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From Poverty to Wellbeing in Small-Scale Fisheries: The Governability Challenge

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Social Wellbeing and the Values of Small-scale Fisheries

Part of the book series: MARE Publication Series ((MARE,volume 17))

Abstract

Ascending out of poverty and achieving wellbeing is the end outcome of a very complex chain of interrelated factors, interactions and governance decisions, which makes wellbeing challenging to achieve. Governance interventions must be linked to social justice, sustainable livelihoods, food security, and ecosystem health in order to overcome poverty and wellbeing challenges. The multidimensional nature of the wellbeing concept, covering subjective, social and material aspects of what together make up a good life, aligns well with the holistic and integrative perspective of interactive governance. In particular, interactive governance posits that achieving wellbeing requires efforts in all ‘governing orders,’ i.e. the deliberation on values and principles, the design of institutions, and the daily practice of governance as deliberative systems and the technicalities of management. At the meta-order, to achieve wellbeing, governing principles such as those related to decision-making and justice would need clarification along with consideration of the social values and norms that underpin them. From these principles, institutions governing stakeholders’ representation and participation, along with rules and norms guiding governing actions follow, as the second order. The first order then is concerned with the actual governing operation, including the selection and implementation of tools for management. Drawing from case studies of small-scale fisheries around the world, we provide examples of governing interventions at the different orders and how they contribute to moving small-scale fishing people and their communities from poverty to wellbeing, while sustaining the fundamental values that characterize small-scale fisheries as a source of livelihoods and a way of life.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Norwegian College of Fishery Science, UIT – The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway

    Svein Jentoft

  2. Department of Geography, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John’s, NL, A1B 3X9, Canada

    Ratana Chuenpagdee

Authors
  1. Svein Jentoft
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  2. Ratana Chuenpagdee
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Correspondence to Svein Jentoft .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Anthropology, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

    Derek S. Johnson

  2. Department of History, Politics and Social Sciences, University of Greenwich, London, United Kingdom

    Tim G. Acott

  3. Research Institute for the Environment and Livelihoods, Charles Darwin University, Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia

    Natasha Stacey

  4. Centre for Environmental Policy, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom

    Julie Urquhart

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Jentoft, S., Chuenpagdee, R. (2018). From Poverty to Wellbeing in Small-Scale Fisheries: The Governability Challenge. In: Johnson, D., Acott, T., Stacey, N., Urquhart, J. (eds) Social Wellbeing and the Values of Small-scale Fisheries. MARE Publication Series, vol 17. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-60750-4_13

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