Using Research to Support Transformative Impacts on Complex, “Wicked Problems” With Pastoral Peoples in Rangelands
Pastoralists and researchers (and others) are finding new ways of working together worldwide, attempting to sustain pastoral livelihoods and rangelands in the face of rapid and profound changes driven by globalization, growing consumption, land-use change, and climate change. They are doing this par...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2021-01-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fsufs.2020.600689/full |
| _version_ | 1818388653820346368 |
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| author | Robin S. Reid María E. Fernández-Giménez Hailey Wilmer Tomas Pickering Karim-Aly S. Kassam Apin Yasin Lauren M. Porensky Justin D. Derner David Nkedianye Chantsallkham Jamsranjav Khishigbayar Jamiyansharav Tungalag Ulambayar Elisa Oteros-Rozas Federica Ravera Umed Bulbulshoev Daler S. Kaziev Corrine N. Knapp |
| author_facet | Robin S. Reid María E. Fernández-Giménez Hailey Wilmer Tomas Pickering Karim-Aly S. Kassam Apin Yasin Lauren M. Porensky Justin D. Derner David Nkedianye Chantsallkham Jamsranjav Khishigbayar Jamiyansharav Tungalag Ulambayar Elisa Oteros-Rozas Federica Ravera Umed Bulbulshoev Daler S. Kaziev Corrine N. Knapp |
| author_sort | Robin S. Reid |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Pastoralists and researchers (and others) are finding new ways of working together worldwide, attempting to sustain pastoral livelihoods and rangelands in the face of rapid and profound changes driven by globalization, growing consumption, land-use change, and climate change. They are doing this partly because of a greater need to address increasing complex or “wicked” problems, but also because local pastoral voices (and sometimes science) still have little impact on decision-making in the governmental and private sectors. We describe here, using six worldwide cases, how collaborative rangelands partnerships are transforming how we learn about rangelands and pastoralists, whose knowledge gets considered, how science can support societal action, and even our fundamental model of how science gets done. Over the long-term, collaborative partnerships are transforming social-ecological systems by implementing processes like building collaborative relationships, co-production/co-generation of knowledge, integration of knowledges, social learning, capacity building, networking and implementing action. These processes are changing mental models and paradigms, creating strong and effective leaders, changing power relations, providing more robust understanding of rangeland systems, reducing polarization and supporting the implementation of new practices and policies. Collaborative partnerships have recurring challenges and much work is yet to be done. These challenges rest on the enduring complexity of social-ecological problems in rangelands. At a practical level, partnerships struggle with listening, amplifying and partnering with diverse (and sometimes marginalized) voices, the time commitment needed to make partnerships work, the bias and naivete of scientists, the recognition that partnerships can promote negative transformations, management of power relations within the partnership, and the need to attribute impacts to partnership activities. We think that the future of this work will have more focus on systems transformations, morals and ethics, intangible and long-term impacts, critical self-assessment, paradigm shifts and mental models, and power. Overall, we conclude that these partnerships are transformative in unexpected and sometimes intangible ways. Key transformations include changing mental models and building the next generation of transformative leaders. Just as important is serendipity, where participants in partnerships take advantage of new windows of opportunity to change policy or create new governance institutions. We also conclude that collaborative partnerships are changing how we do science, creating new and transformative ways that science and society interact that could be called “transformative science with society.” |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-14T04:29:16Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-cc3ced17854b4f2fb7fc65130353d1e3 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2571-581X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-14T04:29:16Z |
| publishDate | 2021-01-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems |
| spelling | doaj.art-cc3ced17854b4f2fb7fc65130353d1e32022-12-21T23:17:08ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems2571-581X2021-01-01410.3389/fsufs.2020.600689600689Using Research to Support Transformative Impacts on Complex, “Wicked Problems” With Pastoral Peoples in RangelandsRobin S. Reid0María E. Fernández-Giménez1Hailey Wilmer2Tomas Pickering3Karim-Aly S. Kassam4Apin Yasin5Lauren M. Porensky6Justin D. Derner7David Nkedianye8Chantsallkham Jamsranjav9Khishigbayar Jamiyansharav10Tungalag Ulambayar11Elisa Oteros-Rozas12Federica Ravera13Umed Bulbulshoev14Daler S. Kaziev15Corrine N. Knapp16Department of Ecosystem Science and Sustainability, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United StatesDepartment of Forest and Rangeland Stewardship, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United StatesUnited States Department of Agriculture Forest Service Pacific Northwest Research Station, Juneau, AK, United StatesGraduate Degree Program in Ecology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United StatesDepartment of Natural Resources & the Environment, and the American Indian & Indigenous Studies Program, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, United StatesSamburu Youth Education Fund, Archer's Post, KenyaUnited States Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service, Fort Collins, CO, United StatesUnited States Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service, Cheyenne, WY,United StatesIndependent Researcher, Athi River, KenyaDepartment of Forest and Rangeland Stewardship, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States0Center for Environmental Management Military Lands, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States1Zoological Society of London, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia2Chair on Agroecology and Food Systems, University of Vic - University of Central Catalonia, Barcelona, Spain2Chair on Agroecology and Food Systems, University of Vic - University of Central Catalonia, Barcelona, Spain3Public Foundation CAMP Tabiat, Khorog, TajikistanDepartment of Natural Resources & the Environment, and the American Indian & Indigenous Studies Program, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, United States4Haub School of Environment and Natural Resources, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY, United StatesPastoralists and researchers (and others) are finding new ways of working together worldwide, attempting to sustain pastoral livelihoods and rangelands in the face of rapid and profound changes driven by globalization, growing consumption, land-use change, and climate change. They are doing this partly because of a greater need to address increasing complex or “wicked” problems, but also because local pastoral voices (and sometimes science) still have little impact on decision-making in the governmental and private sectors. We describe here, using six worldwide cases, how collaborative rangelands partnerships are transforming how we learn about rangelands and pastoralists, whose knowledge gets considered, how science can support societal action, and even our fundamental model of how science gets done. Over the long-term, collaborative partnerships are transforming social-ecological systems by implementing processes like building collaborative relationships, co-production/co-generation of knowledge, integration of knowledges, social learning, capacity building, networking and implementing action. These processes are changing mental models and paradigms, creating strong and effective leaders, changing power relations, providing more robust understanding of rangeland systems, reducing polarization and supporting the implementation of new practices and policies. Collaborative partnerships have recurring challenges and much work is yet to be done. These challenges rest on the enduring complexity of social-ecological problems in rangelands. At a practical level, partnerships struggle with listening, amplifying and partnering with diverse (and sometimes marginalized) voices, the time commitment needed to make partnerships work, the bias and naivete of scientists, the recognition that partnerships can promote negative transformations, management of power relations within the partnership, and the need to attribute impacts to partnership activities. We think that the future of this work will have more focus on systems transformations, morals and ethics, intangible and long-term impacts, critical self-assessment, paradigm shifts and mental models, and power. Overall, we conclude that these partnerships are transformative in unexpected and sometimes intangible ways. Key transformations include changing mental models and building the next generation of transformative leaders. Just as important is serendipity, where participants in partnerships take advantage of new windows of opportunity to change policy or create new governance institutions. We also conclude that collaborative partnerships are changing how we do science, creating new and transformative ways that science and society interact that could be called “transformative science with society.”https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fsufs.2020.600689/fulltransformationssocial-ecological systemssocial learningpastoralistcollaborative partnershipsco-generation of knowledge |
| spellingShingle | Robin S. Reid María E. Fernández-Giménez Hailey Wilmer Tomas Pickering Karim-Aly S. Kassam Apin Yasin Lauren M. Porensky Justin D. Derner David Nkedianye Chantsallkham Jamsranjav Khishigbayar Jamiyansharav Tungalag Ulambayar Elisa Oteros-Rozas Federica Ravera Umed Bulbulshoev Daler S. Kaziev Corrine N. Knapp Using Research to Support Transformative Impacts on Complex, “Wicked Problems” With Pastoral Peoples in Rangelands Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems transformations social-ecological systems social learning pastoralist collaborative partnerships co-generation of knowledge |
| title | Using Research to Support Transformative Impacts on Complex, “Wicked Problems” With Pastoral Peoples in Rangelands |
| title_full | Using Research to Support Transformative Impacts on Complex, “Wicked Problems” With Pastoral Peoples in Rangelands |
| title_fullStr | Using Research to Support Transformative Impacts on Complex, “Wicked Problems” With Pastoral Peoples in Rangelands |
| title_full_unstemmed | Using Research to Support Transformative Impacts on Complex, “Wicked Problems” With Pastoral Peoples in Rangelands |
| title_short | Using Research to Support Transformative Impacts on Complex, “Wicked Problems” With Pastoral Peoples in Rangelands |
| title_sort | using research to support transformative impacts on complex wicked problems with pastoral peoples in rangelands |
| topic | transformations social-ecological systems social learning pastoralist collaborative partnerships co-generation of knowledge |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fsufs.2020.600689/full |
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