9f7db2
Persson J, Johansson EL, Olsson L (2018) Harnessing local knowledge for scientific knowledge production: challenges and pitfalls within evidence-based sustainability studies. E&S 23:art38. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-10608-230438
Plummer R, Baird J, Farhad S, Witkowski S (2020) How do biosphere stewards actively shape trajectories of social-ecological change? J Environ Manag 261:110139. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2020.110139
Reed MG, Godmaire H, Abernethy P, Guertin M-A (2014) Building a community of practice for sustainability: strengthening learning and collective action of Canadian biosphere reserves through a national partnership. J Environ Manag 145:230–239. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2014.06.030
Schmitter PC (1979) Still the century of corporatism? In: Lehmbruch G, Schmitter PC (eds) Trends toward corporatist intermediation. Sage Publications, London, pp 7–52
Seijo F, Godoy MM, Guglielmin D et al (2020) Conflicting frames about ownership and land use drive wildfire ignitions in a protected conservation area. Environ Manag 65:448–462. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-020-01265-w
Sharpley R (2021) 20th Anniversary reflective commentary—on the need for sustainable tourism consumption. Tour Stud 28:146879762098608. https://doi.org/10.1177/1468797620986087
Soss J (2013) Talking our way to meaningful explanations a practice-centered view of interviewing for interpretive research. In: Yanow D, Schwartz-Shea P (eds) Interpretation and method, 2nd edn. M.E. Sharpe, Armonk, pp 161–182
Těšitel J, Kušová D (2010) Biosphere reserves. Suggested model of the institution of commons. J Landsc Ecol 3:17
UNESCO (2019) Biosphere reserves. In: UNESCO. https://en.unesco.org/biosphere. Accessed 15 May 2020
UNESCO-MAB (2017) A New Roadmap for the Man and the Biosphere (MAB) Programme and its World Network of Biosphere Reserves: MAB Strategy (2015–2025), Lima Action Plan (2016–2025), Lima Declaration. UNESCO, París
Williams S, Robinson J (2020) Measuring sustainability: an evaluation framework for sustainability transition experiments. Environ Sci Policy 103:58–66. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envsci.2019.10.012
Yin RK (2014) Case study research: design and methods, 5th edn. Sage Publications, Los Ángeles
Acknowledgements
Both authors would like to thank anonymous reviewers for their comments and suggestions. We also thank Beni Rodríguez, Juana Barber, Bernardo Varela, Aquilino Miguélez and Tomás Rueda as actors and managers of the biosphere reserves for sharing their experiences through in-person workshops, field interviews, and by providing documentation. Cristina Herrero and Antonio Pou are responsible for the first collection and writing of the experiences, made possible through their field work and interviews. This project received support from the Ministry for Ecological Transition of the Spanish government through the Fundación Vida Sostenible and the Ofystes Association. FS acknowledges support from the grant DARE: "Data Driven Models of Forest Drought Vulnerability and Resilience across spatial and temporal Scales: Application to the Spanish Climate Change Adaptation Strategy" RTI2018-096884-B-C32; MICIU; Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades), SPAIN”.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Handled by Salvatore Arico, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, France.
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Supplementary Information
Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
de Lucio, J.V., Seijo, F. Do biosphere reserves bolster community resilience in coupled human and natural systems? Evidence from 5 case studies in Spain. Sustain Sci 16, 2123–2136 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11625-021-01029-3
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11625-021-01029-3