What drives discrepancies and inconsistencies in global forest statistics? The use of global stat... more What drives discrepancies and inconsistencies in global forest statistics? The use of global statistics has influenced academic research and sectoral policies of forest ecosystems since the first global forest assessment was conducted in 1948 or even earlier. Very little work has been done to provide a comprehensive analysis of the governance structure and the quality of predominant international forest databases. Furthermore, very little is known about the attractiveness and/or repulsiveness of global forest statistics platforms to scholars, policy-makers and other users. To reduce knowledge gap, this article examines the governance structure and strategies of three major databases which provide data on global forest products trade including timber export/import flows data, namely FAOSTAT, the United Nations Comtrade, and Chatham House's Resource Trade Earth. This paper uses conceptual and theoretical frameworks of data governance and nudge theories are used to study the produc...
Ecotourism is considered an important activity provided by natural ecosystem services in the Fern... more Ecotourism is considered an important activity provided by natural ecosystem services in the Fernando de Noronha archipelago through recreation opportunities. Since 2010, the Fernando de Noronha National Marine Park has been experiencing a private-public partnership between the park’s management and a concessionaire, imposing fees to visitors in order to provide sustainable facilities to some attractions of the protected area. Payments for ecosystem services schemes are being implemented in many parts of the world in an effort to promote environmental protection, showing positive outcomes. Therefore, the objective of this study is to analyse the empirical case of payments for ecosystem services through ecotourism based on economic and political theory. The economic theory identifies the economic processes generated by the payments, while the political theory identifies the political actors and their respective power strategies that aid in the implementation of a specific scheme of payments for ecosystem services. Furthermore, the aim of the study is to determine which factors are successful in utilizing payments for ecosystem services as an instrument to preserve ecosystems via ecotourism. Moreover, the paper links an economic approach to power theories, which is a dynamic perspective on tourism studies. To reach the results, economic and political factors are identified according to existing theory and are then compared with empirical evidence from the archipelago. The most powerful actors that have influence on the ecotourism activities were interviewed in order to determine their power elements as well as their level of support for the payments, according to the power analysis that take into consideration the following power elements: coercion, incentives, and disincentives and dominant information. The economic analysis shows that payments for ecosystem services sufficiently meet the standards of the economic model and the political analysis explains this success by the influence of various powerful actors in Fernando de Noronha. Furthermore, the results support the hypothesis that only payments for ecosystem services which can gain the support of powerful actors are effective in practice.
In Tunisia the livelihoods of nearly 750,000 “forest people” strongly depend on state forests. St... more In Tunisia the livelihoods of nearly 750,000 “forest people” strongly depend on state forests. State forest institutions that manage more than 90% of forests have a special responsibility for the social sustainability of these people’s situation. Thus, it is important to evaluate the performance of these institutions, as such evaluations represent an option to help formulate sustainable development strategies for forest people. This study evaluates the performance of state forest institutions in regard to forest people based on a comprehensive three-layer model. The data were collected in 2016 and 2017 from documents, observations and interviews. The results partly supported the first hypothesis that “state forest institutions employ different market, non-market and political instruments to influence the use and the protection of forests”, with an exception for market instruments. The second hypothesis stating that “the outcomes of these instruments for forest people differ from tho...
A number of different approaches have been used to explain the successes and failures of biodiver... more A number of different approaches have been used to explain the successes and failures of biodiversity conservation strategies in developing countries. However, to date, little attention has been paid toward assessing the influence of knowledge transfer between science, policy, and conservation practices in the implementation of these strategies. Vietnam's Pu Luong Cuc Phuong Conservation Area is a globally important ecosystem, situated within a limestone landscape and inhabited by hundreds of local communities. Biodiversity conservation has become an important part of sustainable development in this area. This study analyzes three conservation strategies employed in the Pu Luong Cuc Phuong Conservation Area by applying the Research-Integration-Utilization (RIU) model of scientific knowledge transfer. Our analyses reveal weaknesses in scientific knowledge transfer arising from low-quality research and poor integration strategies. Based on our results, we developed recommendations...
Usualmente, o planejamento do turismo no Brasil segue a perspectiva normativa em sua execução. Es... more Usualmente, o planejamento do turismo no Brasil segue a perspectiva normativa em sua execução. Este estudo propõe integrar a perspectiva actor-centered power ao planejamento a fim de elucidar quais são os atores sociais mais poderosos e quais são seus interesses no desenvolvimento turístico. Tal perspectiva é possível por meio da identificação desses atores e de sua relação com a coerção, a informação dominante e incentivos e desincentivos, categorias derivadas das abordagens de poder desenvolvidas por Krott. Para cumprir o objetivo proposto, realizou-se entrevistas mediante a técnica bola de neve. A hipótese de pesquisa é que o planejamento do turismo no Parque Estadual da Ilha Grande (Rio de Janeiro, Brasil) é direcionado pelos interesses dos atores sociais mais poderosos. Os resultados confirmam tal hipótese e demostram que há grande conflito de interesses entre ONGs, governo e administração da Unidade de Conservação.
— Over the past decades, development projects by international organizations like the World Bank ... more — Over the past decades, development projects by international organizations like the World Bank use concepts such as ''joint forest management " , ''community-based natural resource management " , and ''participatory conservation " as integrated approaches to poverty alleviation and conservation. These Integrated Conservation and Development Projects primarily promote the intensification of natural resource production. Currently, a research program on the pathways and politics through which international organizations influence related domestic policy and cause changes is being developed. The aim of this study is to analyze the influence the World Bank had on environmental and natural resources policies aiming at poverty alleviation in Armenia. We use Armenia for analyzing how this neoliberal approach of the World Bank echoes in a post-Soviet system. Empirically, we use a qualitative case-study design building on content analysis of key policy documents from World Bank interventions and subsequent domestic policy changes. Our results show that the World Bank interventions in Armenia, formally aiming to reduce rural poverty by means of improving natural resources management, de facto promoted policy and administrative changes. These changes, however, largely benefit transnational private companies, while at the same time restricting the access of poor local users to natural resources. By employing a discourse of illegal logging and by framing local actors as the main drivers of deforestation, the World Bank achieved considerable deregulation of the forest sector. This in turn promoted privatization of the forestland as well as a reform of the state forest administration. We conclude that interventions by international organizations, such as the World Bank, may formally claim to enhance the common good e.g. through strengthening ecological goals in natural resources management. Informally, however, quite the opposite might happen: Neoliberal privatization and deregulation will further weaken state actors and their capacities, while at the same time strongly and quickly incentiviz-ing the increase in extractive natural resource production, as observed with increased timber harvests and exports.
The success of scientific knowledge transfer depends on if the decision maker can transform the s... more The success of scientific knowledge transfer depends on if the decision maker can transform the scientific advice into a policy that can be accepted by all involved actors. We use a science-policy interactions model called research-integration-utilization to observe the process of scientific knowledge transfer in the case of endangered mangroves in Segara Anakan, Indonesia. Scientific knowledge is produced within the scientific system (research), science-based solutions to problems are practically utilized by political actors (utilization), and important links between research and utilization must be made (integration). We looked for empirical evidence to test hypotheses about the research-integration-utilization model based on document analysis and expert interviews. Our study finds that the failures in knowledge transfer are caused by the inappropriate use of scientific findings. The district government is expected by presidential decree to only used scientifically sound recommendations as a prerequisite for designing the regulation. However, the district government prefers to implement their own solutions because they believe that they understand the solutions better than the researcher. In the process of integration, the researcher cannot be involved, since the selection of scientific recommendations here fully depends on the interests of the district government as the powerful ally.
What drives discrepancies and inconsistencies in global forest statistics? The use of global stat... more What drives discrepancies and inconsistencies in global forest statistics? The use of global statistics has influenced academic research and sectoral policies of forest ecosystems since the first global forest assessment was conducted in 1948 or even earlier. Very little work has been done to provide a comprehensive analysis of the governance structure and the quality of predominant international forest databases. Furthermore, very little is known about the attractiveness and/or repulsiveness of global forest statistics platforms to scholars, policy-makers and other users. To reduce knowledge gap, this article examines the governance structure and strategies of three major databases which provide data on global forest products trade including timber export/import flows data, namely FAOSTAT, the United Nations Comtrade, and Chatham House's Resource Trade Earth. This paper uses conceptual and theoretical frameworks of data governance and nudge theories are used to study the produc...
Ecotourism is considered an important activity provided by natural ecosystem services in the Fern... more Ecotourism is considered an important activity provided by natural ecosystem services in the Fernando de Noronha archipelago through recreation opportunities. Since 2010, the Fernando de Noronha National Marine Park has been experiencing a private-public partnership between the park’s management and a concessionaire, imposing fees to visitors in order to provide sustainable facilities to some attractions of the protected area. Payments for ecosystem services schemes are being implemented in many parts of the world in an effort to promote environmental protection, showing positive outcomes. Therefore, the objective of this study is to analyse the empirical case of payments for ecosystem services through ecotourism based on economic and political theory. The economic theory identifies the economic processes generated by the payments, while the political theory identifies the political actors and their respective power strategies that aid in the implementation of a specific scheme of payments for ecosystem services. Furthermore, the aim of the study is to determine which factors are successful in utilizing payments for ecosystem services as an instrument to preserve ecosystems via ecotourism. Moreover, the paper links an economic approach to power theories, which is a dynamic perspective on tourism studies. To reach the results, economic and political factors are identified according to existing theory and are then compared with empirical evidence from the archipelago. The most powerful actors that have influence on the ecotourism activities were interviewed in order to determine their power elements as well as their level of support for the payments, according to the power analysis that take into consideration the following power elements: coercion, incentives, and disincentives and dominant information. The economic analysis shows that payments for ecosystem services sufficiently meet the standards of the economic model and the political analysis explains this success by the influence of various powerful actors in Fernando de Noronha. Furthermore, the results support the hypothesis that only payments for ecosystem services which can gain the support of powerful actors are effective in practice.
In Tunisia the livelihoods of nearly 750,000 “forest people” strongly depend on state forests. St... more In Tunisia the livelihoods of nearly 750,000 “forest people” strongly depend on state forests. State forest institutions that manage more than 90% of forests have a special responsibility for the social sustainability of these people’s situation. Thus, it is important to evaluate the performance of these institutions, as such evaluations represent an option to help formulate sustainable development strategies for forest people. This study evaluates the performance of state forest institutions in regard to forest people based on a comprehensive three-layer model. The data were collected in 2016 and 2017 from documents, observations and interviews. The results partly supported the first hypothesis that “state forest institutions employ different market, non-market and political instruments to influence the use and the protection of forests”, with an exception for market instruments. The second hypothesis stating that “the outcomes of these instruments for forest people differ from tho...
A number of different approaches have been used to explain the successes and failures of biodiver... more A number of different approaches have been used to explain the successes and failures of biodiversity conservation strategies in developing countries. However, to date, little attention has been paid toward assessing the influence of knowledge transfer between science, policy, and conservation practices in the implementation of these strategies. Vietnam's Pu Luong Cuc Phuong Conservation Area is a globally important ecosystem, situated within a limestone landscape and inhabited by hundreds of local communities. Biodiversity conservation has become an important part of sustainable development in this area. This study analyzes three conservation strategies employed in the Pu Luong Cuc Phuong Conservation Area by applying the Research-Integration-Utilization (RIU) model of scientific knowledge transfer. Our analyses reveal weaknesses in scientific knowledge transfer arising from low-quality research and poor integration strategies. Based on our results, we developed recommendations...
Usualmente, o planejamento do turismo no Brasil segue a perspectiva normativa em sua execução. Es... more Usualmente, o planejamento do turismo no Brasil segue a perspectiva normativa em sua execução. Este estudo propõe integrar a perspectiva actor-centered power ao planejamento a fim de elucidar quais são os atores sociais mais poderosos e quais são seus interesses no desenvolvimento turístico. Tal perspectiva é possível por meio da identificação desses atores e de sua relação com a coerção, a informação dominante e incentivos e desincentivos, categorias derivadas das abordagens de poder desenvolvidas por Krott. Para cumprir o objetivo proposto, realizou-se entrevistas mediante a técnica bola de neve. A hipótese de pesquisa é que o planejamento do turismo no Parque Estadual da Ilha Grande (Rio de Janeiro, Brasil) é direcionado pelos interesses dos atores sociais mais poderosos. Os resultados confirmam tal hipótese e demostram que há grande conflito de interesses entre ONGs, governo e administração da Unidade de Conservação.
— Over the past decades, development projects by international organizations like the World Bank ... more — Over the past decades, development projects by international organizations like the World Bank use concepts such as ''joint forest management " , ''community-based natural resource management " , and ''participatory conservation " as integrated approaches to poverty alleviation and conservation. These Integrated Conservation and Development Projects primarily promote the intensification of natural resource production. Currently, a research program on the pathways and politics through which international organizations influence related domestic policy and cause changes is being developed. The aim of this study is to analyze the influence the World Bank had on environmental and natural resources policies aiming at poverty alleviation in Armenia. We use Armenia for analyzing how this neoliberal approach of the World Bank echoes in a post-Soviet system. Empirically, we use a qualitative case-study design building on content analysis of key policy documents from World Bank interventions and subsequent domestic policy changes. Our results show that the World Bank interventions in Armenia, formally aiming to reduce rural poverty by means of improving natural resources management, de facto promoted policy and administrative changes. These changes, however, largely benefit transnational private companies, while at the same time restricting the access of poor local users to natural resources. By employing a discourse of illegal logging and by framing local actors as the main drivers of deforestation, the World Bank achieved considerable deregulation of the forest sector. This in turn promoted privatization of the forestland as well as a reform of the state forest administration. We conclude that interventions by international organizations, such as the World Bank, may formally claim to enhance the common good e.g. through strengthening ecological goals in natural resources management. Informally, however, quite the opposite might happen: Neoliberal privatization and deregulation will further weaken state actors and their capacities, while at the same time strongly and quickly incentiviz-ing the increase in extractive natural resource production, as observed with increased timber harvests and exports.
The success of scientific knowledge transfer depends on if the decision maker can transform the s... more The success of scientific knowledge transfer depends on if the decision maker can transform the scientific advice into a policy that can be accepted by all involved actors. We use a science-policy interactions model called research-integration-utilization to observe the process of scientific knowledge transfer in the case of endangered mangroves in Segara Anakan, Indonesia. Scientific knowledge is produced within the scientific system (research), science-based solutions to problems are practically utilized by political actors (utilization), and important links between research and utilization must be made (integration). We looked for empirical evidence to test hypotheses about the research-integration-utilization model based on document analysis and expert interviews. Our study finds that the failures in knowledge transfer are caused by the inappropriate use of scientific findings. The district government is expected by presidential decree to only used scientifically sound recommendations as a prerequisite for designing the regulation. However, the district government prefers to implement their own solutions because they believe that they understand the solutions better than the researcher. In the process of integration, the researcher cannot be involved, since the selection of scientific recommendations here fully depends on the interests of the district government as the powerful ally.
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