Strategies for managing complex social-ecological systems in the face of uncertainty: Examples from South Africa and beyond.

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dc.contributor.authorBiggs, R.O.
dc.contributor.authorRhode, C.
dc.contributor.authorArchibald, S.
dc.contributor.authorOcholla, P.O.
dc.contributor.authorPhadima, L.J.
dc.contributor.authorKunene, L.M.
dc.contributor.authorMutanga, S.S.
dc.contributor.authorNkuna, N.
dc.date.accessioned2016-05-31T13:57:11Z
dc.date.available2016-05-31T13:57:11Z
dc.date.issued2015-03
dc.description.abstractImproving our ability to manage complex, rapidly changing social-ecological systems is one of the defining challenges of the 21st century. This is particularly crucial if large-scale poverty alleviation is to be secured without undermining the capacity of the environment to support future generations. To address this challenge, strategies that enable judicious management of socialecological systems in the face of substantive uncertainty are needed. Several such strategies are emerging from the developing body of work on complexity and resilience. We identify and discuss four strategies, providing practical examples of how each strategy has been applied in innovative ways to manage turbulent social-ecological change in South Africa and the broader region: (1) employ adaptive management or comanagement, (2) engage and integrate different perspectives, (3) facilitate self-organization, and (4) set safe boundaries to avoid system thresholds. Through these examples we aim to contribute a basis for further theoretical development, new teaching examples, and inspiration for developing innovative new management strategies in other regions that can help address the considerable sustainability challenges facing society globally.en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationBiggs, R.O. 2015. Strategies for managing complex social-ecological systems in the face of uncertainty: Examples from South Africa and beyond. Ecology and Society 20(1), pp. 852-866.en_ZA
dc.identifier.issn1708-3087
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10539/20404
dc.language.isoenen_ZA
dc.publisherResilience Allianceen_ZA
dc.subjectAdaptive managementen_ZA
dc.subjectComplexityen_ZA
dc.subjectResilienceen_ZA
dc.subjectSocial-ecological systemsen_ZA
dc.subjectSouthern Africaen_ZA
dc.subjectUncertaintyen_ZA
dc.subjectcomanagementen_ZA
dc.subjectenvironmental managementen_ZA
dc.subjectenvironmental planningen_ZA
dc.subjectstrategic approachen_ZA
dc.subjectsustainabilityen_ZA
dc.subjecttwenty first centuryen_ZA
dc.subjectuncertainty analysisen_ZA
dc.titleStrategies for managing complex social-ecological systems in the face of uncertainty: Examples from South Africa and beyond.en_ZA
dc.typeArticleen_ZA
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