Understanding institutional bricolage: What drives behavior change towards sustainable land use in the Eastern Amazon?

Institutional perspectives and theories have shaped how problems related to individual and collective choices in forest landscapes are perceived. This article explores the social impacts of the Rural Environmental Cadastre (CAR) in the municipality of São Félix do Xingu, in the state of Pará, Brazil...

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Main Author: Maria Fernanda Gebara
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Utrecht University Library Open Access Journals (Publishing Services) 2019-05-01
Series:International Journal of the Commons
Online Access:https://www.thecommonsjournal.org/articles/913
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author Maria Fernanda Gebara
author_facet Maria Fernanda Gebara
author_sort Maria Fernanda Gebara
collection DOAJ
description Institutional perspectives and theories have shaped how problems related to individual and collective choices in forest landscapes are perceived. This article explores the social impacts of the Rural Environmental Cadastre (CAR) in the municipality of São Félix do Xingu, in the state of Pará, Brazilian Amazon. CAR is a tenure clarification and environmental compliance intervention to reduce deforestation and improve forest conservation in the Brazilian Amazon. With a focus on smallholders, the article provides insights on how to better understand institutional bricolage and behavior change in the context of social practices. Results suggest that CAR implementation is still too limited to adequately reflect the heterogeneity and complexity of reducing deforestation in the Eastern Amazon. The SFX case shows that land users responsible for pursuing environmental compliance normally draw on existing traditions – styles of thinking, sanctioned social relationships – to respond to changing situations. Neglecting such social processes and practices can decrease the long-term effectiveness of interventions such as CAR. This is usually a result of unforeseen interactions among activities practiced by the range of different actors in forest landscapes. Concluding remarks argue that, unless we shift our approach from focusing on changing individuals’ behavior to changing the interaction of elements that constitute social practices, we will remain blind to the conditions that actually drive behavior change towards environmental compliance and forest conservation.
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spelling doaj.art-3e310c60efa54b3a97aef1b6b12af76f2022-12-22T02:34:33ZengUtrecht University Library Open Access Journals (Publishing Services)International Journal of the Commons1875-02812019-05-0113163765910.18352/ijc.913416Understanding institutional bricolage: What drives behavior change towards sustainable land use in the Eastern Amazon?Maria Fernanda Gebara0Independent ResearcherInstitutional perspectives and theories have shaped how problems related to individual and collective choices in forest landscapes are perceived. This article explores the social impacts of the Rural Environmental Cadastre (CAR) in the municipality of São Félix do Xingu, in the state of Pará, Brazilian Amazon. CAR is a tenure clarification and environmental compliance intervention to reduce deforestation and improve forest conservation in the Brazilian Amazon. With a focus on smallholders, the article provides insights on how to better understand institutional bricolage and behavior change in the context of social practices. Results suggest that CAR implementation is still too limited to adequately reflect the heterogeneity and complexity of reducing deforestation in the Eastern Amazon. The SFX case shows that land users responsible for pursuing environmental compliance normally draw on existing traditions – styles of thinking, sanctioned social relationships – to respond to changing situations. Neglecting such social processes and practices can decrease the long-term effectiveness of interventions such as CAR. This is usually a result of unforeseen interactions among activities practiced by the range of different actors in forest landscapes. Concluding remarks argue that, unless we shift our approach from focusing on changing individuals’ behavior to changing the interaction of elements that constitute social practices, we will remain blind to the conditions that actually drive behavior change towards environmental compliance and forest conservation.https://www.thecommonsjournal.org/articles/913
spellingShingle Maria Fernanda Gebara
Understanding institutional bricolage: What drives behavior change towards sustainable land use in the Eastern Amazon?
International Journal of the Commons
title Understanding institutional bricolage: What drives behavior change towards sustainable land use in the Eastern Amazon?
title_full Understanding institutional bricolage: What drives behavior change towards sustainable land use in the Eastern Amazon?
title_fullStr Understanding institutional bricolage: What drives behavior change towards sustainable land use in the Eastern Amazon?
title_full_unstemmed Understanding institutional bricolage: What drives behavior change towards sustainable land use in the Eastern Amazon?
title_short Understanding institutional bricolage: What drives behavior change towards sustainable land use in the Eastern Amazon?
title_sort understanding institutional bricolage what drives behavior change towards sustainable land use in the eastern amazon
url https://www.thecommonsjournal.org/articles/913
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