An essential variable approach for integrated social-ecological systems monitoring to determine sustainability in a South African catchment
Date
2024
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg
Abstract
This thesis presents an essential variable (EV) approach tailored for integrated social-ecological systems (SES) monitoring within the Tsitsa River Catchment (TRC) in South Africa. The study addresses the conceptual and methodological challenges inherent in SES integration and monitoring to provide insights into sustainable landscape management. The research methodology employed a transdisciplinary social learning process, integrating systems thinking and participatory research methods across three related publications.
In the first publication, systems diagramming, qualitative interviews, and participatory data collection provided a systemic snapshot of the interconnected social and biophysical drivers of land degradation in the TRC. The findings underscored the dual benefits of changes in land use and grazing practices for landscape improvement and sustainable livelihoods, informing the identification of monitoring variables crucial for sustainable land management.
In the second publication, a social learning process, termed participatory self-observation, explored approaches to enhance integration and monitoring of biophysical and social data for adaptive management. The process identified data integration, overload, scale, learning-oriented monitoring, and relationship-building as key challenges in SES monitoring Recommendations included participatory approaches focusing on applied work, identifying essential data for SES monitoring, and improving transdisciplinary collaboration.
In the third publication, a transdisciplinary process guided by EV development identified Essential Social-ecological System Variables (ESEVs) for the TRC, emphasising the relational connection between social and ecological aspects of SESs. ESEVs were prioritized based on essentiality scores and participant consensus, facilitating integrated planning and management at the catchment scale. The ESEVs identified for the TRC include 'soil erosion related to human actions on the land,' 'participation in natural resource governance,' 'grazing and rangeland sustainability,' and 'land cover and condition. Participants proposed three additional ESEVs, 'access to water,' 'local natural resource governance system,' and 'human well-being in the landscape'.
The study concludes that collaborative learning informed by diverse transdisciplinary perspectives can guide adaptive monitoring approaches, with lessons from the TRC applicable to diverse contexts. The ESEV approach offers wider application value, addressing the question of the minimum variables needed for integrative landscape management in complex SESs. Overall, this thesis pioneers a transdisciplinary mixed-methods approach for efficiently monitoring social-ecological sustainability outcomes. Through advancements in conceptualizations of integrated, contextually grounded monitoring, it offers a novel perspective for understanding the implications of development interventions, bridging critical gaps in SES monitoring
Description
Thesis Submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy in Animal, Plant and Environmental Sciences in the Faculty of Science, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa 2024
Keywords
UCTD, System thinking, Social-Ecological systems, Social meaning, Climate change, Essential variable (EV), Tsitsa River Catchment (TRC)
Citation
Itzkin, Adela. (2024). An essential variable approach for integrated social-ecological systems monitoring to determine sustainability in a South African catchment [PhD thesis, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg]. WireDSpace.https://hdl.handle.net/10539/41685