Publication archive

Socioeconomic dynamics of the Ghanaian tuna industry: a value-chain approach to understanding aspects of global fisheries

Drury O’Neill, E., N.K., Asare, D.W., Aheto. 2018. Socioeconomic dynamics of the Ghanaian tuna industry: a value-chain approach to understanding aspects of global fisheries. African Journal of Marine Science, 40:3, 303-313, DOI: 10.2989/1814232X.2018.1513866

2018 - Journal / article

This study investigated how an industrial tuna fishery functions in terms of procedures, practices, governance and finance in the context of Ghana, West Africa. Tuna is Ghana’s biggest seafood export, contributing significantly to the domestic fisheries sector. A case-study approach was used to analyse relevant social and economic factors at the local scale to better understand how the global seafood industry operates in a low...

Who benefits from seafood trade? A comparison of social and market structures in small-scale fisheries

Drury O'Neill, E., B. Crona, A. J. G. Ferrer, R. Pomeroy, and N. S. Jiddawi. 2018. Who benefits from seafood trade? A comparison of social and market structures in small-scale fisheries. Ecology and Society 23(3):12.https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-10331-230312

2018 - Journal / article

We examine the benefits flowing from a coastal seascape through seafood trade to various social groups in two distinct small-scale fishery case studies. A knowledge gap currently exists in relation to how benefits from a fishery, and the associated trade, are ultimately distributed, specifically, how market structures and relations, and the combined dynamics of the local fishing society, can mediate these flows. Previous resea...

Transformation is feasible - How to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals within Planetary Boundaries

Transformation is feasible - How to achieve the SustainableDevelopment Goals within Planetary Boundaries. 2018. Written by Randers, J., Rockström, J., Stoknes, P.E., Golüke, U., Collste, D., Cornell, S. A report to the Club of Rome from Stockholm Resilience Centre and BI Norwegian Business School

2018 - Report

The dual adoption of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) together with the Paris Climate Agreement, both in 2015, represents a global turning point. We have never before had such a universal development plan for people and planet. For the first time in human history the world has agreed on a democratically adopted roadmap for humanity’s future, which aims at attaining socially inclusive and highly aspirational socio-e...

Local, global, multi-Level: market structure and multi-species fishery dynamics

Elsler, L.G., Drohan, S.D., Schlüter, M., Watson, J.R., Levin, S.A. 2018. Local, Global, Multi-Level: Market Structure and Multi-Species Fishery Dynamics. Ecological EconomicsVolume 156, February 2019, Pages 185-19, DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2018.09.008

2018 - Journal / article

Price and market structures in fisheries change rapidly, now 40% of seafood is traded internationally and are associated with overharvesting of marine species. We have developed a bio-economic fishery model to address the pressing need of managing the interplay of different markets. We first regard local, multi-level and global markets individually and then analyze the effect of transitioning between markets on the exploitatio...

Deliberative multi-actor dialogues as opportunities for transformative social learning and conflict resolution in international environmental negotiations

Schultz, M., Hahn, T., Ituarte Lima, C., Hallstrom, N. 2018. Deliberative multi actor dialogues as opportunities for transformative social learning and conflict resolution in international environmental negotiations, International Environmental Agreements: Politics, Law and Economics, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10784-018-9410-4

2018 - Journal / article

The format for formal international negotiations on environment and development sometimes prevents negotiators from truly listening to each other and adapt pre-existing positions to realize constructive conflict resolution. In this paper we present and analyse “Multi-Actor Dialogue Seminars” (MADS) as an approach to contribute to transformative social learning and conflict resolution, and the contribution to tangible and intan...

Inequality and the Biosphere

Hamann, M., Berry, K., Chaigneu, T., Curry, T. et. al. 2018. Inequality and the Biosphere. Annual Review of Environment and Resources Vol. 43:- (Volume publication date October 2018) https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-environ-102017- 025949

2018 - Journal / article

Rising inequalities and accelerating global environmental change pose two of the most pressing challenges of the twenty-first century. To explore how these phenomena are linked, we apply a social-ecological systems perspective and review the literature to identify six different types of interactions (or “pathways”) between inequality and the biosphere. We find that most of the research so far has only considered one-directiona...

Building university-based boundary organisations that facilitate impacts on environmental policy and practice

Cvitanovic C., Löf M.F., Norström A.V., Reed, M.S. 2018. Building university-based boundary organisations that facilitate impacts on environmental policy and practice. PLoS ONE 13(9): e0203752. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0203752

2018 - Journal / article

Responding to modern day environmental challenges for societal well-being and prosperity necessitates the integration of science into policy and practice. This has spurred the development of novel institutional structures among research organisations aimed at enhancing the impact of environmental science on policy and practice. However, such initiatives are seldom evaluated and even in cases where evaluations are undertaken, t...

A framework for conceptualizing and assessing the resilience of essential services produced by socio-technical systems

Van der Merwe, S. E., R. Biggs, and R. Preiser. 2018. A framework for conceptualizing and assessing the resilience of essential services produced by socio-technical systems. Ecology and Society 23(2):12.https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-09623-230212

2018 - Journal / article

Essential services such as electricity are critical to human well-being and the functioning of modern society. These services are produced by complex adaptive socio-technical systems and emerge from the interplay of technical infrastructure with people and governing institutions. Ongoing global changes such as urbanization and increasing prevalence of extreme weather events are generating much interest in strategies for buildi...

Using futures methods to create transformative spaces: visions of a good Anthropocene in southern Africa

Pereira, L. M., T. Hichert, M. Hamann, R. Preiser, and R. Biggs. 2018. Using futures methods to create transformative spaces: visions of a good Anthropocene in southern Africa. Ecology and Society 23(1):19.https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-09907-230119

2018 - Journal / article

 The unique challenges posed by the Anthropocene require creative ways of engaging with the future and bringing about transformative change. Envisioning positive futures is a first step in creating a shared understanding and commitment that enables radical transformations toward sustainability in a world defined by complexity, diversity, and uncertainty. However, to create a transformative space in which truly unknowable futur...

Middle-range theories of land system change

Meyfroidt, P.,Chowdhury, R.R., de Bremond, A., E.C.Ellis, E.C., Erb, K-H., Filatova, T., Garrett, D. et. al. 2018. Middle-range theories of land system change. Global Environmental Change Volume 53, November 2018, Pages 52-67. DOI: 10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2018.08.006

2018 - Journal / article

Changes in land systems generate many sustainability challenges. Identifying more sustainable land-use alternatives requires solid theoretical foundations on the causes of land-use/cover changes. Land system science is a maturing field that has produced a wealth of methodological innovations and empirical observations on land-cover and land-use change , from patterns and processes to causes. We take stock of this knowledge b...