Social Psychotherapy in Brazil.

Science.gov (United States)

Fleury, Heloisa J; Marra, Marlene M; Knobel, Anna M

2015-10-01

This paper describes the practice of sociodrama, a method created by J. L. Moreno in the 1930s, and the Brazilian contemporary socio-psychodrama. In 1970, after the Fifth International Congress of Psychodrama was held in Brazil, group psychotherapy began to flourish both in private practice and hospital clinical settings. Twenty years later, the Brazilian health care system added group work as a reimbursable mental health procedure to improve social health policies. In this context, socio-psychodrama became a key resource for social health promotion within groups. Some specific conceptual contributions by Brazilians on sociodrama are also noteworthy.

36 CFR 219.19 - Ecological, social, and economic sustainability.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... economic sustainability. 219.19 Section 219.19 Parks, Forests, and Public Property FOREST SERVICE..., Social, and Economic Sustainability § 219.19 Ecological, social, and economic sustainability. Sustainability, composed of interdependent ecological, social, and economic elements, embodies the Multiple-Use...

Social learning research in ecological economics

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Siebenhüner, Bernd; Rodela, Romina; Ecker, Franz

2016-01-01

Social learning studies emerged as part of the ecological economics research agenda rather recently. Questions of how human societies and organisations learn and transition on the basis of environmental knowledge relate to the core ideas of ecological economics with its pluralistic understanding

Electric energy production and environmental licensing: citizenship in Brazil in time of ecological crisis; Producao de energia eletrica e licenciamento ambiental: cidadania no Brasil em tempo de crise ecologica

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bettencourt, Marcia Pires da Luz

2017-11-01

The choices of energy sources gain relevance in the face of the ecological crisis which has a central questioning on the modes of production and consumption and that stems from a system which changes everything into merchandise. On one hand, brazilian electricity generation has the advantage of using clean energy in great part of its composition, at least in discourse. On the other hand, though, there are high social and environmental costs, especially for communities living near the regions where projects for the electricity sector are built. This research aimed to identify and analyse different modes society takes part in the process of choosing energy sources for electricity generation in Brazil. It discusses the links between the ecological crisis and the production of electrical energy; how the institutional mechanisms for social participation on issues related to the production of electric power in Brazil work; and, how civil society participates in environmental licensing in the National Environment Council (CONAMA). A set of related approaches to the nature of the ecological crisis and the forms of social participation was adopted in the theoretical framework and an analysis of the electric sector panorama in Brazil has been drawn up. In order to investigate the forms society participates in issues related to the composition of the brazilian electricity matrix, the methodology comprised a documentary analysis and a case study. They included three categories of actors: (1) CONAMA's councilors, (2) experts from the Field; and (3) actors involved in the diagnosis study, planning and management of the electricity sector. The research identified inconsistencies, ambiguities and other relevant issues about the participation of society in the production of electrical energy. Such issues are related to: deficiencies in the mechanisms for information access; lack of transparency and patterns in internal documents; lack of social participation in the elaboration

Double coupling: modeling subjectivity and asymmetric organization in social-ecological systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

David Manuel-Navarrete

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Social-ecological organization is a multidimensional phenomenon that combines material and symbolic processes. However, the coupling between social and ecological subsystem is often conceptualized as purely material, thus reducing the symbolic dimension to its behavioral and actionable expressions. In this paper I conceptualize social-ecological systems as doubly coupled. On the one hand, material expressions of socio-cultural processes affect and are affected by ecological dynamics. On the other hand, coupled social-ecological material dynamics are concurrently coupled with subjective dynamics via coding, decoding, personal experience, and human agency. This second coupling operates across two organizationally heterogeneous dimensions: material and symbolic. Although resilience thinking builds on the recognition of organizational asymmetry between living and nonliving systems, it has overlooked the equivalent asymmetry between ecological and socio-cultural subsystems. Three guiding concepts are proposed to formalize double coupling. The first one, social-ecological asymmetry, expands on past seminal work on ecological self-organization to incorporate reflexivity and subjectivity in social-ecological modeling. Organizational asymmetry is based in the distinction between social rules, which are symbolically produced and changed through human agents' reflexivity and purpose, and biophysical rules, which are determined by functional relations between ecological components. The second guiding concept, conscious power, brings to the fore human agents' distinctive capacity to produce our own subjective identity and the consequences of this capacity for social-ecological organization. The third concept, congruence between subjective and objective dynamics, redefines sustainability as contingent on congruent relations between material and symbolic processes. Social-ecological theories and analyses based on these three guiding concepts would support the

Social-ecology networks : building connections for sustainable landscapes

OpenAIRE

Opdam, P.F.M.

2014-01-01

Humans adapt their landscapes, their living environment. Sustainable use of the various landscape benefits requires that land owners and users collaborate in managing ecological networks. Because the government is stepping back as the organizer of coordinated landscape adaptation, we need new landscape planning approaches that enhance collaboration by building social networks and link them to ecological networks. In this farewell address I will explain why the social-ecological network is a p...

Unifying Research on Social-Ecological Resilience and Collapse.

Science.gov (United States)

Cumming, Graeme S; Peterson, Garry D

2017-09-01

Ecosystems influence human societies, leading people to manage ecosystems for human benefit. Poor environmental management can lead to reduced ecological resilience and social-ecological collapse. We review research on resilience and collapse across different systems and propose a unifying social-ecological framework based on (i) a clear definition of system identity; (ii) the use of quantitative thresholds to define collapse; (iii) relating collapse processes to system structure; and (iv) explicit comparison of alternative hypotheses and models of collapse. Analysis of 17 representative cases identified 14 mechanisms, in five classes, that explain social-ecological collapse. System structure influences the kind of collapse a system may experience. Mechanistic theories of collapse that unite structure and process can make fundamental contributions to solving global environmental problems. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

What determines social capital in a social-ecological system? Insights from a network perspective.

Science.gov (United States)

Barnes-Mauthe, Michele; Gray, Steven Allen; Arita, Shawn; Lynham, John; Leung, PingSun

2015-02-01

Social capital is an important resource that can be mobilized for purposive action or competitive gain. The distribution of social capital in social-ecological systems can determine who is more productive at extracting ecological resources and who emerges as influential in guiding their management, thereby empowering some while disempowering others. Despite its importance, the factors that contribute to variation in social capital among individuals have not been widely studied. We adopt a network perspective to examine what determines social capital among individuals in social-ecological systems. We begin by identifying network measures of social capital relevant for individuals in this context, and review existing evidence concerning their determinants. Using a complete social network dataset from Hawaii's longline fishery, we employ social network analysis and other statistical methods to empirically estimate these measures and determine the extent to which individual stakeholder attributes explain variation within them. We find that ethnicity is the strongest predictor of social capital. Measures of human capital (i.e., education, experience), years living in the community, and information-sharing attitudes are also important. Surprisingly, we find that when controlling for other factors, industry leaders and formal fishery representatives are generally not well connected. Our results offer new quantitative insights on the relationship between stakeholder diversity, social networks, and social capital in a coupled social-ecological system, which can aid in identifying barriers and opportunities for action to overcome resource management problems. Our results also have implications for achieving resource governance that is not only ecologically and economically sustainable, but also equitable.

What Determines Social Capital in a Social-Ecological System? Insights from a Network Perspective

Science.gov (United States)

Barnes-Mauthe, Michele; Gray, Steven Allen; Arita, Shawn; Lynham, John; Leung, PingSun

2015-02-01

Social capital is an important resource that can be mobilized for purposive action or competitive gain. The distribution of social capital in social-ecological systems can determine who is more productive at extracting ecological resources and who emerges as influential in guiding their management, thereby empowering some while disempowering others. Despite its importance, the factors that contribute to variation in social capital among individuals have not been widely studied. We adopt a network perspective to examine what determines social capital among individuals in social-ecological systems. We begin by identifying network measures of social capital relevant for individuals in this context, and review existing evidence concerning their determinants. Using a complete social network dataset from Hawaii's longline fishery, we employ social network analysis and other statistical methods to empirically estimate these measures and determine the extent to which individual stakeholder attributes explain variation within them. We find that ethnicity is the strongest predictor of social capital. Measures of human capital (i.e., education, experience), years living in the community, and information-sharing attitudes are also important. Surprisingly, we find that when controlling for other factors, industry leaders and formal fishery representatives are generally not well connected. Our results offer new quantitative insights on the relationship between stakeholder diversity, social networks, and social capital in a coupled social-ecological system, which can aid in identifying barriers and opportunities for action to overcome resource management problems. Our results also have implications for achieving resource governance that is not only ecologically and economically sustainable, but also equitable.

Scale Mismatches in Social-Ecological Systems: Causes, Consequences, and Solutions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Graeme S. Cumming

2006-06-01

Full Text Available Scale is a concept that transcends disciplinary boundaries. In ecology and geography, scale is usually defined in terms of spatial and temporal dimensions. Sociological scale also incorporates space and time, but adds ideas about representation and organization. Although spatial and temporal location determine the context for social and ecological dynamics, social-ecological interactions can create dynamic feedback loops in which humans both influence and are influenced by ecosystem processes. We hypothesize that many of the problems encountered by societies in managing natural resources arise because of a mismatch between the scale of management and the scale(s of the ecological processes being managed. We use examples from southern Africa and the southern United States to address four main questions: (1 What is a "scale mismatch?" (2 How are scale mismatches generated? (3 What are the consequences of scale mismatches? (4 How can scale mismatches be resolved? Scale mismatches occur when the scale of environmental variation and the scale of social organization in which the responsibility for management resides are aligned in such a way that one or more functions of the social-ecological system are disrupted, inefficiencies occur, and/or important components of the system are lost. They are generated by a wide range of social, ecological, and linked social-ecological processes. Mismatches between the scales of ecological processes and the institutions that are responsible for managing them can contribute to a decrease in social-ecological resilience, including the mismanagement of natural resources and a decrease in human well-being. Solutions to scale mismatches usually require institutional changes at more than one hierarchical level. Long-term solutions to scale mismatch problems will depend on social learning and the development of flexible institutions that can adjust and reorganize in response to changes in ecosystems. Further research is

Agrarian Social Movements and the Making of Agrodiesel Moral Territories in Northeast Brazil

Science.gov (United States)

Manzi, Maya

In response to widespread concerns about the socio-ecological impacts of agrofuel production and development, particularly for food security, efforts have been made internationally to implement more sustainable forms of producing agrofuels. Brazil's National Program for the Production and Use of Agrodiesel (PNPB), launched in 2004, is one such attempt. Promoted as a socially and environmentally responsible program, the PNPB was made possible through unprecedented alliances between the 'postneoliberal' Brazilian state, the agribusiness sector, and social movements such as the Rural Trade Union's Movement (MSTTR) and the Landless Rural Workers' Movement (MST). In this research, I critically analyze the unexpected engagement of social movements in the making of agrodiesel territories in semi-arid Bahia, Northeastern Brazil by examining the territorial and moral processes and practices that underlie the production of castor bean (mamona) for agrodiesel. The methodology adopted comprised participant observation, informal and semi-structured interviews (n=74) with leaders and members of the MST and the MSTTR in the territories of the Chapada Diamantina and Irece, in central Bahia. Interviews were also conducted with representatives of family farming cooperatives, government institutions, and agrodiesel companies (Petrobras) in the two study areas and in Salvador, capital of Bahia. Research methods also included the collection and critical discourse analysis of archival and other secondary data sources from public and private institutions. Drawing mainly from cultural geography and political ecology literatures, I argue that social movement leaders enable the making of agrodiesel territories mainly through their role as 'agrodiesel gatekeepers'---as legal interveners, managers, and caregivers. Family farmers tend to enable agrodiesel territorial expansion and to disrupt agrodiesel territorial management by not complying with moral prescriptions of loyalty. I see farmers

Social Enterprises in Brazil: Socially Produced Knowledge Versus Social Innovation.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Edileusa Godói-de-Sousa

2013-04-01

Full Text Available This study investigated whether socially produced knowledge in social ventures in Brazil has promoted social innovation and local development. The research is exploratory and descriptive, and was developed in two stages. At first, the sample group was composed of 378 projects selected from the mapping of Solidarity Economic Enterprises, conducted by the National Secretary of Solidarity Economy (Secretaria Nacional de Economia Solidária. The sample was surveyed to verify the main characteristics of these enterprises. After that, interviews were conducted with key managers in a sample of 32 projects. The results indicate challenges in the long path of favoring dynamic learning, with a generation of knowledge from the collective experiences of socialization: there is a lack of joint discussion and a predominance of individualized learning actions.

Ecological psychology and social psychology: it is Holt, or nothing!

Science.gov (United States)

Charles, Eric P

2011-03-01

What is the greatest contribution that ecological psychologists can offer social psychology? Ideally, ecological psychologists could explain how people directly perceive the unique properties of their social partners. But social partners are distinguished from mundane objects because they possess mental traits, and tradition tells us that minds cannot be seen. When considering the ideal possibility, we reject that doctrine and posit minds as perceivable. For ecological psychology, this entails asserting that minds are the types of things able to structure ambient energy. Contemporary research and theory suggests distinctly ecological ways of attacking this problem, but the problem is not new. Almost 100 years ago, Holt argued for the visibility of minds. Thus when considering these ideas, ecological psychologists face a choice that is at once about their future and their past. Extending ecological psychology's first principles into the social realm, we come to the point where we must either accept or reject Holt's arguments, and the wider context they bring. In doing so, we accept or reject our ability to study the uniquely social.

Coasts under stress: restructuring and social-ecological health

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Ommer, Rosemary E

2007-01-01

... the human impact of restructuring and social-ecological health 9 The Restructuring of Health Care on Both Coasts since the 1980 s 183 The Statistical Face of Restructuring and Human Health 210 The Human Voice of Social-Ecological Restructuring: Jobs, Incomes, Livelihoods, Ways of Life, and Human Health 241vi Contents 10 11 Restructuring, Nutrition,...

Social-ecological predictors of global invasions and extinctions

Science.gov (United States)

Lotz, Aaron; Allen, Craig R.

2013-01-01

Most assessments of resilience have been focused on local conditions. Studies focused on the relationship between humanity and environmental degradation are rare, and are rarely comprehensive. We investigated multiple social-ecological factors for 100 countries around the globe in relation to the percentage of invasions and extinctions within each country. These 100 countries contain approximately 87% of the world’s population, produce 43% of the world’s per capita gross domestic product (GDP), and take up 74% of the earth’s total land area. We used an information theoretic approach to determine which models were most supported by our data, utilizing an a priori set of plausible models that included a combination of 15 social-ecological variables, each social-ecological factor by itself, and selected social-ecological factors grouped into three broad classes. These variables were per capita GDP, export-import ratio, tourism, undernourishment, energy efficiency, agricultural intensity, rainfall, water stress, wilderness protection, total biodiversity, life expectancy, adult literacy, pesticide regulation, political stability, and female participation in government. Our results indicate that as total biodiversity and total land area increase, the percentage of endangered birds also increases. As the independent variables (agricultural intensity, rainfall, water stress, and total biodiversity) in the ecological class model increase, the percentage of endangered mammals in a country increases. The percentage of invasive birds and mammals in a country increases as per capita GDP increases. As life expectancy increases, the percentage of invasive and endangered birds and mammals increases. Although our analysis does not determine mechanisms, the patterns observed in this study provide insight into the dynamics of a complex, global, social-ecological system.

Social-Ecological Predictors of Global Invasions and Extinctions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aaron Lotz

2013-09-01

Full Text Available Most assessments of resilience have been focused on local conditions. Studies focused on the relationship between humanity and environmental degradation are rare, and are rarely comprehensive. We investigated multiple social-ecological factors for 100 countries around the globe in relation to the percentage of invasions and extinctions within each country. These 100 countries contain approximately 87% of the world's population, produce 43% of the world's per capita gross domestic product (GDP, and take up 74% of the earth's total land area. We used an information theoretic approach to determine which models were most supported by our data, utilizing an a priori set of plausible models that included a combination of 15 social-ecological variables, each social-ecological factor by itself, and selected social-ecological factors grouped into three broad classes. These variables were per capita GDP, export-import ratio, tourism, undernourishment, energy efficiency, agricultural intensity, rainfall, water stress, wilderness protection, total biodiversity, life expectancy, adult literacy, pesticide regulation, political stability, and female participation in government. Our results indicate that as total biodiversity and total land area increase, the percentage of endangered birds also increases. As the independent variables (agricultural intensity, rainfall, water stress, and total biodiversity in the ecological class model increase, the percentage of endangered mammals in a country increases. The percentage of invasive birds and mammals in a country increases as per capita GDP increases. As life expectancy increases, the percentage of invasive and endangered birds and mammals increases. Although our analysis does not determine mechanisms, the patterns observed in this study provide insight into the dynamics of a complex, global, social-ecological system.

Considerations in representing human individuals in social ecological models

Science.gov (United States)

Manfredo, Michael J.; Teel, Tara L.; Gavin, Michael C.; Fulton, David C.

2017-01-01

In this chapter we focus on how to integrate the human individual into social-ecological systems analysis, and how to improve research on individual thought and action regarding the environment by locating it within the broader social-ecological context. We discuss three key questions as considerations for future research: (1) is human thought conceptualized as a dynamic and adaptive process, (2) is the individual placed in a multi-level context (including within-person levels, person-group interactions, and institutional and structural factors), and (3) is human thought seen as mutually constructed with the social and natural environment. Increased emphasis on the individual will be essential if we are to understand agency, innovation, and adaptation in social-ecological systems.

Feedbacks between conservation and social-ecological systems

Science.gov (United States)

Miller, Brian W.; Caplow, Susan C.; Leslie, Paul W.

2012-01-01

Robust ways to meet objectives of environmental conservation and social and economic development remain elusive. This struggle may in part be related to insufficient understanding of the feedbacks between conservation initiatives and social-ecological systems, specifically, the ways in which conservation initiatives result in social changes that have secondary effects on the environments targeted by conservation. To explore this idea we sampled peer-reviewed articles addressing the social and environmental dimensions of conservation and coded each paper according to its research focus and characterization of these feedbacks. The majority of articles in our sample focused either on the effect of conservation initiatives on people (e.g., relocation, employment) or the effect of people on the environment (e.g., fragmentation, conservation efficacy of traditional management systems). Few studies in our sample empirically addressed both the social dynamics resulting from conservation initiatives and subsequent environmental effects. In many cases, one was measured and the other was discussed anecdotally. Among the studies that describe feedbacks between social and environmental variables, there was more evidence of positive (amplifying) feedbacks between social and environmental outcomes (i.e., undesirable social outcomes yielded undesirable environmental effects, and desirable social outcomes yielded desirable environmental effects). The major themes within the sampled literature include conflict between humans and wild animals, social movements, adaptive comanagement, loss of traditional management systems, traditional ecological knowledge, human displacement and risks to livelihoods, and conservation and development. The narratives associated with each theme can serve as hypotheses for facilitating further discussion about conservation issues and for catalyzing future studies of the feedbacks between conservation and social-ecological systems. PMID:22443128

Social affordances and the possibility of ecological linguistics.

Science.gov (United States)

Kono, Tetsuya

2009-12-01

This paper includes an effort to extend the notion of affordance from a philosophical point of view the importance of ecological approach for social psychology, ethics, and linguistics. Affordances are not always merely physical but also interpersonal and social. I will conceptualize affordance in general and social affordance in particular, and will elucidate the relation between intentional action and affordances, and that between affordances and free will. I will also focus on the relation between social institution and affordance. An extended theory of affordances can provide a way to analyze in concrete ways how social institution works as an implicit background of interpersonal interactions. Ecological approach considers social institution as the producer and maintainer of affordances. Social institutions construct the niches for human beings. Finally, I will argue the possibility of the ecological linguistics. Language is a social institution. The system of signs is the way to articulate and differentiate interpersonal affordances. Language acquires its meaning, i.e. communicative power in the interpersonal interactions, and interpersonal interactions, in turn, develop and are elaborated through the usage of signs. Communication is seen as never aimed to transmit inner ideas to others, but to guide and adjust the behaviors of others thorough articulating the affordance of responsible-ness.

Evaluating social and ecological vulnerability of coral reef fisheries to climate change.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Joshua E Cinner

Full Text Available There is an increasing need to evaluate the links between the social and ecological dimensions of human vulnerability to climate change. We use an empirical case study of 12 coastal communities and associated coral reefs in Kenya to assess and compare five key ecological and social components of the vulnerability of coastal social-ecological systems to temperature induced coral mortality [specifically: 1 environmental exposure; 2 ecological sensitivity; 3 ecological recovery potential; 4 social sensitivity; and 5 social adaptive capacity]. We examined whether ecological components of vulnerability varied between government operated no-take marine reserves, community-based reserves, and openly fished areas. Overall, fished sites were marginally more vulnerable than community-based and government marine reserves. Social sensitivity was indicated by the occupational composition of each community, including the importance of fishing relative to other occupations, as well as the susceptibility of different fishing gears to the effects of coral bleaching on target fish species. Key components of social adaptive capacity varied considerably between the communities. Together, these results show that different communities have relative strengths and weaknesses in terms of social-ecological vulnerability to climate change.

Social Ecology and Aesthetic Criticism

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Owen, Connor

2016-12-01

Full Text Available While ecocriticism has become a respected field in literary theory and in the broader landscape of aesthetic philosophy, it could benefit from an enhanced ethical-political framework which social ecology – an underrated critical theory developed by Murray Bookchin – could provide. This essay attempts to tease out the potentials for such a framework, integrating the insights of social ecology, ecocriticism, Critical Realism, and John Dewey's aesthetic concepts into a layered idea-set used for the study of all kinds of aesthetic objects, from popular art to the gallery arts. Its key principles are the emergence of aesthetic objects (including formal artworks out of congealed human experience, the relation between organism and environment in assessing meaning, the breakdown of implicit or overt hierarchies within a work, and the idea of the artist and art-critic as a "gardener".

Fit in the Body: Matching Embodied Cognition with Social-Ecological Systems

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Janne I. Hukkinen

2012-12-01

Full Text Available Analysis of fit has focused on the macrolevel fit between social institutions and ecosystems, and bypassed the microlevel fit between individual cognition and its socio-material environment. I argue that the conceptualizations we develop about social-ecological systems and our position in them should be understood as ways for a fundamentally cognitive organism to adapt to particular social and ecological situations. Since at issue is our survival as a species, we need to better understand the structure and dynamics of fit between human cognition and its social-ecological environment. I suggest that the embodied cognition perspective opens up possibilities for "nudging" evolution through the conceptual integration of the cognitively attractive but ecologically unrealistic neoclassical economics, and the cognitively less attractive but ecologically more realistic adaptive cycle theory (panarchy. The result is a conceptually integrated model, the Roller Coaster Blend, which expresses in metaphorical terms why competitive individuals are better off cooperating than competing with each other in the face of absolute resource limits. The blend enables the reframing of messages about the limits of the social-ecological system in terms of growth rather than degrowth. This is cognitively appealing, as upward growth fires in our minds the neural connections of "more," "control", and "happy." The blend's potential for nudging behavior arises from its autopoietic characteristic: it can be both an account of the social-ecological system as an emergent structure that is capable of renewing itself, and a cognitive attractor of individuals whose recruitment reinforces the integrity of the social-ecological system.

An integrated conceptual framework for long-term social-ecological research

Science.gov (United States)

S.L. Collins; S.R. Carpenter; S.M. Swinton; D.E. Orenstein; D.L. Childers; T.L. Gragson; N.B. Grimm; J.M. Grove; S.L. Harlan; J.P. Kaye; A.K. Knapp; G.P. Kofinas; J.J. Magnuson; W.H. McDowell; J.M. Melack; L.A. Ogden; G.P. Robertson; M.D. Smith; A.C. Whitmer

2010-01-01

The global reach of human activities affects all natural ecosystems, so that the environment is best viewed as a social-ecological system. Consequently, a more integrative approach to environmental science, one that bridges the biophysical and social domains, is sorely needed. Although models and frameworks for social-ecological systems exist, few are explicitly...

Followership in Ecology/Environment Social Movements.

Science.gov (United States)

Clavner, Jerry B.; Sumodi, Veronica R.

The paper analyzes the failure of the ecology/environmental movement to develop into a social movement and to generate a mass following. The movement has had difficulty not only in organizing collective behavior but also in maintaining the necessary momentum to change into a full-fledged social movement. Obvious reasons are that ecologists…

Of Models and Meanings: Cultural Resilience in Social-Ecological Systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Todd A. Crane

2010-12-01

Full Text Available Modeling has emerged as a key technology in analysis of social-ecological systems. However, the tendency for modeling to focus on the mechanistic materiality of biophysical systems obscures the diversity of performative social behaviors and normative cultural positions of actors within the modeled system. The fact that changes in the biophysical system can be culturally constructed in different ways means that the perception and pursuit of adaptive pathways can be highly variable. Furthermore, the adoption of biophysically resilient livelihoods can occur under conditions that are subjectively experienced as the radical transformation of cultural systems. The objectives of this work are to: (1 highlight the importance of understanding the place of culture within social-ecological systems, (2 explore the tensions between empirical and normative positions in the analysis of social-ecological resilience, and (3 suggest how empirical modeling of social-ecological systems can synergistically interact with normative aspects of livelihoods and lifeways.

Including Overweight or Obese Students in Physical Education: A Social Ecological Constraint Model

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Weidong; Rukavina, Paul

2012-01-01

In this review, we propose a social ecological constraint model to study inclusion of overweight or obese students in physical education by integrating key concepts and assumptions from ecological constraint theory in motor development and social ecological models in health promotion and behavior. The social ecological constraint model proposes…

Establishing ecological and social continuities: new challenges to optimize urban watershed management

Science.gov (United States)

Mitroi, V.; de Coninck, A.; Vinçon-Leite, B.; Deroubaix, J.-F.

2014-09-01

The (re)construction of the ecological continuity is stated as one of the main objectives of the European Water Framework Directive for watershed management in Europe. Analysing the social, political, technical and scientific processes characterising the implementation of different projects of ecological continuity in two adjacent peri-urban territories in Ile-de-France, we observed science-driven approaches disregarding the social contexts. We show that, in urbanized areas, ecological continuity requires not only important technical and ecological expertise, but also social and political participation to the definition of a common vision and action plan. Being a challenge for both, technical water management institutions and "classical" ecological policies, we propose some social science contributions to deal with ecological unpredictability and reconsider stakeholder resistance to this kind of project.

Social and environmental inequities in dental caries among indigenous population in Brazil: evidence from 2000 to 2007.

Science.gov (United States)

Alves Filho, Pedro; Santos, Ricardo Ventura; Vettore, Mario Vianna

2013-09-01

This ecological study investigated the association between social and environmental inequities and dental caries among indigenous people in Brazil. Dental caries data were gathered from articles identified from electronic databases for the period between 2000 and 2007. Independent variables were obtained from the census of Health Information System for Sanitation Indigenous Populations. Multiple linear regression analysis was conducted to test the association between social and environmental characteristics and dental caries (DMFT index) according to the age group. Results were analyzed for 48 indigenous peoples from 19 selected studies. The occurrence of dental caries in particular age groups was inversely associated with the location of villages outside the Amazon region (12, 15 - 19, and 20 - 34 years), availability of electricity (15 - 19 and 20 - 34 years) and proportion of households covered with straw/thatch (20 - 34 years). The presence of schools was statistically associated with higher DMFT averages (15 - 19 and 20 - 34 years). It can be concluded that aspects of location and existing infrastructure in indigenous communities, which are linked to the availability of oral health services, are associated with the occurrence of dental caries in indigenous populations in Brazil.

Social balance sheet 2000 of COPEL - Electrical Company of Parana State, Brazil

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon

2000-01-01

The COPEL - Electrical Company of Parana State, Brazil social balance report of calendar year of 2000 is presented, covering the following topics: COPEL - standing for much more than energy; extending the benefits of electricity to everyone in Parana state, Brazil; protecting and recovering the environment; philanthropy and volunteer work; education; social integration; support to cultural expression and gratitude

Establishing ecological and social continuities: new challenges to optimize urban watershed management

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

V. Mitroi

2014-09-01

Full Text Available The (reconstruction of the ecological continuity is stated as one of the main objectives of the European Water Framework Directive for watershed management in Europe. Analysing the social, political, technical and scientific processes characterising the implementation of different projects of ecological continuity in two adjacent peri-urban territories in Ile-de-France, we observed science-driven approaches disregarding the social contexts. We show that, in urbanized areas, ecological continuity requires not only important technical and ecological expertise, but also social and political participation to the definition of a common vision and action plan. Being a challenge for both, technical water management institutions and “classical” ecological policies, we propose some social science contributions to deal with ecological unpredictability and reconsider stakeholder resistance to this kind of project.

Social-ecological research in urban natural areas: an emergent process for integration

Science.gov (United States)

Michelle L. Johnson; D. S. Novem Auyeung; Nancy F. Sonti; Clara C. Pregitzer; Heather L. McMillen; Richard Hallett; Lindsay K. Campbell; Helen M. Forgione; Mina Kim; Sarah Charlop-Powers; Erika S. Svendsen

2018-01-01

Understanding the structure and function of urban landscapes requires integrating social and ecological research. Here, we integrate parallel social and ecological assessments of natural areas within New York City. We examined social data (from a rapid assessment of park use and meaning, collected at a park zone level) alongside ecological data (froma plot-based...

Ecological aspects of social evolution: birds and mammals

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Rubenstein, D.I; Wrangham, R.W

1986-01-01

... out. They examine how social organization is shaped by the interaction between proximate ecological pressures and culture-the social traditions already in place and shaped by local and phylogenetic history...

Multiplex social ecological network analysis reveals how social changes affect community robustness more than resource depletion.

Science.gov (United States)

Baggio, Jacopo A; BurnSilver, Shauna B; Arenas, Alex; Magdanz, James S; Kofinas, Gary P; De Domenico, Manlio

2016-11-29

Network analysis provides a powerful tool to analyze complex influences of social and ecological structures on community and household dynamics. Most network studies of social-ecological systems use simple, undirected, unweighted networks. We analyze multiplex, directed, and weighted networks of subsistence food flows collected in three small indigenous communities in Arctic Alaska potentially facing substantial economic and ecological changes. Our analysis of plausible future scenarios suggests that changes to social relations and key households have greater effects on community robustness than changes to specific wild food resources.

Enhancing the Resilience of Human-Environment Systems: a Social Ecological Perspective

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daniel Stokols

2013-03-01

Full Text Available Resilience studies build on the notion that phenomena in the real world should be understood as dynamic social-ecological systems. However, the scholarly community may not be fully aware that social ecology, as a conceptual framework, has a long intellectual history, nor fully cognizant of its foundational theory. In this article, we trace the intellectual roots and core principles of social ecology and demonstrate how these principles enable a broader conceptualization of resilience than may be found in much of the literature. We then illustrate how the resulting notion of resilience as transactional process and multi-capital formation affords new perspectives on diverse phenomena such as global financial crises and adaptation to environmental stresses to communities and ecosystems. A social-ecological analysis of resilience enables the study of people-environment transactions across varying dimensions, time periods, and scales. Furthermore, in its openness to experiential knowledge and action research, the social ecology framework coheres well with participative-collaborative modes of inquiry, which traverse institutional, epistemological, and scale-related boundaries.

Resilience, political ecology, and well-being: an interdisciplinary approach to understanding social-ecological change in coastal Bangladesh

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Sonia F. Hoque

2017-06-01

Full Text Available The commodification of peasant livelihoods through export-oriented aquaculture has brought about significant social-ecological changes in low-lying coastal areas in many parts of Asia. A better understanding of the underlying drivers and distributional effects of these changes requires integration of social and ecological approaches that often have different epistemological origins. Resilience thinking has gained increased traction in social-ecological systems research because it provides a dynamic analysis of the cross-scalar interactions between multiple conditions and processes. However, the system-oriented perspective inherent in resilience thinking fails to acknowledge the heterogeneous values, interests, and power of social actors and their roles in navigating social-ecological change. Incorporation of political ecology and well-being perspectives can provide an actor-oriented analysis of the trade-offs associated with change and help to determine which state is desirable for whom. However, empirical demonstrations of such interdisciplinary approaches remain scarce. Here, we explore the combined application of resilience, political ecology, and well-being in investigating the root causes of social-ecological change and identifying the winners and losers of system transformation through empirical analysis of the differential changes in farming systems in two villages in coastal Bangladesh. Using the adaptive cycle as a structuring model, we examine the evolution of the shrimp aquaculture system over the past few decades, particularly looking at the power dynamics between households of different wealth classes. We found that although asymmetric land ownership and political ties enabled the wealthier households to reach their desired farming system in one village, social resilience achieved through memory, leadership, and crisis empowered poorer households to exercise their agency in another village. Material dimensions such as improved

Social-ecological outcomes in recreational fisheries: the interaction of lakeshore development and stocking.

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Ziegler, Jacob P; Golebie, Elizabeth J; Jones, Stuart E; Weidel, Brian C; Solomon, Christopher T

2017-01-01

Many ecosystems continue to experience rapid transformations due to processes like land use change and resource extraction. A systems approach to maintaining natural resources focuses on how interactions and feedbacks among components of complex social-ecological systems generate social and ecological outcomes. In recreational fisheries, residential shoreline development and fish stocking are two widespread human behaviors that influence fisheries, yet emergent social-ecological outcomes from these potentially interacting behaviors remain under explored. We applied a social-ecological systems framework using a simulation model and empirical data to determine whether lakeshore development is likely to promote stocking through its adverse effects on coarse woody habitat and thereby also on survival of juvenile and adult fish. We demonstrate that high lakeshore development is likely to generate dependency of the ecosystem on the social system, in the form of stocking. Further, lakeshore development can interact with social-ecological processes to create deficits for state-level governments, which threatens the ability to fund further ecosystem subsidies. Our results highlight the value of a social-ecological framework for maintaining ecosystem services like recreational fisheries. © 2016 by the Ecological Society of America.

Social Innovation, a dynamic and sustainable social-ecological asset for regional development? Challenges and possibilities in Costa Rica.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Castro Arce, Karina

2014-01-01

This paper elaborates on and examines the connections between social innovation and governance of social-ecological systems. The aim is to develop a conceptual framework to analyse the significance of social innovations for regional development. It is argued that in social-ecological systems the

Participatory scenario planning in place-based social-ecological research

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rozas, Elisa Oteros; Martín-López, Berta; Daw, Tim M.

2015-01-01

Participatory scenario planning (PSP) is an increasingly popular tool in place-based environmental research for evaluating alternative futures of social-ecological systems. Although a range of guidelines on PSP methods are available in the scientific and grey literature, there is a need to reflect......, hence facilitating the appropriate uptake of such scenario tools in the future. We analyzed 23 PSP case studies conducted by the authors in a wide range of social-ecological settings by exploring seven aspects: (1) the context; (2) the original motivations and objectives; (3) the methodological approach...... of PSP, particularly when tailored to shared objectives between local people and researchers, has enriched environmental management and scientific research through building common understanding and fostering learning about future planning of social-ecological systems. However, PSP still requires greater...

Use intensity of social networks in southern Brazil

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Rafaele Matte Wojahn

2017-08-01

Full Text Available A social network implies in connect people. This article aims to identify the use intensity of social network in Southern Brazil. The research was characterized by quantitative approach, descriptive, cross-sectional and survey, with a sample of 372 respondents. To data analysis was used descriptive analysis to characterize the sample, verify the access frequency of social networks and the daily access time, and Pearson’s Correlation to identify the daily access time and the social networks. The results indicated the social network used in more intensity is the Facebook and then Whatsapp, and the access occurs at home. However, all the social networks promote interactions toward users.

Harnessing the plurality of actor frames in social-ecological systems : Ecological sanitation in Bolivia

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Eelderink, M.; Vervoort, J.; Snel, D.; de Castro, F.

2017-01-01

This article uses a case study on ecological sanitation as a basis for lessons on identifying and harnessing the plurality of actor frames in social-ecological systems, thereby moving beyond the advocacy positions often taken by implementing NGOs. The study aimed to explore how perspectives between

Social Media Ecology in Distributed Workplaces

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Giuffrida, Rosalba; Dittrich, Yvonne

2011-01-01

In this position paper, we discuss about methods currently adopted for research- ing the use of social media in distributed workplace. We have extensively reviewed previ- ous empirical studies through an ongoing Systematic Mapping Study focused on the use of social media in distributed teams; from...... the review, we realized that research is mainly per- formed through a mix of qualitative and quantitative methods and that each study usually fo- cuses on one specific kind social media at a time. We believe that the social media ecology should be researched as a whole and in relationship with the physical...

Human Dimensions of Coral Reef Social-Ecological Systems

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John N. Kittinger

2012-12-01

Full Text Available Coral reefs are among the most diverse ecosystems on the planet but are declining because of human activities. Despite general recognition of the human role in the plight of coral reefs, the vast majority of research focuses on the ecological rather than the human dimensions of reef ecosystems, limiting our understanding of social relationships with these environments as well as potential solutions for reef recovery. General frameworks for social-ecological systems (SESs have been advanced, but system-specific approaches are needed to develop a more nuanced view of human-environmental interactions for specific contexts and resource systems, and at specific scales. We synthesize existing concepts related to SESs and present a human dimensions framework that explores the linkages between social system structural traits, human activities, ecosystem services, and human well-being in coral reef SESs. Key features of the framework include social-ecological reciprocity, proximate and underlying dimensions, and the directionality of key relationships and feedback loops. Such frameworks are needed if human dimensions research is to be more fully integrated into studies of ecosystem change and the sustainability of linked SESs.

Social-ecological frames of the social capital in Vojvodina

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Pušić Ljubinko

2006-01-01

Full Text Available This paper discusses the general problem of territorialization and the special problems of cultural-genetical conditions in the sociological construction of social capital. The starting base is presented by the fact that a connection between the social-ecological conditions of an environment and social capital is historical, permanent and crucial. High and continuous growing level of urbanization in Vojvodina shows the prevailing of urban society inside of which the social capital is being formed. However, in the conditions of social transition also appear controversial relations which exert influence on the creation and functioning of social capital. Social-economical structure of the urban population in Vojvodina and the governing systems of values do not necessary product also the urban way of life, which therefore exerts influence on the quality of social capital. In this paper is particularly examined a connection of the spatial mobility of the urban population, institutional channels and local conditions in the social construction of social capital.

Phenotypic characterization and ecological features of Coccidioides spp. from Northeast Brazil.

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Cordeiro, R A; Brilhante, R S N; Rocha, M F G; Fechine, M A B; Camara, L M C; Camargo, Z P; Sidrim, J J C

2006-11-01

This study extends phenotypic and ecological knowledge of Coccidioides spp., by describing its recovery from soils of Ceará State (Northeast Brazil) and analyzing the in vitro features of the growth of its vegetative phase. Following a human coccidioidomycosis case, Coccidioides spp. strains were isolated from 3 of 14 soil samples collected in an armadillo's burrow. Mycological analysis showed colonies with glabrous, velvety or cottony texture and an increasing quantity of arthroconidia. The overall growth rates of the strains were slower in 8% NaCl medium, maximum growth rate was obtained at 30 degrees C, and their pH tolerance ranged from 4.0 to 11.0. Several carbohydrates and polyalcohol sources could be efficiently metabolized by Coccidioides spp. strains in the mycelial form. Total absence of growth was observed in media supplemented with either L-aspartic acid or L-histidine. Whereas intense growth was found when strains were incubated with any other aminoacid sources studied. Coccidioides spp. strains did not grow in the presence of Tween 60 and Tween 80, but exhibited intense growth in Tween 20. Nicotinic acid and the toxic compounds caffeic acid and phenol could not be metabolized by any strain. All of the strains were positive for urease production and displayed intense growth in media containing cycloheximide concentrations ranging from 0.01 and 0.05%, but did not grow at 0.1 and 0.2%. The present findings confirm the importance of armadillos burrows in the ecology of Coccidioides spp. in Northeast Brazil and indicate that the fungus is a very physiologically versatile organism.

In search of an adaptive social-ecological approach to understanding a tropical city

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A.E. Lugo; C.M. Concepcion; L.E. Santiago-Acevedo; T.A. Munoz-Erickson; J.C. Verdejo Ortiz; R. Santiago-Bartolomei; J. Forero-Montana; C.J. Nytch; H. Manrique; W. Colon-Cortes

2012-01-01

This essay describes our effort to develop a practical approach to the integration of the social and ecological sciences in the context of a Latin-American city such as San Juan, Puerto Rico. We describe our adaptive social-ecological approach in the historical context of the developing paradigms of the Anthropocene, new integrative social and ecological sciences, and...

The Ecology of Second Language Acquisition and Socialization

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Steffensen, Sune Vork; Kramsch, Claire

2017-01-01

Various theories of second language acquisition (SLA) and socialization (SLS) have adopted ecology as a convenient metaphor to promote sociocultural (van Lier 2004) or sociocognitive (Atkinson 2011) approaches to the study of SLA, and socioethnographic approaches (Duff 2011; Duff and Talmy 2011...... such a development is to be welcomed, it also raises serious concerns about the autonomy of the language learner, the collective pressure on individuals to align with the expectations of the community, alternative theories of knowledge and of knowledge acquisition, and the socializing dominance of English around...... the world. This chapter discusses the history of the relationship between acquisition and socialization with regard to foreign/second language learning and use, and the role played by ecological theory in that relationship....

Striding Toward Social Justice: The Ecologic Milieu of Physical Activity

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Lee, Rebecca E.; Cubbin, Catherine

2009-01-01

Disparities in physical activity should be investigated in light of social justice principles. This manuscript critically evaluates evidence and trends in disparities research within an ecologic framework, focusing on multi-level factors such as neighborhood and racial discrimination that influence physical activity. Discussion focuses on strategies for integrating social justice into physical activity promotion and intervention programming within an ecologic framework. PMID:19098519

Graduate students navigating social-ecological research: insights from the Long-Term Ecological Research Network

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Sydne Record; Paige F. B. Ferguson; Elise Benveniste; Rose A. Graves; Vera W. Pfeiffer; Michele Romolini; Christie E. Yorke; Ben Beardmore

2016-01-01

Interdisciplinary, collaborative research capable of capturing the feedbacks between biophysical and social systems can improve the capacity for sustainable environmental decision making. Networks of researchers provide unique opportunities to foster social-ecological inquiry. Although insights into interdisciplinary research have been discussed elsewhere,...

Energy efficiency in social housing: Opportunities and barriers from a case study in Brazil

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bodach, Susanne; Hamhaber, J.

2010-01-01

This paper investigates the energy efficiency in a segment of the building sector in emerging countries by analyzing and evaluating the energy efficiency of a social housing project in Brazil. Energy efficiency measures and bioclimatic design strategies are developed in order to improve thermal comfort in this social housing project and to reduce the energy consumption and expenses of their residents. The institutional barriers and constraints toward higher efficiency are described. The results of this study show that there is a high potential to increase energy efficiency in social housing in emerging countries like Brazil. The implementation and consideration of the energy efficiency measures and policy recommendations would contribute substantially to the goal to dampen the fast growth of energy demand in these countries. Moreover the improvement of energy efficiency in the social housing sector could be a driver for market transformation towards more sustainability in the whole building sector. - Research highlights: →There is a high potential to increase energy efficiency in social housing in Brazil. →Energy-efficient social housing would contribute substantially to dampen the fast growth of energy consumption in emerging countries like Brazil. →Implementation of energy efficiency would improve the income situation of the poorest strata of the population.

Toward a Network Perspective of the Study of Resilience in Social-Ecological Systems

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Marco A. Janssen

2006-06-01

Full Text Available Formal models used to study the resilience of social-ecological systems have not explicitly included important structural characteristics of this type of system. In this paper, we propose a network perspective for social-ecological systems that enables us to better focus on the structure of interactions between identifiable components of the system. This network perspective might be useful for developing formal models and comparing case studies of social-ecological systems. Based on an analysis of the case studies in this special issue, we identify three types of social-ecological networks: (1 ecosystems that are connected by people through flows of information or materials, (2 ecosystem networks that are disconnected and fragmented by the actions of people, and (3 artificial ecological networks created by people, such as irrigation systems. Each of these three archytypal social-ecological networks faces different problems that influence its resilience as it responds to the addition or removal of connections that affect its coordination or the diffusion of system attributes such as information or disease.

Developmental change in social responsibility during adolescence: An ecological perspective.

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Wray-Lake, Laura; Syvertsen, Amy K; Flanagan, Constance A

2016-01-01

Social responsibility can be defined as a set of prosocial values representing personal commitments to contribute to community and society. Little is known about developmental change-and predictors of that change-in social responsibility during adolescence. The present study used an accelerated longitudinal research design to investigate the developmental trajectory of social responsibility values and ecological assets across family, school, community, and peer settings that predict these values. Data come from a 3-year study of 3,683 U.S. adolescents enrolled in upper-level elementary, middle, and high schools in rural, semiurban, and urban communities. Social responsibility values significantly decreased from age 9 to 16 before leveling off in later adolescence. Family compassion messages and democratic climate, school solidarity, community connectedness, and trusted friendship, positively predicted within-person change in adolescents' social responsibility values. These findings held after accounting for other individual-level and demographic factors and provide support for the role of ecological assets in adolescents' social responsibility development. In addition, fair society beliefs and volunteer experience had positive between- and within-person associations with social responsibility values. The manuscript discusses theoretical and practical implications of the conclusion that declines in ecological assets may partly explain age-related declines in social responsibility values. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

Social Entrepreneurship: A Reflection for Adopting Public Policies that Support the Third Sector in Brazil

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Francielli Martins Borges Ladeira

2013-04-01

Full Text Available Interest in social entrepreneurship is growing widely not only in Brazil but in the world. Several developed countries have stepped forward to develop policies to support this area not only as a tool to fulfill the government failures such as poverty, health, education, unemployment among others, but also because of all the benefits that social enterprises have in relation to society. However, it is possible to identify a lack of political support for social entrepreneurship in Brazil. Given the needs in the Brazilian context of improvements in several areas where the state can not cover actions in their entirety as social exclusion, income distribution and especially professionalization of youth and creating jobs, we need a deep analysis of how social entrepreneurship can act as a modifying element of this scenario. Thus, with Brazil a country developing rapidly, it is important to verify public policies that support social entrepreneurship in already developed countries and carry out studies on the suitability and applicability of these policies in the Brazilian reality. Thus, this paper aims to study the trends of social entrepreneurship in some developed countries as well as analyzing public policies implemented by these countries, and considering the Brazilian context, present some policy proposals to support social entrepreneurship in Brazil.

Social-ecological resilience and law in the Platte River Basin

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Birge, Hannah E.; Allen, Craig R.; Craig, Robin; Garmestani, Ahjond S.; Hamm, Joseph A.; Babbitt, Christina; Nemec, Kristine T.; Schlager, Edella

2014-01-01

Efficiency and resistance to rapid change are hallmarks of both the judicial and legislative branches of the United States government. These defining characteristics, while bringing stability and predictability, pose challenges when it comes to managing dynamic natural systems. As our understanding of ecosystems improves, we must devise ways to account for the non-linearities and uncertainties rife in complex social-ecological systems. This paper takes an in-depth look at the Platte River basin over time to explore how the system's resilience—the capacity to absorb disturbance without losing defining structures and functions—responds to human driven change. Beginning with pre-European settlement, the paper explores how water laws, policies, and infrastructure influenced the region's ecology and society. While much of the post-European development in the Platte River basin came at a high ecological cost to the system, the recent tri-state and federal collaborative Platte River Recovery and Implementation Program is a first step towards flexible and adaptive management of the social-ecological system. Using the Platte River basin as an example, we make the case that inherent flexibility and adaptability are vital for the next iteration of natural resources management policies affecting stressed basins. We argue that this can be accomplished by nesting policy in a resilience framework, which we describe and attempt to operationalize for use across systems and at different levels of jurisdiction. As our current natural resources policies fail under the weight of looming global change, unprecedented demand for natural resources, and shifting land use, the need for a new generation of adaptive, flexible natural resources govern-ance emerges. Here we offer a prescription for just that, rooted in the social , ecological and political realities of the Platte River basin. Social-Ecological Resilience and Law in the Platte River Basin (PDF Download Available). Available

Brief note: Applying developmental intergroup perspectives to the social ecologies of bullying: Lessons from developmental social psychology.

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Brenick, Alaina; Halgunseth, Linda C

2017-08-01

Over the past decades, the field of bullying research has seen dramatic growth, notably with the integration of the social-ecological approach to understanding bullying. Recently, researchers (Hymel et al., 2015; Hawley & Williford, 2015) have called for further extension of the field by incorporating constructs of group processes into our investigation of the social ecologies of bullying. This brief note details the critical connections between power, social identity, group norms, social and moral reasoning about discrimination and victimization, and experiences of, evaluations of, and responses to bullying. The authors highlight a parallel development in the bridging of developmental social-ecological and social psychological perspectives utilized in the field of social exclusion that provides a roadmap for extending the larger field of bullying research. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled [VSI: Bullying] IG000050. Copyright © 2017 The Foundation for Professionals in Services for Adolescents. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Identifying Social-ecological Linkages to Develop a Community Fire Plan in Mexico

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Rachel A.S Sheridan

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Community forestry in rural Mexico presents a unique opportunity to study the linkages and feedback within coupled social-ecological systems due to the fact that agrarian or indigenous communities control approximately half of the national territory of Mexico. We used social and ecological diagnostic tools to develop a fire management strategy for a communal forest containing an endemic piñón pine species, Pinus cembroides subs. orizabensis, in the state of Tlaxcala, Mexico. The ecological diagnostic was done through fuel inventory, forest structure sampling, and fire behaviour modelling. The social assessment was conducted through household interviews, community workshops, and direct participant observation. The ecological fire hazard was quantified and coupled with the social assessment to develop a fire management plan. Vertical fuel continuity and flashy surface fuels created a high fire hazard. Modelled fire behaviour showed a rapid rate of spread and high flame lengths under multiple scenarios. Relative impunity for starting forest fires, poor community and inter-agency organisation, and lack of project continuity across organisational sectors appear to be the most significant social limiting factors for wildfire management. Combining both social and ecological diagnostic tools provides a comprehensive understanding of the actual risks to forests, and identifies realistic community-supported options for conservation on cooperatively managed lands.

A Theory of Transformative Agency in Linked Social-Ecological Systems

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Frances R. Westley

2013-09-01

Full Text Available We reviewed the literature on leadership in linked social-ecological systems and combined it with the literature on institutional entrepreneurship in complex adaptive systems to develop a new theory of transformative agency in linked social-ecological systems. Although there is evidence of the importance of strategic agency in introducing innovation and transforming approaches to management and governance of such systems, there is no coherent theory to explain the wide diversity of strategies identified. Using Holling's adaptive cycle as a model of phases present in innovation and transformation of resilient social-ecological systems, overlaid by Dorado's model of opportunity context (opaque, hazy, transparent in complex adaptive systems, we propose a more coherent theory of strategic agency, which links particular strategies, on the part of transformative agents, to phases of system change.

Ecological Citizenship and Social Representation of Water

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Marta Biagi

2011-09-01

Full Text Available This article examines the social representations of water in urban cultures of Argentina, placing the subject as a matter of academic and practical interest. Some questions have guided this investigation—What is water for the urban dweller? What are the actions that a citizen is willing to exercise?—A qualitative research was conducted (according to Yin’s case analysis methodology in Gualeguaychú and Buenos Aires. Following the collected data, the authors reconstructed the dominant paradigm in both cities, which was the ecocentric model. However, the acceptance of ecological values and beliefs is not an indicator of the exercise of proecological behavior concerning water. Empirical findings have guided the authors to inquire the degree of relationship between social representations and attributes of Andrew Dobson’s model of ecological citizenship.

Assembling the puzzle for promoting physical activity in Brazil: a social network analysis.

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Brownson, Ross C; Parra, Diana C; Dauti, Marsela; Harris, Jenine K; Hallal, Pedro C; Hoehner, Christine; Malta, Deborah Carvalho; Reis, Rodrigo S; Ramos, Luiz Roberto; Ribeiro, Isabela C; Soares, Jesus; Pratt, Michael

2010-07-01

Physical inactivity is a significant public health problem in Brazil that may be addressed by partnerships and networks. In conjunction with Project GUIA (Guide for Useful Interventions for Physical Activity in Brazil and Latin America), the aim of this study was to conduct a social network analysis of physical activity in Brazil. An online survey was completed by 28 of 35 organizations contacted from December 2008 through March 2009. Network analytic methods examined measures of collaboration, importance, leadership, and attributes of the respondent and organization. Leadership nominations for organizations studied ranged from 0 to 23. Positive predictors of collaboration included: south region, GUIA membership, years working in physical activity, and research, education, and promotion/practice areas of physical activity. The most frequently reported barrier to collaboration was bureaucracy. Social network analysis identified factors that are likely to improve collaboration among organizations in Brazil.

Comparing spatially explicit ecological and social values for natural areas to identify effective conservation strategies.

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Bryan, Brett Anthony; Raymond, Christopher Mark; Crossman, Neville David; King, Darran

2011-02-01

Consideration of the social values people assign to relatively undisturbed native ecosystems is critical for the success of science-based conservation plans. We used an interview process to identify and map social values assigned to 31 ecosystem services provided by natural areas in an agricultural landscape in southern Australia. We then modeled the spatial distribution of 12 components of ecological value commonly used in setting spatial conservation priorities. We used the analytical hierarchy process to weight these components and used multiattribute utility theory to combine them into a single spatial layer of ecological value. Social values assigned to natural areas were negatively correlated with ecological values overall, but were positively correlated with some components of ecological value. In terms of the spatial distribution of values, people valued protected areas, whereas those natural areas underrepresented in the reserve system were of higher ecological value. The habitats of threatened animal species were assigned both high ecological value and high social value. Only small areas were assigned both high ecological value and high social value in the study area, whereas large areas of high ecological value were of low social value, and vice versa. We used the assigned ecological and social values to identify different conservation strategies (e.g., information sharing, community engagement, incentive payments) that may be effective for specific areas. We suggest that consideration of both ecological and social values in selection of conservation strategies can enhance the success of science-based conservation planning. ©2010 Society for Conservation Biology.

Social determinants and their interference in homicide rates in a city in northeastern Brazil

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Geziel dos Santos de Sousa

2014-01-01

Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: This paper aims to analyze the possible relationship between social determinants and homicide mortality in Fortaleza (CE, Brazil. METHOD: To investigate whether the rate of mortality by homicides is related to social determinants, an ecological study with emphasis on spatial analysis was conducted in the city of Fortaleza. Social, economic, demographic and sanitation data, as well as information regarding years of potential life lost, and Human Development Index were collected. The dependent variable was the rate of homicides in the period 2004 to 2006. In order to verify the relationship between the outcome variable and the predictor variables, we performed a multivariate linear regression model. RESULTS: We found associations between social determinants and the rate of mortality by homicides. Variables related to income and education were proven determinants for mortality. The multiple regression model showed that 51% of homicides in Fortaleza neighborhoods are explained by years of potential life lost, proportion of households with poor housing, average years of schooling, per capita income and percentage of household heads with 15 or more years of study. The coefficients for years of potential life lost and households with poor housing were positive. CONCLUSION: The findings indicate that the mortality by homicide is associated with high levels of poverty and uncontrolled urbanization, which migrates to the peripheries of urban centers.

Transformative governance of urban social-ecological systems

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A central aspect of adaptive governance is a learning process that can help communities achieve environmental objectives. Adaptive governance is a framework for managing social-ecological systems, and is the precursor to transformative governance. Adaptive governance accounts for...

Network approaches for understanding rainwater management from a social-ecological systems perspective

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Steven D. Prager

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The premise of this research is to better understand how approaches to implementing rainwater management practices can be informed by understanding how the people living and working in agroecosystems are connected to one another. Because these connections are via both social interactions and functional characteristics of the landscape, a social-ecological network emerges. Using social-ecological network theory, we ask how understanding the structure of interactions can lead to improved rainwater management interventions. Using a case study situated within a small sub-basin in the Fogera area of the Blue Nile Basin of Ethiopia, we build networks of smallholders based both on the biophysical and social-institutional landscapes present in the study site, with the smallholders themselves as the common element between the networks. In turn we explore how structures present in the networks may serve to guide decision making regarding both where and with whom rainwater management interventions could be developed. This research thus illustrates an approach for constructing a social-ecological network and demonstrates how the structures of the network yield insights for tailoring the implementation of rainwater management practices to the social and ecological setting.

A Social-Ecological Resilience Assessment and Governance Guide for Urbanization Processes in East China

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Chen Zhang

2016-10-01

Full Text Available This article presents a social-ecological resilience assessment and attempts to explicitly examine the impacts of urbanization on resilience, with a view to explore how to strengthen social-ecological governance of the resilience of urban ecosystems. We use a combined Grey-Fuzzy evaluation model to discuss a case study of the Su-Xi-Chang city cluster, a metropolitan area in East China, in which total social-ecological resilience scores generally exhibited an upward trend, from 0.548 in 2001 to 0.760 in 2013. In the same period, resilience increased in relation to deterioration of environmental quality, pollution discharge, and landscape and ecological governance change, but decreased in relation to social-economic development. Besides, different contributions of indicators to their related resilience values reveal the heterogeneity of the resilience in terms of various disturbances. In addition, several scenarios are posited in an attempt to detect the relationship between social-ecological resilience and urbanization with the goal of improving urban governance. The results suggested that rapid urbanization under rigid and vertically organized forms of governance would cause the social-ecological system to lose resilience, or even to bring it near collapse. When the growth rate of urban land expansion reaches 16%, disturbances caused by urbanization would push the social-ecological system over a particular threshold, where the way it functions changes. However, it is found that adaptive and collaborative governance, incorporating increases in both public participation and the efficiency of environment administration, would strengthen social-ecological governance of resilience to provide the urban system with a wide operating space, and even with accelerated urbanization ratios.

The role of social learning for social-ecological systems in Korean village groves restoration

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Eunju Lee

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Recently, social learning has been recognized as a means to foster adaptation to changing conditions, and more broadly, social-ecological systems resilience. However, the discussion of social learning and social-ecological resilience in different cultural contexts is limited. In this study we introduce the Korean Village Groves Restoration Project (VGRP through the lens of social learning, and discuss implications of the VGRP for resilience in villages impacted by industrialization and decline of traditional forest resources. We conducted open-ended interviews with VGRP leaders, government and NGO officials, and residents in four villages in South Korea, and found that villages responded to ecosystem change in ways that could be explained by the characteristics of social learning including interaction, integration, systems orientation, and reflection. However, the processes of learning varied among the four villages, and were associated with different levels of learning and different learning outcomes related to changes in village grove management and governance. The cultural and historical context can be used to help understand social learning processes and their outcomes in the Korean cases.

The influence of ecology on sociality in the killer whale (Orcinus orca)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Beck, Suzanne; Kuningas, Sanna; Esteban, Ruth

2012-01-01

a population under different ecological conditions can identify the relative influence of ecological selection on group formation. Here, we compare the size and persistence of social groups within a community of Atlantic killer whales, comparing between data collected from an area around Scotland where......-eating ecotype than the more phylogenetically distant Pacific mammal-eating ecotype. Our study suggests that sociality in killer whales is to some extent plastic and can be adapted to the local ecological conditions. Key words: ecology, killer whale, orca, orcinus, sociality....

Reconnecting Social and Ecological Resilience in Salmon Ecosystems

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Daniel L. Bottom

2009-06-01

Full Text Available Fishery management programs designed to control Pacific salmon (Oncorhynchus spp. for optimum production have failed to prevent widespread fish population decline and have caused greater uncertainty for salmon, their ecosystems, and the people who depend upon them. In this special feature introduction, we explore several key attributes of ecosystem resilience that have been overlooked by traditional salmon management approaches. The dynamics of salmon ecosystems involve social-ecological interactions across multiple scales that create difficult mismatches with the many jurisdictions that manage fisheries and other natural resources. Of particular importance to ecosystem resilience are large-scale shifts in oceanic and climatic regimes or in global economic conditions that unpredictably alter social and ecological systems. Past management actions that did not account for such changes have undermined salmon population resilience and increased the risk of irreversible regime shifts in salmon ecosystems. Because salmon convey important provisioning, cultural, and supporting services to their local watersheds, widespread population decline has undermined both human well-being and ecosystem resilience. Strengthening resilience will require expanding habitat opportunities for salmon populations to express their maximum life-history variation. Such actions also may benefit the "response diversity" of local communities by expanding the opportunities for people to express diverse social and economic values. Reestablishing social-ecological connections in salmon ecosystems will provide important ecosystem services, including those that depend on clean water, ample stream flows, functional wetlands and floodplains, intact riparian systems, and abundant fish populations.

Social question and social work: contemporary challenges facing the profession in Brazil

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Rodrigo José Teixeira

2017-12-01

Full Text Available This article offers an analysis of the intrinsic relationship between the social question and Social Work. The analysis of the social question starts from the meticulous and rigorous reading of the labor theory of value and the Critique of Political Economy written by Karl Marx. It is from this analysis that we try to justify the genesis of the profession linked to the role of the state and the bourgeoisie in the consolidation of monopoly capitalism. It starts from the analysis of Social Work as a profession inserted in the social and technical division of labor that by its own action, in the contradictory movement of the capitalist reality, defends the interests of capital and labor. In addition, the article presents, in a succinct way, the trajectory of Social Work in Brazil and its ethical and political project in relation to the working class challenges to guarantee this direction in times of dismantling social policies and financial capitalism. 

Social-Ecological Correlates in Adult Autism Outcome Studies: A Scoping Review.

Science.gov (United States)

Anderson, Kristy A; Roux, Anne M; Kuo, Alice; Shattuck, Paul T

2018-04-01

The transition into adulthood is a critical period in the life course that shapes later outcomes. Many adults on the autism spectrum fare poorly across a wide range of quality of life indicators. Understanding the multilevel factors that influence transition outcomes is necessary to develop strategies that promote better outcomes. In this scoping review, we characterize the use of social-ecological factors in adult autism outcome studies, identify understudied areas of research, and provide recommendations for future research. We conducted a literature search for studies in which the relationship between social-ecological factors and transition outcomes among transition-age youth with autism was assessed. We organized variables used in studies across 5 levels of influence: family-, interpersonal-, institutional-, community-, and policy-level factors. Our findings reveal that both breadth and depth of social-ecological factors usage in autism outcomes studies is limited because of the narrow inclusion of variables across social-ecological levels, the overreliance on a limited number of national data sets, and the overall lack of variation in research design. We propose 9 recommendations to inform the development of multilevel studies. Copyright © 2018 by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Social Entrepreneurship: a Reflection for Adopting Public Policies that Support the Third Sector in Brazil

OpenAIRE

Borges Ladeira, Francielli Martins; Vier Machado, Hilka

2013-01-01

Interest in social entrepreneurship is growing widely not only in Brazil but in the world. Several developed countries have stepped forward to develop policies to support this area not only as a tool to fulfill the government failures such as poverty, health, education, unemployment among others, but also because of all the benefits that social enterprises have in relation to society. However, it is possible to identify a lack of political support for social entrepreneurship in Brazil. Given ...

Conservation success as a function of good alignment of social and ecological structures and processes.

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Bodin, Orjan; Crona, Beatrice; Thyresson, Matilda; Golz, Anna-Lea; Tengö, Maria

2014-10-01

How to create and adjust governing institutions so that they align (fit) with complex ecosystem processes and structures across scales is an issue of increasing concern in conservation. It is argued that lack of such social-ecological fit makes governance and conservation difficult, yet progress in explicitly defining and rigorously testing what constitutes a good fit has been limited. We used a novel modeling approach and data from case studies of fishery and forest conservation to empirically test presumed relationships between conservation outcomes and certain patterns of alignment of social-ecological interdependences. Our approach made it possible to analyze conservation outcome on a systems level while also providing information on how individual actors are positioned in the complex web of social-ecological interdependencies. We found that when actors who shared resources were also socially linked, conservation at the level of the whole social-ecological system was positively affected. When the scales at which individual actors used resources and the scale at which ecological resources were interconnected to other ecological resources were aligned through tightened feedback loops, conservation outcome was better than when they were not aligned. The analysis of individual actors' positions in the web of social-ecological interdependencies was helpful in understanding why a system has a certain level of social-ecological fit. Results of analysis of positions showed that different actors contributed in very different ways to achieve a certain fit and revealed some underlying difference between the actors, for example in terms of actors' varying rights to access and use different ecological resources. © 2014 Society for Conservation Biology.

Leprosy in Brazil and its association with characteristics of municipalities: ecological study, 2009-2011.

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Freitas, Lúcia R S; Duarte, Elisabeth C; Garcia, Leila P

2014-10-01

To analyse the ecological association between the demographic and socio-economic characteristics of the Brazilian municipalities and average leprosy incidence rate in the period 2009-2011. An ecological study taking the Brazilian municipalities as its units of analysis. The local empirical Bayes estimation method was used to obtain smoothed incidence rates (SIR) for leprosy. The mean, median, first quartile (Q1) and third quartile (Q3) of the SIR were calculated per 100 000 inhabitants. Hierarchical log-linear negative binomial regression models were used to estimate the incidence rate ratios (IRR). In the period 2009-2011, the average SIR of leprosy in Brazil was 20.2 per 100 000 inhabitants, and the median incidence rate among municipalities was 9.1 per 100 000 inhabitants. Significantly higher adjusted IRR were identified for large municipalities (IRR = 1.67) compared to small municipalities, as well as in municipalities with higher illiteracy rates (IRR = 2.15), more urbanised municipalities (IRR = 1.53), those with greater social inequality as per the Gini index (IRR = 1.26), high percentage of households with inadequate sanitation (IRR = 1.63), higher average number of people per room (IRR = 1.41), high proportions of Family Health Programme coverage (IRR = 1.29), high percentage of household contacts investigated (IRR = 2.30) and those with percentage of cases with grade 2 disability considered to be the medium (IRR = 1.26). In this study, SIR was significantly associated with municipalities with low socio-economic status. Disease control activities need to be focused on these municipalities, and investments need to be made in improving the population's living conditions. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

The evolutionary and ecological consequences of animal social networks: emerging issues.

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Kurvers, Ralf H J M; Krause, Jens; Croft, Darren P; Wilson, Alexander D M; Wolf, Max

2014-06-01

The first generation of research on animal social networks was primarily aimed at introducing the concept of social networks to the fields of animal behaviour and behavioural ecology. More recently, a diverse body of evidence has shown that social fine structure matters on a broader scale than initially expected, affecting many key ecological and evolutionary processes. Here, we review this development. We discuss the effects of social network structure on evolutionary dynamics (genetic drift, fixation probabilities, and frequency-dependent selection) and social evolution (cooperation and between-individual behavioural differences). We discuss how social network structure can affect important coevolutionary processes (host-pathogen interactions and mutualisms) and population stability. We also discuss the potentially important, but poorly studied, role of social network structure on dispersal and invasion. Throughout, we highlight important areas for future research. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

SOCIO-ECOLOGICAL THEORIES AND EMPIRICAL RESEARCH. COMPARING SOCIAL-ECOLOGICAL SCHOOLS OF THOUGHTS IN ACTION

OpenAIRE

Bousquet, F.; Anderies, M.; Antona, M.; Bassett, T.; Benjaminsen, T.; Bonato, O.; Castro, M.; Gautier, D.; Gunderson, L.; Janssen, M.; Kinzig, A.; Lecoq, M.; Lynam, T.; Mathevet, R.; Perrings, C.

2015-01-01

Environmental problems, at local scale as well as global scale, are now considered as key issues and scientists are encouraged to be part of the process to address these issues. For the last decades, scholars have been focusing on the study of interactions between social dynamics and ecological processes and produced a set of concepts and scientific discourses aiming at framing the analysis of socio-ecological dynamics and eventually at orienting interventions. Scientific discourses are produ...

Effects of season on ecological processes in extensive earthen tilapia ponds in Southeastern Brazil.

Science.gov (United States)

Favaro, E G P; Sipaúba-Tavares, L H; Milstein, A

2015-11-01

In Southeastern Brazil tilapia culture is conducted in extensive and semi-intensive flow-through earthen ponds, being water availability and flow management different in the rainy and dry seasons. In this region lettuce wastes are a potential cheap input for tilapia culture. This study examined the ecological processes developing during the rainy and dry seasons in three extensive flow-through earthen tilapia ponds fertilized with lettuce wastes. Water quality, plankton and sediment parameters were sampled monthly during a year. Factor analysis was used to identify the ecological processes occurring within the ponds and to construct a conceptual graphic model of the pond ecosystem functioning during the rainy and dry seasons. Processes related to nitrogen cycling presented differences between both seasons while processes related to phosphorus cycling did not. Ecological differences among ponds were due to effects of wind protection by surrounding vegetation, organic loading entering, tilapia density and its grazing pressure on zooplankton. Differences in tilapia growth among ponds were related to stocking density and ecological process affecting tilapia food availability and intraspecific competition. Lettuce wastes addition into the ponds did not produce negative effects, thus this practice may be considered a disposal option and a low-cost input source for tilapia, at least at the amounts applied in this study.

Implications of ecological and social characteristics to community ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Implications of ecological and social characteristics to community livelihoods in the coastal ... African Journal of Environmental Science and Technology ... This will further address conflicts over resource uses that may arise due to livelihood ...

Musicking as Education for Social and Ecological Peace: A New Synthesis

Science.gov (United States)

Golden, Michael

2016-01-01

The aim of this article is twofold: first, to confirm the multi-level linkage between the ecological and social realms in terms of violence, peace, and education, and second, to explore what light ecological thinking can shed on musicking as a potentially effective tool in peace education. The effects of violence in the ecological and social…

Cooperation Is Not Enough—Exploring Social-Ecological Micro-Foundations for Sustainable Common-Pool Resource Use

Science.gov (United States)

Wijermans, Nanda; Schlüter, Maja; Lindahl, Therese

2016-01-01

Cooperation amongst resource users holds the key to overcoming the social dilemma that characterizes community-based common-pool resource management. But is cooperation alone enough to achieve sustainable resource use? The short answer is no. Developing management strategies in a complex social-ecological environment also requires ecological knowledge and approaches to deal with perceived environmental uncertainty. Recent behavioral experimental research indicates variation in the degree to which a group of users can identify a sustainable exploitation level. In this paper, we identify social-ecological micro-foundations that facilitate cooperative sustainable common-pool resource use. We do so by using an agent-based model (ABM) that is informed by behavioral common-pool resource experiments. In these experiments, groups that cooperate do not necessarily manage the resource sustainably, but also over- or underexploit. By reproducing the patterns of the behavioral experiments in a qualitative way, the ABM represents a social-ecological explanation for the experimental observations. We find that the ecological knowledge of each group member cannot sufficiently explain the relationship between cooperation and sustainable resource use. Instead, the development of a sustainable exploitation level depends on the distribution of ecological knowledge among the group members, their influence on each other’s knowledge, and the environmental uncertainty the individuals perceive. The study provides insights about critical social-ecological micro-foundations underpinning collective action and sustainable resource management. These insights may inform policy-making, but also point to future research needs regarding the mechanisms of social learning, the development of shared management strategies and the interplay of social and ecological uncertainty. PMID:27556175

Interpreting participatory Fuzzy Cognitive Maps as complex networks in the social-ecological systems of the Amazonian forests

Science.gov (United States)

Varela, Consuelo; Tarquis, Ana M.; Blanco-Gutiérrez, Irene; Estebe, Paloma; Toledo, Marisol; Martorano, Lucieta

2015-04-01

Social-ecological systems are linked complex systems that represent interconnected human and biophysical processes evolving and adapting across temporal and spatial scales. In the real world, social-ecological systems pose substantial challenges for modeling. In this regard, Fuzzy Cognitive Maps (FCMs) have proven to be a useful method for capturing the functioning of this type of systems. FCMs are a semi-quantitative type of cognitive map that represent a system composed of relevant factors and weighted links showing the strength and direction of cause-effects relationships among factors. Therefore, FCMs can be interpreted as complex system structures or complex networks. In this sense, recent research has applied complex network concepts for the analysis of FCMs that represent social-ecological systems. Key to FCM the tool is its potential to allow feedback loops and to include stakeholder knowledge in the construction of the tool. Also, previous research has demonstrated their potential to represent system dynamics and simulate the effects of changes in the system, such as policy interventions. For illustrating this analysis, we have developed a series of participatory FCM for the study of the ecological and human systems related to biodiversity conservation in two case studies of the Amazonian region, the Bolivia lowlands of Guarayos and the Brazil Tapajos National forest. The research is carried out in the context of the EU project ROBIN1 and it is based on the development of a series of stakeholder workshops to analyze the current state of the socio-ecological environment in the Amazonian forest, reflecting conflicts and challenges for biodiversity conservation and human development. Stakeholders included all relevant actors in the local case studies, namely farmers, environmental groups, producer organizations, local and provincial authorities and scientists. In both case studies we illustrate the use of complex networks concepts, such as the adjacency

Domestic Labor and the Lack of Social Security Protection in Brazil: Questions for Analysis

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Rita de Lourdes de Lima

2010-01-01

Full Text Available This article analyzes domestic labor in Brazil, considering gender, the sexual division of labor and social security, which are influenced by the social transformations of the late 20th century. To do so, a dialog was established with various theoreticians including: Boschetti, Hirata, Kergoat, Nogueira and Saffioti.A historical review of the sexual division of labor in capitalist society is conducted, utilizing the concept of gender and examining inequality between men and women in the work force. Then, looking at social security in Brazil, the  implications of counter reforms to the system for female labor and particularly for domestic work are analyzed, identifying the real lack of social protection suffered by the entire working class.

Conceptions of healthy eating among ecological farmers in Paraná, Southern Brazil.

Science.gov (United States)

Ell, Erica; Silva, Denise Oliveira e; Nazareno, Eleusis Ronconi de; Brandenburg, Alfio

2012-04-01

To describe ecological farmers' conceptions of healthy eating. Study with a qualitative approach. In January and February 2007, supported by a guide, in-depth interviews were conducted with 11 women and one man who were living in an agricultural community in Rio Branco do Sul, Southern Brazil. The interviewees were selected randomly from among the 20 ecological farming families in this municipality. Three analysis categories were identified: "awareness of healthy eating"; "purchasing power" and "healthy land". The significance of healthy eating for the female farmers involved the idea that foods should be natural, without agricultural pesticides or manufactured chemical products. The daily routine should include abundant consumption of fruits, greens and other vegetables, in addition to the basic rice, beans and meat, and the composition of dishes should aim towards prevention of obesity and chronic-degenerative diseases. Care regarding natural resources in order to ensure production of healthy foods, food safety, environmental sustainability and the future of life on the planet form part of the concept of healthy eating. Knowledge, self-criticism and discernment accompanied the conceptions of healthy eating.

Cumulative Effects Assessment: Linking Social, Ecological, and Governance Dimensions

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Marian Weber

2012-06-01

Full Text Available Setting social, economic, and ecological objectives is ultimately a process of social choice informed by science. In this special feature we provide a multidisciplinary framework for the use of cumulative effects assessment in land use planning. Forest ecosystems are facing considerable challenges driven by population growth and increasing demands for resources. In a suite of case studies that span the boreal forest of Western Canada to the interior Atlantic forest of Paraguay we show how transparent and defensible methods for scenario analysis can be applied in data-limited regions and how social dimensions of land use change can be incorporated in these methods, particularly in aboriginal communities that have lived in these ecosystems for generations. The case studies explore how scenario analysis can be used to evaluate various land use options and highlight specific challenges with identifying social and ecological responses, determining thresholds and targets for land use, and integrating local and traditional knowledge in land use planning. Given that land use planning is ultimately a value-laden and often politically charged process we also provide some perspective on various collective and expert-based processes for identifying cumulative impacts and thresholds. The need for good science to inform and be informed by culturally appropriate democratic processes calls for well-planned and multifaceted approaches both to achieve an informed understanding of both residents and governments of the interactive and additive changes caused by development, and to design action agendas to influence such change at the ecological and social level.

Social Ecological Model Analysis for ICT Integration

Science.gov (United States)

Zagami, Jason

2013-01-01

ICT integration of teacher preparation programmes was undertaken by the Australian Teaching Teachers for the Future (TTF) project in all 39 Australian teacher education institutions and highlighted the need for guidelines to inform systemic ICT integration approaches. A Social Ecological Model (SEM) was used to positively inform integration…

Seagrass meadows globally as a coupled social-ecological system: implications for human wellbeing.

Science.gov (United States)

Cullen-Unsworth, Leanne C; Nordlund, Lina Mtwana; Paddock, Jessica; Baker, Susan; McKenzie, Len J; Unsworth, Richard K F

2014-06-30

Seagrass ecosystems are diminishing worldwide and repeated studies confirm a lack of appreciation for the value of these systems. In order to highlight their value we provide the first discussion of seagrass meadows as a coupled social-ecological system on a global scale. We consider the impact of a declining resource on people, including those for whom seagrass meadows are utilised for income generation and a source of food security through fisheries support. Case studies from across the globe are used to demonstrate the intricate relationship between seagrass meadows and people that highlight the multi-functional role of seagrasses in human wellbeing. While each case underscores unique issues, these examples simultaneously reveal social-ecological coupling that transcends cultural and geographical boundaries. We conclude that understanding seagrass meadows as a coupled social-ecological system is crucial in carving pathways for social and ecological resilience in light of current patterns of local to global environmental change. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Social responsibility and environmental sustainability. The case study of Vale (Brazil)

OpenAIRE

Figueredo, I.; Filipe, J. A.

2011-01-01

Corporate social responsibility deals with companies' actions aiming a positive impact namely on environment, consumers, employees or communities, for example. It requires a set of duties and obligations, in relation to the society and to the communities in which the organization is operating. In Brazil, the corporate social responsibility is still a big challenge, since the actions of social responsibility have not contributed effectively to improve the living conditions of society and the t...

Not just another variable: untangling the spatialities of power in social-ecological systems

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Micah L. Ingalls

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Increased attention has been paid to how the spatial dimensions of social-ecological systems are formative in shaping their ability to negotiate change and remain resilient. This paper moves this research further by exploring how diverse forms of power play a crucial role in shaping these spatial dimensions and the production of social-ecological outcomes. Grounding these explorations in a National Protected Area in Lao PDR, this paper explores how power relationships operate through the spatial and temporal domains of complex systems. Findings suggest (at least four important insights: (1 the exercise of power materializes in policies and programs and becomes written onto the spaces of social-ecological systems through boundary creation, zonation, and other social processes that (redefine spatial meanings; these meanings vary by social actor; (2 policies and programs map out unevenly across space and time as they interact with antecedent social-ecological conditions in ways that preclude linear causal relationships between policy and outcomes; (3 although local in their expression, spatialized disputes in social-ecological systems draw on cross-scalar discourses and networks of power to bolster, undermine, and (delegitimize competing environmental and social narratives; and (4 however powerful institutions and actor-networks may be, they are never fully hegemonic as they are attenuated by other discourses and operations of power, although these all play out across a highly uneven sociopolitical terrain. Paying greater attention to the spatial and temporal dynamics of power may be much more than a project of introducing yet another variable into the already complex admixture of analytic elements. Rather, by rendering these explicit as objects of analysis, common insights may change entirely or even be overturned.

Benefits of using a Social-Ecological Systems Approach to Conceptualize and Model Wetlands Restoration

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Using a social-ecological systems (SES) perspective to examine wetland restoration helps decision-makers recognize interdependencies and relations between ecological and social components of coupled systems. Conceptual models are an invaluable tool to capture, visualize, and orga...

Applying Place-Based Social-Ecological Research to Address Water Scarcity: Insights for Future Research

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Antonio J. Castro

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Globally, environmental and social change in water-scarce regions challenge the sustainability of social-ecological systems. WaterSES, a sponsored working group within the Program for Ecosystem Change and Society, explores and compares the social-ecological dynamics related to water scarcity across placed-based international research sites with contrasting local and regional water needs and governance, including research sites in Spain and Sweden in Europe, South Africa, China, and Alabama, Idaho, Oklahoma, and Texas in the USA. This paper aims to provide a commentary on insights into conducting future solutions-oriented research on water scarcity based on the understanding of the social-ecological dynamics of water scarce regions.

Using expert informed GIS to locate important marine social-ecological hotspots.

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Mahboubi, Pouyan; Parkes, Margot; Stephen, Craig; Chan, Hing Man

2015-09-01

The marine environment provides significant benefits to many local communities. Pressure to develop coastal waterways worldwide creates an urgent need for tools to locate marine spaces that have important social or ecological values, and to quantify their relative importance. The primary objective of this study was to develop, apply and critically assess a tool to identify important social-ecological hotspots in the marine environment. The study was conducted in a typical coastal community in northern British Columbia, Canada. This expert-informed GIS, or xGIS, tool used a survey instrument to draw on the knowledge of local experts from a range of backgrounds with respect to a series of 12 social-ecological value attributes, such as biodiversity, cultural and economic values. We identified approximately 1500 polygons on marine maps and assigned relative values to them using a token distribution exercise. A series of spatial statistical analyses were performed to locate and quantify the relative social-ecological importance of marine spaces and the results were ultimately summarized in a single hotspot map of the entire study area. This study demonstrates the utility of xGIS as a useful tool for stakeholders and environmental managers engaged in the planning and management of marine resources at the local and regional levels. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Floristic and ecological characterization of habitat types on an inselberg in Minas Gerais, southeastern Brazil

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Luiza F. A. de Paula

Full Text Available ABSTRACT Inselbergs are granitic or gneissic rock outcrops, distributed mainly in tropical and subtropical regions. They are considered terrestrial islands because of their strong spatial and ecological isolation, thus harboring a set of distinct plant communities that differ from the surrounding matrix. In Brazil, inselbergs scattered in the Atlantic Forest contain unusually high levels of plant species richness and endemism. This study aimed to inventory species of vascular plants and to describe the main habitat types found on an inselberg located in the state of Minas Gerais, in southeastern Brazil. A total of 89 species of vascular plants were recorded (belonging to 37 families, of which six were new to science. The richest family was Bromeliaceae (10 spp., followed by Cyperaceae (seven spp., Orchidaceae and Poaceae (six spp. each. Life forms were distributed in different proportions between habitats, which suggested distinct microenvironments on the inselberg. In general, habitats under similar environmental stress shared common species and life-form proportions. We argue that floristic inventories are still necessary for the development of conservation strategies and management of the unique vegetation on inselbergs in Brazil.

The role of social values in the management of ecological systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Ives, Christopher D; Kendal, Dave

2014-11-01

The concept of value is central to the practice and science of ecological management and conservation. There is a well-developed body of theory and evidence that explores concepts of value in different ways across different disciplines including philosophy, economics, sociology and psychology. Insight from these disciplines provides a robust and sophisticated platform for considering the role of social values in ecological conservation, management and research. This paper reviews theories of value from these disciplines and discusses practical tools and instruments that can be utilised by researchers and practitioners. A distinction is highlighted between underlying values that shape people's perception of the world (e.g. altruistic or biospheric value orientations), and the values that people assign to things in the world (e.g. natural heritage, money). Evidence from numerous studies has shown that there are multiple pathways between these values and attitudes, beliefs and behaviours relevant to ecological management and conservation. In an age of increasing anthropogenic impacts on natural systems, recognising how and why people value different aspects of ecological systems can allow ecological managers to act to minimise conflict between stakeholders and promote the social acceptability of management activities. A series of practical guidelines are provided to enable social values to be better considered in ecosystem management and research. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Framing futures: visualizing on social-ecological systems change

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Vervoort, J.M.

2011-01-01

An appreciation of the complexity and uncertainty that characterizes linked human and natural systems - or social-ecological systems - has proliferated throughout the sciences in recent decades. However, dominant societal images, mental models and discourses frame the complexity of

Demographic, social cognitive and social ecological predictors of intention and participation in screening for colorectal cancer

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Duncan Amy

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Previous research points to differences between predictors of intention to screen for colorectal cancer (CRC and screening behavior, and suggests social ecological factors may influence screening behavior. The aim of this study was to compare the social cognitive and social ecological predictors of intention to screen with predictors of participation. Methods People aged 50 to 74 years recruited from the electoral roll completed a baseline survey (n = 376 and were subsequently invited to complete an immunochemical faecal occult blood test (iFOBT. Results Multivariate analyses revealed five predictors of intention to screen and two predictors of participation. Perceived barriers to CRC screening and perceived benefits of CRC screening were the only predictor of both outcomes. There was little support for social ecological factors, but measurement problems may have impacted this finding. Conclusions This study has confirmed that the predictors of intention to screen for CRC and screening behaviour, although overlapping, are not the same. Research should focus predominantly on those factors shown to predict participation. Perceptions about the barriers to screening and benefits of screening are key predictors of participation, and provide a focus for intervention programs.

Social impacts of Brazil's Tucurui Dam

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fearnside, P.M.

1999-01-01

The Tucurui Dam, which blocked the Tocantins River in 1984 in Brazil's eastern Amazonian state of Para, is a continuing source of controversy. Most benefits of the power go to aluminum smelting companies, where only a tiny amount of employment is generated. Often presented by authorities as a model for hydroelectric development because of the substantial power that it produces, the project's social and environmental impacts are also substantial. Examination of Tucurui reveals a systematic overestimation of benefits and underestimation of impacts as presented by authorities. Tucurui offers many as-yet unlearned lessons for hydroelectric development in Amazonia

Vulnerability and risk of deltaic social-ecological systems exposed to multiple hazards.

Science.gov (United States)

Hagenlocher, Michael; Renaud, Fabrice G; Haas, Susanne; Sebesvari, Zita

2018-08-01

Coastal river deltas are hotspots of global change impacts. Sustainable delta futures are increasingly threatened due to rising hazard exposure combined with high vulnerabilities of deltaic social-ecological systems. While the need for integrated multi-hazard approaches has been clearly articulated, studies on vulnerability and risk in deltas either focus on local case studies or single hazards and do not apply a social-ecological systems perspective. As a result, vulnerabilities and risks in areas with strong social and ecological coupling, such as coastal deltas, are not fully understood and the identification of risk reduction and adaptation strategies are often based on incomplete assumptions. To overcome these limitations, we propose an innovative modular indicator library-based approach for the assessment of multi-hazard risk of social-ecological systems across and within coastal deltas globally, and apply it to the Amazon, Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna (GBM), and Mekong deltas. Results show that multi-hazard risk is highest in the GBM delta and lowest in the Amazon delta. The analysis reveals major differences between social and environmental vulnerability across the three deltas, notably in the Mekong and the GBM deltas where environmental vulnerability is significantly higher than social vulnerability. Hotspots and drivers of risk vary spatially, thus calling for spatially targeted risk reduction and adaptation strategies within the deltas. Ecosystems have been identified as both an important element at risk as well as an entry point for risk reduction and adaptation strategies. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Mapping Social Ecological Systems Archetypes

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Rocha, J. C.; Malmborg, K.; Gordon, L.

2016-12-01

Achieving sustainable development goals requires targeting and monitoring sustainable solutions tailored to different social and ecological contexts. Elinor Ostrom stressed that there is no panaceas or universal solutions to environmental problems, and developed a social-ecological systems' (SES) framework -a nested multi tier set of variables- to help diagnose problems, identify complex interactions, and solutions tailored to each SES arena. However, to our knowledge, the SES framework has only been applied to over a hundred cases, and typically reflect the analysis of local case studies with relatively small coverage in space and time. While case studies are context rich and necessary, their conclusions might not reach policy making instances. Here we develop a data driven method for upscaling Ostrom's SES framework and applied to a context where we expect data is scarce, incomplete, but also where sustainable solutions are badly needed. The purpose of upscaling the framework is to create a tool that facilitates decision making on data scarce environments such as developing countries. We mapped SES by applying the SES framework to poverty alleviation and food security issues in the Volta River basin in Ghana and Burkina Faso. We found archetypical configurations of SES in space given data availability, we study their change over time, and discuss where agricultural innovations such as water reservoirs might have a stronger impact at increasing food security and therefore alleviating poverty and hunger. We conclude outlining how the method can be used in other SES comparative studies.

Exploring the Dynamics of social-ecological resilience in East and ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Background: Social-ecological resilience refers to the dynamic process of adaptive learning, reorganization and meaning-making demonstrated in linked human, animal, and plant ecosystems often organized in formal and/or informal social institutions, as they anticipate, withstand and/or judiciously engage with adversity ...

Spatial-temporal analysis of dengue deaths: identifying social vulnerabilities.

Science.gov (United States)

Silva, Maria do Socorro da; Branco, Maria Dos Remédios Freitas Carvalho; Aquino, José; Queiroz, Rejane Christine de Sousa; Bani, Emanuele; Moreira, Emnielle Pinto Borges; Medeiros, Maria Nilza Lima; Rodrigues, Zulimar Márita Ribeiro

2017-01-01

Currently, dengue fever, chikungunya fever, and zika virus represent serious public health issues in Brazil, despite efforts to control the vector, the Aedes aegypti mosquito. This was a descriptive and ecological study of dengue deaths occurring from 2002 to 2013 in São Luis, Maranhão, Brazil. Geoprocessing software was used to draw maps, linking the geo-referenced deaths with urban/social data at census tract level. There were 74 deaths, concentrated in areas of social vulnerability. The use of geo-technology tools pointed to a concentration of dengue deaths in specific intra-urban areas.

Learning as You Journey: Anishinaabe Perception of Social-ecological Environments and Adaptive Learning

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Iain Davidson-Hunt

2003-12-01

Full Text Available This paper explores the linkages between social-ecological resilience and adaptive learning. We refer to adaptive learning as a method to capture the two-way relationship between people and their social-ecological environment. In this paper, we focus on traditional ecological knowledge. Research was undertaken with the Anishinaabe people of Iskatewizaagegan No. 39 Independent First Nation, in northwestern Ontario, Canada. The research was carried out over two field seasons, with verification workshops following each field season. The methodology was based on site visits and transects determined by the elders as appropriate to answer a specific question, find specific plants, or locate plant communities. During site visits and transect walks, research themes such as plant nomenclature, plant use, habitat descriptions, biogeophysical landscape vocabulary, and place names were discussed. Working with elders allowed us to record a rich set of vocabulary to describe the spatial characteristics of the biogeophysical landscape. However, elders also directed our attention to places they knew through personal experiences and journeys and remembered from stories and collective history. We documented elders' perceptions of the temporal dynamics of the landscape through discussion of disturbance events and cycles. Again, elders drew our attention to the ways in which time was marked by cultural references to seasons and moons. The social memory of landscape dynamics was documented as a combination of biogeophysical structures and processes, along with the stories by which Iskatewizaagegan people wrote their histories upon the land. Adaptive learning for social-ecological resilience, as suggested by this research, requires maintaining the web of relationships of people and places. Such relationships allow social memory to frame creativity, while allowing knowledge to evolve in the face of change. Social memory does not actually evolve directly out of

Cooperation Is Not Enough—Exploring Social-Ecological Micro-Foundations for Sustainable Common-Pool Resource Use [corrected].

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Caroline Schill

Full Text Available Cooperation amongst resource users holds the key to overcoming the social dilemma that characterizes community-based common-pool resource management. But is cooperation alone enough to achieve sustainable resource use? The short answer is no. Developing management strategies in a complex social-ecological environment also requires ecological knowledge and approaches to deal with perceived environmental uncertainty. Recent behavioral experimental research indicates variation in the degree to which a group of users can identify a sustainable exploitation level. In this paper, we identify social-ecological micro-foundations that facilitate cooperative sustainable common-pool resource use. We do so by using an agent-based model (ABM that is informed by behavioral common-pool resource experiments. In these experiments, groups that cooperate do not necessarily manage the resource sustainably, but also over- or underexploit. By reproducing the patterns of the behavioral experiments in a qualitative way, the ABM represents a social-ecological explanation for the experimental observations. We find that the ecological knowledge of each group member cannot sufficiently explain the relationship between cooperation and sustainable resource use. Instead, the development of a sustainable exploitation level depends on the distribution of ecological knowledge among the group members, their influence on each other's knowledge, and the environmental uncertainty the individuals perceive. The study provides insights about critical social-ecological micro-foundations underpinning collective action and sustainable resource management. These insights may inform policy-making, but also point to future research needs regarding the mechanisms of social learning, the development of shared management strategies and the interplay of social and ecological uncertainty.

Cooperation Is Not Enough—Exploring Social-Ecological Micro-Foundations for Sustainable Common-Pool Resource Use [corrected].

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Schill, Caroline; Wijermans, Nanda; Schlüter, Maja; Lindahl, Therese

2016-01-01

Cooperation amongst resource users holds the key to overcoming the social dilemma that characterizes community-based common-pool resource management. But is cooperation alone enough to achieve sustainable resource use? The short answer is no. Developing management strategies in a complex social-ecological environment also requires ecological knowledge and approaches to deal with perceived environmental uncertainty. Recent behavioral experimental research indicates variation in the degree to which a group of users can identify a sustainable exploitation level. In this paper, we identify social-ecological micro-foundations that facilitate cooperative sustainable common-pool resource use. We do so by using an agent-based model (ABM) that is informed by behavioral common-pool resource experiments. In these experiments, groups that cooperate do not necessarily manage the resource sustainably, but also over- or underexploit. By reproducing the patterns of the behavioral experiments in a qualitative way, the ABM represents a social-ecological explanation for the experimental observations. We find that the ecological knowledge of each group member cannot sufficiently explain the relationship between cooperation and sustainable resource use. Instead, the development of a sustainable exploitation level depends on the distribution of ecological knowledge among the group members, their influence on each other's knowledge, and the environmental uncertainty the individuals perceive. The study provides insights about critical social-ecological micro-foundations underpinning collective action and sustainable resource management. These insights may inform policy-making, but also point to future research needs regarding the mechanisms of social learning, the development of shared management strategies and the interplay of social and ecological uncertainty.

Conflito social e welfare state: Estado e desenvolvimento social no Brasil Social conflict and welfare state: state and social development in Brazil

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Fábio Guedes Gomes

2006-04-01

Full Text Available Este artigo argumenta que no Brasil a luta de classes não alcançou dimensões profundas que pudesse engendrar a constituição do welfare state. Ao contrário, o Estado, sobretudo sua forma mais moderna, capitalista, que emergiu a partir da década de 1930, sempre se antecipou aos movimentos sociais que representassem ameaças de rupturas. De forma repressiva, o Estado brasileiro desde o Império dissipou os conflitos com o objetivo de manter uma certa harmonia em favor do processo de expansão e reprodução capitalista e a integração dos espaços regionais. O artigo, portanto, é uma tentativa, prematura, de entender o processo de constituição dos sistemas de seguridade social, analisando as experiências de alguns países e suas respectivas características, com isso confrontando alguns estudos e realizando comparações com a dinâmica da luta de classes no Brasil e a função do Estado nesse processo.This article defends the theory that the class struggle in Brazil has not been able to engender the formation of a welfare state. On the contrary, the nation which emerged in the 1930s - above all in its more modern capitalistic form - has always prevented social movements that could pose any threat of a rupture. Since when it was a monarchy, Brazil has dealt with its conflicts in a repressive fashion, with the goal of maintaining a certain harmony in the interest of the expansion and the propagation of capitalism as well as regional integration. This text, therefore, is an attempt, albeit premature, to understand the process involving the formation of the social security system in Brazil, by analyzing the experiences of a number of countries and their respective characteristics, thus examining a few studies and making comparisons with the class struggle dynamic in Brazil and the role of the State in this process.

Ecology and social system of northern gibbons living in cold seasonal forests.

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Guan, Zhen-Hua; Ma, Chang-Yong; Fei, Han-Lan; Huang, Bei; Ning, Wen-He; Ni, Qing-Yong; Jiang, Xue-Long; Fan, Peng-Fei

2018-07-18

Gibbons in China represent the northernmost margin of present day gibbon species distribution (around N25°). Compared to tropical habitats, northern gibbon habitats are characterized by low temperatures and remarkable seasonal variation in fruit abundance. How gibbons adapt to their cold and seasonal habitats and what ecological factors affect their sociality are key questions for understanding their ecology and social system evolution, the elucidation of which will contribute to the conservation of these special populations/species. According to preliminary short-term studies, northern gibbons consume more leaves and use larger home ranges than tropical gibbons. Interestingly, some Nomascus groups consist of more than one adult female. However, these preliminary results are not well understood or incorporated into current socio-ecological theories regarding gibbon species. To better understand northern gibbons, our team has systematically studied three habituated groups of Nomascus concolor, three groups of N. nasutus, and two habituated groups of Hoolock tianxing since 2002. In this paper, we stress the challenges facing gibbons living in northern habitats and summarize their behavioral adaptations to their harsh environments. We also describe the northern gibbon social system and discuss the potential relationships between their ecology and sociality. Finally, we highlight future research questions related to northern gibbons in China.

Ecology and social system of northern gibbons living in cold seasonal forests

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Zhen-Hua Guan

2018-07-01

Full Text Available Gibbons in China represent the northernmost margin of present day gibbon species distribution (around N25°. Compared to tropical habitats, northern gibbon habitats are characterized by low temperatures and remarkable seasonal variation in fruit abundance. How gibbons adapt to their cold and seasonal habitats and what ecological factors affect their sociality are key questions for understanding their ecology and social system evolution, the elucidation of which will contribute to the conservation of these special populations/species. According to preliminary short-term studies, northern gibbons consume more leaves and use larger home ranges than tropical gibbons. Interestingly, some Nomascus groups consist of more than one adult female. However, these preliminary results are not well understood or incorporated into current socio-ecological theories regarding gibbon species. To better understand northern gibbons, our team has systematically studied three habituated groups of Nomascus concolor, three groups of N. nasutus, and two habituated groups of Hoolock tianxing since 2002. In this paper, we stress the challenges facing gibbons living in northern habitats and summarize their behavioral adaptations to their harsh environments. We also describe the northern gibbon social system and discuss the potential relationships between their ecology and sociality. Finally, we highlight future research questions related to northern gibbons in China.

The burden of disaster: Part I. Challenges and opportunities within a child's social ecology.

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Noffsinger, Mary A; Pfefferbaum, Betty; Pfefferbaum, Rose L; Sherrib, Kathleen; Norris, Fran H

2012-01-01

Child development and adaptation are best understood as biological and psychological individual processes occurring within the context of interconnecting groups, systems, and communities which, along with family, constitute the child's social ecology. This first of two articles describes the challenges and opportunities within a child's social ecology consisting of Micro-, Meso-, Exo-, and Macrosystems. The parent-child relationship, the most salient Microsystem influence in children's lives, plays an influential role in children's reactions to and recovery from disasters. Children, parents, and other adults participate in Mesosystem activities at schools and faith-based organizations. The Exosystem--including workplaces, social agencies, neighborhood, and mass media--directly affects important adults in children's lives. The Macrosystem affects disaster response and recovery indirectly through intangible cultural, social, economic, and political structures and processes. Children's responses to adversity occur in the context of these dynamically interconnected and interdependent nested environments, all of which endure the burden of disaster Increased understanding of the influences of and the relationships between key components contributes to recovery and rebuilding efforts, limiting disruption to the child and his or her social ecology A companion article (R. L. Pfefferbaum et al., in press) describes interventions across the child's social ecology.

Diet and mortality from common cancers in Brazil: an ecological study

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Sichieri Rosely

1996-01-01

Full Text Available A prospective ecological evaluation of mortality from common malignancies with dietary risk factors and alcohol consumption was carried out among 10 state capitals of Brazil. Regression analysis was used to examine the association of dietary intake with mortality rates of the most common cancers among adults age 30 years and older. Age-adjusted cancer mortality rates varied 2.4 to 3.3 fold across the state capitals. A positive relationship was observed between energy intake and colon, lung, and esophageal cancer (p<=0.02 for each. Colon cancer mortality was positively associated with consumption of total fat, eggs, alcohol, mate tea, cereals, and vegetables (p<=0.01. Lung cancer was positively associated with mate and cereal intake (p<0.05. Stomach cancer was associated with consumption of eggs (p=0.04; and negatively associated with consumption of high fiber foods, fruits, and vitamin A and C (p<=0.05. Esophageal cancer was positively associated with fat intake, mate and cereals (p<=0.05 and negatively associated with vitamin A (p=0.02; prostate cancer was negatively associated with vitamin C (p=0.007. Breast cancer was not associated with any of the factors studied. The marked variation in cancer mortality rates in Brazil may be partially related to the high variation in dietary components or other diet associated factors.

Diet and mortality from common cancers in Brazil: an ecological study

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Rosely Sichieri

Full Text Available A prospective ecological evaluation of mortality from common malignancies with dietary risk factors and alcohol consumption was carried out among 10 state capitals of Brazil. Regression analysis was used to examine the association of dietary intake with mortality rates of the most common cancers among adults age 30 years and older. Age-adjusted cancer mortality rates varied 2.4 to 3.3 fold across the state capitals. A positive relationship was observed between energy intake and colon, lung, and esophageal cancer (p<=0.02 for each. Colon cancer mortality was positively associated with consumption of total fat, eggs, alcohol, mate tea, cereals, and vegetables (p<=0.01. Lung cancer was positively associated with mate and cereal intake (p<0.05. Stomach cancer was associated with consumption of eggs (p=0.04; and negatively associated with consumption of high fiber foods, fruits, and vitamin A and C (p<=0.05. Esophageal cancer was positively associated with fat intake, mate and cereals (p<=0.05 and negatively associated with vitamin A (p=0.02; prostate cancer was negatively associated with vitamin C (p=0.007. Breast cancer was not associated with any of the factors studied. The marked variation in cancer mortality rates in Brazil may be partially related to the high variation in dietary components or other diet associated factors.

Toward a social-ecological theory of forest macrosystems for improved ecosystem management

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Kleindl, William J.; Stoy, Paul C.; Binford, Michael W.; Desai, Ankur R.; Dietze, Michael C.; Schultz, Courtney A.; Starr, Gregory; Staudhammer, Christina; Wood, David J. A.

2018-01-01

The implications of cumulative land-use decisions and shifting climate on forests, require us to integrate our understanding of ecosystems, markets, policy, and resource management into a social-ecological system. Humans play a central role in macrosystem dynamics, which complicates ecological theories that do not explicitly include human interactions. These dynamics also impact ecological services and related markets, which challenges economic theory. Here, we use two forest macroscale management initiatives to develop a theoretical understanding of how management interacts with ecological functions and services at these scales and how the multiple large-scale management goals work either in consort or conflict with other forest functions and services. We suggest that calling upon theories developed for organismal ecology, ecosystem ecology, and ecological economics adds to our understanding of social-ecological macrosystems. To initiate progress, we propose future research questions to add rigor to macrosystem-scale studies: (1) What are the ecosystem functions that operate at macroscales, their necessary structural components, and how do we observe them? (2) How do systems at one scale respond if altered at another scale? (3) How do we both effectively measure these components and interactions, and communicate that information in a meaningful manner for policy and management across different scales?

Benefits of using a Social-Ecological Systems Approach to ...

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Using a social-ecological systems (SES) perspective to examine wetland restoration helps decision-makers recognize interdependencies and relations between ecological and social components of coupled systems. Conceptual models are an invaluable tool to capture, visualize, and organize the key factors in complex social-ecological systems, but can be overwhelming to generate and lead to key concepts being overlooked if development is unstructured. Using a DPSIR approach (Drivers, Pressures, State, Impact, Responses), conceptual models can be developed to link decision scenarios and stressors to impacts on ecosystem services. These impacts on priority ecosystem services can then be linked to changes in human health and well-being through benefit functions. Expert input and contributions across disciplines provides appropriate temporal and spatial scales for determination of targets, project implementation, and monitoring strategies. This approach is being applied to create descriptive SES models of two wetland restoration projects. The first, the dredging of a degraded estuarine channel and restoration of mangrove forests in Caño Martìn Peña in San Juan, Puerto Rico is in the planning stage. The second, the restoration of a former cranberry farm in Plymouth, Massachusetts has completed a large restoration of freshwater wetland, and is gearing up for a second phase. Through the development of conceptual models, we are connecting driving forces wi

The semi-Arid integrated model (SIM), a regional integrated model assessing water availability, vulnerability, of ecossytems and society in NE-Brazil

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Krol, Martinus S.; Jaeger, A.; Bronstert, A.; Krywkow, Jorg

2001-01-01

Northeastern Brazil, an example of vulnerable semi-arid regions on the earth, is characterised by water scarcity and vulnerability of natural resources, pronounced climatic variability and social stress situations. Integrated studies involving hydrology, ecology, meteorology, climatology, pedology,

Improving low health literacy and patient engagement: A social ecological approach.

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McCormack, Lauren; Thomas, Veronica; Lewis, Megan A; Rudd, Rima

2017-01-01

This article posits four principal objectives related to the overarching goal of broadening the conceptualization of health literacy. We propose a social ecological approach to health literacy and patient engagement by illustrating how this multilevel approach offers an array of strategic options for interventions. A social ecological approach supports a broader understanding of health literacy that aligns with increased patient engagement. The ecological model highlights the importance of context, demonstrates how health literacy and patient engagement are inextricably connected, and gives rise to strategies to enhance them both. We illustrate the five multilevel intervention strategies for addressing low health literacy and promoting patient engagement: accumulation, amplification, facilitation, cascade, and convergence strategies. In addition, we provide a theoretical foundation to facilitate the development of interventions to enhance health literacy and ultimately increase patient engagement. The practice implications of adopting a broader social ecological perspective to address low health literacy shifts the field from thinking about individual educational interventions to how individual interventions may be augmented or supported by interventions at additional levels of influence. The potential benefit of adopting a multilevel intervention approach is that combining interventions could produce synergies that are greater than interventions that only utilize one level of influence. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Zero Hunger and Brazil without Extreme Poverty programs: a step forward in Brazilian social protection policy.

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Paes-Sousa, Romulo; Vaitsman, Jeni

2014-11-01

Brazilian social protection programs have had consistent effects in reducing poverty and inequality among their respective target-groups: children, adolescents and pregnant and breastfeeding women. In 2011, the Brazil without Extreme Poverty program was launched as a strategy to eradicate extreme poverty by 2014. It makes the promotion of rights the core concept of the official political narrative. This study seeks to provide a systematic description of the Brazil without Extreme Poverty program and its initial results. A review of official documents and academic studies on the social protection programs was conducted. The Brazil without Extreme Poverty program represents an incremental approach to the social protection policies enacted by the previous administration. It advocates a multidimensional and focused approach, funded primarily by the federal government. The strategy subscribes to the international trend of associating social protection with employment and income generation policies.

[Social participation and health in Brazil: a systematic review on the topic].

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Paiva, Fernando Santana de; Stralen, Cornelis Johannes Van; Costa, Pedro Henrique Antunes da

2014-02-01

The process of democratization of Brazil contributed to the emergence of management councils and thematic conferences in the context of public health policies. The scope of this article was to conduct a systematic review of the literature in order to establish the factors associated with the process of institutionalization of these democratic areas. The following databases were researched: LILACS, IBECS, MEDLINE, SciELO, PAHO, PsycINFO, Web of Science, Social Science and EBSCO. For the composition of the sample of 25 articles, the following key words were used: Social Control, Social Participation, Consumer Participation, Community Participation, Public Participation, Citizen Participation, Political Participation, Participative Management, Participative Democracy, Deliberative Democracy with Health Councils and Health Conferences. The results found synthesize a set of categories that has impacted the participatory public spaces: political representation and qualification, relationships among the social actors, institutional design, political culture, discourses about health/disease and the debate about democracy. The findings help to move forward in the understanding of such institutions, fostering the construction of alternatives committed to the strengthening of democracy in Brazil.

Defining social inclusion of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities: an ecological model of social networks and community participation.

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Simplican, Stacy Clifford; Leader, Geraldine; Kosciulek, John; Leahy, Michael

2015-03-01

Social inclusion is an important goal for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, families, service providers, and policymakers; however, the concept of social inclusion remains unclear, largely due to multiple and conflicting definitions in research and policy. We define social inclusion as the interaction between two major life domains: interpersonal relationships and community participation. We then propose an ecological model of social inclusion that includes individual, interpersonal, organizational, community, and socio-political factors. We identify four areas of research that our ecological model of social inclusion can move forward: (1) organizational implementation of social inclusion; (2) social inclusion of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities living with their families, (3) social inclusion of people along a broader spectrum of disability, and (4) the potential role of self-advocacy organizations in promoting social inclusion. Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Human Development and Social Support for State Authority in Brazil

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Daniel Capistrano

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Several studies have observed a syndrome of shifting values within different cultures over the past five decades. This work investigates whether these cultural changes have been followed by changes in individual attitudes regarding state authority in Brazil. Using data from the World Values Survey, we tested the hypotheses proposed by Ronald Inglehart that the increasing prevalence of self-expression and secular-rational values has been followed by an increasing societal emphasis on civic autonomy over state authority. The results do not provide evidence to support this hypothesis for Brazil. Instead, the study shows a stable pattern of support for state authority in the past three decades despite the increasing level of self-expression values. The study suggests that these attitudes are related to long-lasting characteristics of the political culture and public expectations regarding the role of the state in reducing social inequality in Brazil.

Geographic Distribution of Chagas Disease Vectors in Brazil Based on Ecological Niche Modeling

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Rodrigo Gurgel-Gonçalves

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Although Brazil was declared free from Chagas disease transmission by the domestic vector Triatoma infestans, human acute cases are still being registered based on transmission by native triatomine species. For a better understanding of transmission risk, the geographic distribution of Brazilian triatomines was analyzed. Sixteen out of 62 Brazilian species that both occur in >20 municipalities and present synanthropic tendencies were modeled based on their ecological niches. Panstrongylus geniculatus and P. megistus showed broad ecological ranges, but most of the species sort out by the biome in which they are distributed: Rhodnius pictipes and R. robustus in the Amazon; R. neglectus, Triatoma sordida, and T. costalimai in the Cerrado; R. nasutus, P. lutzi, T. brasiliensis, T. pseudomaculata, T. melanocephala, and T. petrocchiae in the Caatinga; T. rubrovaria in the southern pampas; T. tibiamaculata and T. vitticeps in the Atlantic Forest. Although most occurrences were recorded in open areas (Cerrado and Caatinga, our results show that all environmental conditions in the country are favorable to one or more of the species analyzed, such that almost nowhere is Chagas transmission risk negligible.

Studying the neurobiology of human social interaction: Making the case for ecological validity.

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Hogenelst, Koen; Schoevers, Robert A; aan het Rot, Marije

2015-01-01

With this commentary we make the case for an increased focus on the ecological validity of the measures used to assess aspects of human social functioning. Impairments in social functioning are seen in many types of psychopathology, negatively affecting the lives of psychiatric patients and those around them. Yet the neurobiology underlying abnormal social interaction remains unclear. As an example of human social neuroscience research with relevance to biological psychiatry and clinical psychopharmacology, this commentary discusses published experimental studies involving manipulation of the human brain serotonin system that included assessments of social behavior. To date, these studies have mostly been laboratory-based and included computer tasks, observations by others, or single-administration self-report measures. Most laboratory measures used so far inform about the role of serotonin in aspects of social interaction, but the relevance for real-life interaction is often unclear. Few studies have used naturalistic assessments in real life. We suggest several laboratory methods with high ecological validity as well as ecological momentary assessment, which involves intensive repeated measures in naturalistic settings. In sum, this commentary intends to stimulate experimental research on the neurobiology of human social interaction as it occurs in real life.

Using a social-ecological systems perspective to understand tourism and landscape interactions in coastal areas

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Jasper Hessel Heslinga

2017-04-01

Full Text Available Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to look at the potential synergies between tourism and landscapes and examine the potential contribution of tourism to build social-ecological resilience in the Dutch Wadden. Design/methodology/approach – The authors reveal how a social-ecological systems perspective can be used to conceptualize the Wadden as a coupled and dynamic system. This paper is a conceptual analysis that applies this approach to the Dutch Wadden. The data used for the inquiry primarily comes from a literature review. Findings – The authors argue that the social-ecological systems perspective is a useful approach and could be used to improve the governance of multi-functional socio-ecological systems in coastal areas. Opportunities for synergies between tourism and landscapes have been overlooked. The authors consider that tourism and nature protection are potentially compatible and that the synergies should be identified. Research limitations/implications – This paper is only a conceptual application rather than an empirical case study. Further research to actually apply the methodology is needed. Practical implications – Managers of protected areas should consider applying a social-ecological systems approach. Social implications – The views of a wide variety of stakeholders should be considered in landscape planning. Originality/value – The value of this paper lies in the articulation of the social-ecological systems perspective as a way to identify and understand the complex interactions between tourism and landscape, and the potential synergies between them.

An empirical model of the Baltic Sea reveals the importance of social dynamics for ecological regime shifts.

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Lade, Steven J; Niiranen, Susa; Hentati-Sundberg, Jonas; Blenckner, Thorsten; Boonstra, Wiebren J; Orach, Kirill; Quaas, Martin F; Österblom, Henrik; Schlüter, Maja

2015-09-01

Regime shifts triggered by human activities and environmental changes have led to significant ecological and socioeconomic consequences in marine and terrestrial ecosystems worldwide. Ecological processes and feedbacks associated with regime shifts have received considerable attention, but human individual and collective behavior is rarely treated as an integrated component of such shifts. Here, we used generalized modeling to develop a coupled social-ecological model that integrated rich social and ecological data to investigate the role of social dynamics in the 1980s Baltic Sea cod boom and collapse. We showed that psychological, economic, and regulatory aspects of fisher decision making, in addition to ecological interactions, contributed both to the temporary persistence of the cod boom and to its subsequent collapse. These features of the social-ecological system also would have limited the effectiveness of stronger fishery regulations. Our results provide quantitative, empirical evidence that incorporating social dynamics into models of natural resources is critical for understanding how resources can be managed sustainably. We also show that generalized modeling, which is well-suited to collaborative model development and does not require detailed specification of causal relationships between system variables, can help tackle the complexities involved in creating and analyzing social-ecological models.

Studying the complexity of change: toward an analytical framework for understanding deliberate social-ecological transformations

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Michele-Lee Moore

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Faced with numerous seemingly intractable social and environmental challenges, many scholars and practitioners are increasingly interested in understanding how to actively engage and transform the existing systems holding such problems in place. Although a variety of analytical models have emerged in recent years, most emphasize either the social or ecological elements of such transformations rather than their coupled nature. To address this, first we have presented a definition of the core elements of a social-ecological system (SES that could potentially be altered in a transformation. Second, we drew on insights about transformation from three branches of literature focused on radical change, i.e., social movements, socio-technical transitions, and social innovation, and gave consideration to the similarities and differences with the current studies by resilience scholars. Drawing on these findings, we have proposed a framework that outlines the process and phases of transformative change in an SES. Future research will be able to utilize the framework as a tool for analyzing the alteration of social-ecological feedbacks, identifying critical barriers and leverage points and assessing the outcome of social-ecological transformations.

Assessment of ecological, economic and social impacts of grain for ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

In order to noticeably and systematically assess ecological, economic and social effects of the grain for green project on county level, this study investigated the benefits of carbon sequestration to the soil of farmland-converted forestland (in 0 to 20 cm soil depth), the change in household income structure and social ...

Responding to the Ecological Crisis: Transformative Pathways for Social Work Education

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Jones, Peter

2010-01-01

The nature and extent of the current ecological crisis raises the question: Does social work have a contribution to make in addressing the social and environmental changes required if we are to move toward a sustainable future? Given the links between the traditional concerns of social work and the emerging concerns of environmental and ecological…

Spatial-temporal analysis of dengue deaths: identifying social vulnerabilities

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Maria do Socorro da Silva

Full Text Available Abstract: INTRODUCTION Currently, dengue fever, chikungunya fever, and zika virus represent serious public health issues in Brazil, despite efforts to control the vector, the Aedes aegypti mosquito. METHODS: This was a descriptive and ecological study of dengue deaths occurring from 2002 to 2013 in São Luis, Maranhão, Brazil. Geoprocessing software was used to draw maps, linking the geo-referenced deaths with urban/social data at census tract level. RESULTS: There were 74 deaths, concentrated in areas of social vulnerability. CONCLUSIONS: The use of geo-technology tools pointed to a concentration of dengue deaths in specific intra-urban areas.

Characterisation of representative building typologies for social housing projects in Brazil and its energy performance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Triana, Maria Andrea; Lamberts, Roberto; Sassi, Paola

2015-01-01

In Brazil the housing deficit is around 5.5 million houses. To address this need, the government created a programme called “My house, My life”. The main subsidies of the programme are for families earning up to three times the minimum wage. In order to formulate strategies for more energy efficiency buildings, it is necessary to understand the thermal and energy performance of what is being built. This article defines representative projects for typologies being built in the Brazilian social housing sector through the analysis of 108 projects considering two groups of income levels and investigates the thermal and energy performance of the representative projects in relation to the Regulation for Energy Efficiency Labelling of Residential Buildings in Brazil for two bioclimatic zones. Five representative building models were defined. Considering the most common features found on the sample, the study suggests the importance of addresing energy efficiency measures on the sector since current building techniques for social housing shows a tendency towards a low performance in relation to the thermal and energy performance criteria of the Energy Labelling especially for lower income projects. This provides a basis for future policy and allows for more in depth studies within the sector. - Highlights: • Characterisation of representative typologies built for social housing in Brazil. • More recurrent building physics characteristics considered. • Energy efficiency and thermal performance of Brazilian social housing analysed. • Regulation for Energy Efficiency Labelling of Residential Buildings in Brazil used for analysis.

Operationalizing safe operating space for regional social-ecological systems.

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Hossain, Md Sarwar; Dearing, John A; Eigenbrod, Felix; Johnson, Fiifi Amoako

2017-04-15

This study makes a first attempt to operationalize the safe operating space concept at a regional scale by considering the complex dynamics (e.g. non-linearity, feedbacks, and interactions) within a systems dynamic model (SD). We employ the model to explore eight 'what if' scenarios based on well-known challenges (e.g. climate change) and current policy debates (e.g. subsidy withdrawal). The findings show that the social-ecological system in the Bangladesh delta may move beyond a safe operating space when a withdrawal of a 50% subsidy for agriculture is combined with the effects of a 2°C temperature increase and sea level rise. Further reductions in upstream river discharge in the Ganges would push the system towards a dangerous zone once a 3.5°C temperature increase was reached. The social-ecological system in Bangladesh delta may be operated within a safe space by: 1) managing feedback (e.g. by reducing production costs) and the slow biophysical variables (e.g. temperature, rainfall) to increase the long-term resilience, 2) negotiating for transboundary water resources, and 3) revising global policies (e.g. withdrawal of subsidy) that negatively impact at regional scales. This study demonstrates how the concepts of tipping points, limits to adaptations, and boundaries for sustainable development may be defined in real world social-ecological systems. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Social-Ecological System in Seagrass Ecosystem Management at Kotania Bay Waters, Western Seram, Indonesia

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Wawo, Mintje

2017-10-01

The concept of the Social-Ecological System (SES) of the coastal region, can be found in the seagrass ecosystem in the Kotania Bay Waters. Seagrass ecosystem as one of the productive ecosystem is part of an ecological system that can influence and influenced social system, in this case by people living around the seagrass ecosystem. This aim to estimating the socio-ecological vulnerability system of the seagrass ecosystem in the Kotania Bay Waters, the Linkage Matrix is used (de Chazal et al., 2008). This linkage matrix was created to determine the perception and understanding of the community on the ecosystem services provided by the seagrass ecosystem through the appraisal of various stakeholders. The results show that social values are rooted in the public perception of ecosystem goods and services, which are rarely considered. The ecological and economic value of natural resources is increasingly being used to determine the priority areas in the planning and management of coastal areas. The social value that exists in natural resources is highly recognized in conservation.

Nutritional ecology beyond the individual: a conceptual framework for integrating nutrition and social interactions.

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Lihoreau, Mathieu; Buhl, Jerome; Charleston, Michael A; Sword, Gregory A; Raubenheimer, David; Simpson, Stephen J

2015-03-01

Over recent years, modelling approaches from nutritional ecology (known as Nutritional Geometry) have been increasingly used to describe how animals and some other organisms select foods and eat them in appropriate amounts in order to maintain a balanced nutritional state maximising fitness. These nutritional strategies profoundly affect the physiology, behaviour and performance of individuals, which in turn impact their social interactions within groups and societies. Here, we present a conceptual framework to study the role of nutrition as a major ecological factor influencing the development and maintenance of social life. We first illustrate some of the mechanisms by which nutritional differences among individuals mediate social interactions in a broad range of species and ecological contexts. We then explain how studying individual- and collective-level nutrition in a common conceptual framework derived from Nutritional Geometry can bring new fundamental insights into the mechanisms and evolution of social interactions, using a combination of simulation models and manipulative experiments. © 2015 The Authors. Ecology Letters published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd and CNRS.

Social-ecological dynamics of the small scale fisheries in Sundarban Mangrove Forest, Bangladesh

OpenAIRE

Mohammad Mojibul Hoque Mozumder; Md. Mostafa Shamsuzzaman; Md. Rashed-Un-Nabi; Ehsanul Karim

2018-01-01

The Sundarban Mangrove Forest (SMF) is an intricate ecosystem containing the most varied and profuse natural resources of Bangladesh. This study presents empirical research, based on primary and secondary data, regarding the social-ecological system (SES), social-ecological dynamics, different stakeholders and relevant management policies of small-scale or artisanal fisheries such as the SMF; showing how, despite extensive diversification, the livelihood activities of the artisanal fishers in...

A guideline to improve qualitative social science publishing in ecology and conservation journals

OpenAIRE

Katie Moon; Tom D. Brewer; Stephanie R. Januchowski-Hartley; Vanessa M. Adams; Deborah A. Blackman

2016-01-01

A rise in qualitative social science manuscripts published in ecology and conservation journals speaks to the growing awareness of the importance of the human dimension in maintaining and improving Earth's ecosystems. Given the rise in the quantity of qualitative social science research published in ecology and conservation journals, it is worthwhile quantifying the extent to which this research is meeting established criteria for research design, conduct, and interpretation. Through a compre...

Using a social-ecological systems perspective to understand tourism and landscape interactions in coastal areas

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Heslinga, Jasper; Groote, Peter D.; Vanclay, Francis

2017-01-01

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to look at the potential synergies between tourism and landscapes and examine the potential contribution of tourism to build social-ecological resilience in the Dutch Wadden. Design/methodology/approach The authors reveal how a social-ecological systems

STUDY OF SOCIAL-ECOLOGICAL PROBLEMS IN THE CITIES

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T. A. Vorobyova

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Intensive urban and economic development leads to changes in functional planning of the territory. Comprehensive study of the existing use and ecology of the urban environment is necessary for making decisions on urban space optimization. This study can detect the negative effects of human impact and solve social and economic problems within the city. The socio-ecological assessment of the urban area within the developing zone carried out on the ground of the GIS, developed and compiled by the authors. The database of GIS consists of six blocks, including cartographic and attribute information with characteristics of the environment, functional planning and socio-demographic features of the territory.

Achieving pregnancy safely for HIV-serodiscordant couples: a social ecological approach.

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Saleem, Haneefa T; Narasimhan, Manjulaa; Denison, Julie A; Kennedy, Caitlin E

2017-03-08

The recognition and fulfilment of the sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) of all individuals and couples affected by HIV, including HIV-serodiscordant couples, requires intervention strategies aimed at achieving safe and healthy pregnancies and preventing undesired pregnancies. Reducing risk of horizontal and vertical transmission and addressing HIV-related infertility are key components of such interventions. In this commentary, we present challenges and opportunities for achieving safe pregnancies for serodiscordant couples through a social ecological lens. At the individual level, knowledge (e.g. of HIV status, assisted reproductive technologies) and skills (e.g. adhering to antiretroviral therapy or pre-exposure prophylaxis) are important. At the couple level, communication between partners around HIV status disclosure, fertility desires and safer pregnancy is required. Within the structural domain, social norms, stigma and discrimination from families, community and social networks influence individual and couple experiences. The availability and quality of safer conception and fertility support services within the healthcare system remains essential, including training for healthcare providers and strengthening integration of SRHR and HIV services. Policies, legislation and funding can improve access to SRHR services. A social ecological framework allows us to examine interactions between levels and how interventions at multiple levels can better support HIV-serodiscordant couples to achieve safe pregnancies. Strategies to achieve safer pregnancies should consider interrelated challenges at different levels of a social ecological framework. Interventions across multiple levels, implemented concurrently, have the potential to maximize impact and ensure the full SRHR of HIV-serodiscordant couples.

Social-ecological outcomes in recreational fisheries: The interaction of lakeshore development and stocking

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Ziegler, Jacob P.; Golebie, Elizabeth J.; Jones, Stuart E.; Weidel, Brian C.; Solomon, Christopher T.

2017-01-01

Many ecosystems continue to experience rapid transformations due to processes like land use change and resource extraction. A systems approach to maintaining natural resources focuses on how interactions and feedbacks among components of complex social‐ecological systems generate social and ecological outcomes. In recreational fisheries, residential shoreline development and fish stocking are two widespread human behaviors that influence fisheries, yet emergent social‐ecological outcomes from these potentially interacting behaviors remain under explored. We applied a social‐ecological systems framework using a simulation model and empirical data to determine whether lakeshore development is likely to promote stocking through its adverse effects on coarse woody habitat and thereby also on survival of juvenile and adult fish. We demonstrate that high lakeshore development is likely to generate dependency of the ecosystem on the social system, in the form of stocking. Further, lakeshore development can interact with social‐ecological processes to create deficits for state‐level governments, which threatens the ability to fund further ecosystem subsidies. Our results highlight the value of a social‐ecological framework for maintaining ecosystem services like recreational fisheries.

A new species and records of Anacroneuria (Plecoptera: Perlidae) from the Ecological Station, Wenceslau Guimarães, State of Bahia, Brazil.

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Almeida, Lucas Henrique DE; Duarte, Tácio

2017-03-28

We studied specimens of the perlid genus Anacroneuria collected at the Ecological Station, Wenceslau Guimarães, State of Bahia, Brazil. A list of Anacroneuria species is provided including a description of a new species, A. patioba n. sp., and a new record is given for A. paprockii Novaes & Bispo, 2014.

A Carbon-Neutral California: Social Ecology and Prospects for 2050 GHG Reduction

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Stephen M. Wheeler

2017-10-01

Full Text Available How might a large jurisdiction approach carbon neutrality by 2050, and what initiatives might increase the chances of success? This article explores these questions using California as a case study. Current trends as well as multiple modeling studies show that existing policy directions for the state will not be sufficient. Additional initiatives appear needed to accelerate adoption of electric vehicles, reduce driving, reach 100 percent renewable electricity, convert existing buildings to zero-net-carbon status, change diet, and reduce consumption. The state’s social ecology does not currently support such changes. Consequently, planners and other professionals need to consider strategic actions to change social ecology as well as climate policy. Potential steps to do this include raising the price of carbon; revising the state’s tax system so as to increase public sector capacity; developing a stronger framework of incentives, mandates, and technical support between levels of government; and expanding educational and social marketing programs aimed at behavior change. A main implication of this analysis is that in many contexts worldwide sustainability planners should consider action on both policy and social ecology levels to maximize chances of success.

Feeding ecology of Lutjanus analis (Teleostei: Lutjanidae from Abrolhos Bank, Eastern Brazil

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Matheus Oliveira Freitas

Full Text Available Diet and feeding ecology of the mutton snapper Lutjanus analis were investigated in the Abrolhos Bank, Eastern Brazil, the largest and richest coral reefs in the South Atlantic, where about 270 species of reef and shore fishes occur. To evaluate seasonal and ontogenetic shifts in the diet, specimens of L. analis were obtained through a fish monitoring program in four cities in southern Bahia State, from June 2005 to March 2007. Stomachs from 85 mutton snappers that ranged in size from 18.1 to 74.0 cm TL were examined. Prey were identified to the lowest possible taxon and assessed by the frequency of occurrence and volumetric methods. Variations in volume prey consumption were evaluated using non-metric multi-dimensional scaling ordination, analysis of similarity, and similarity percentage methods. Significant differences in diet composition among size classes were registered, whereas non significant differences between seasons were observed. Considering size-classes, food items consumption showed important variations: juveniles (50.1 cm TL consumed basically fish, mostly Anguiliformes. Lutjanus analis is an important generalist reef predator, with a broad array of food resources and ontogenetic changes in the diet. This snapper species plays an important role on the trophic ecology of the Abrolhos Bank coral reefs.

Building social capital in healthcare organizations: thinking ecologically for safer care.

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Hofmeyer, Anne; Marck, Patricia B

2008-01-01

Research on patient safety and health human resources, 2 critical issues for 21st century healthcare, converges on similar findings. Specifically, it is apparent that along with the patients, families, and communities we serve, nurses and other healthcare professionals navigate a volatile health care system where persistent restructuring, market pressures, and workforce instability present ongoing threats to the delivery of safer care. Drawing from the fields of nursing, healthcare ethics, health systems management, and ecological restoration, we outline the role of social capital for organizational integrity, healthy workplace cultures, sustainable resource management, improved nurse retention, effective knowledge translation, and safer patient care. Nursing leaders can use ecological thinking to build the vital resource of social capital by taking concrete steps to commit the necessary human and material resources to: (1) forge relations to foster bonding, bridging and linking social capital; (2) build solidarity and trust; (3) foster collective action and cooperation; (4) strengthen communication and knowledge exchange; and (5) create capacity for social cohesion and inclusion.

Contributing to Sustainability Education of East Asian University Students through a Field Trip Experience: A Social-Ecological Perspective

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Tae Kyung Yoon

2016-10-01

Full Text Available This study reports the effects of a field trip environmental education program with a social-ecological perspective on the experience and learning of university students from China, Japan, South Korea and Vietnam. The students visited Jeju Island, the Saemangeum Sea Dike, the Demilitarized Zone and Seoul, South Korea. Their experiences and learning about social-ecological interactions were analyzed using the new environmental paradigm test, an evaluation questionnaire, group presentations and individual reports. Across demographic characteristics, the participants believed the program fairly presented the concept of social-ecological systems. Some developed new ideas of social-ecological systems through interpreting, transforming and contextualizing their field trip experience based on prior knowledge bases; others compared the sites to case studies. They preferred the sites where social-ecological issues were clearly presented by well-preserved landscapes, successful environmental management or environmental conflict. The results show the need for an advanced multi-dimensional methodology to evaluate students’ learning through constructive processes. The program design of this study from planning to field trip and evaluation, the field site design in which regional site resources were organized in a social-ecological context and the analysis of participants’ learning and experiences could contribute to attempts to couple the social-ecological perspective with the practice of sustainability and environmental education in field trip design.

Corruption, political culture and negative social capital in Brazil

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Marcello Baquero

2015-08-01

Full Text Available One of the problems in strengthening Brazilian democracy has been the endurance of continued corruption on the part of state officials. The result has been the institutionalization of a political culture, which shows a growing alienation, and apathy of citizens regarding politics. This behavior has its origins in citizens´ perception that the state and public authorities cannot be trusted producing an inertial democracy with low stocks of social capital. The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between corruption practices by state authorities and the structuring of a defective political culture in Brazil. The working hypothesis is that serious cases of institutionalized corruption are possible due to invisible social ties created among public authorities, producing social capital of a negative nature, which constraints the effective advancements in Brazilian democracy.

Experimental platforms for behavioral experiments on social-ecological systems

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Marco A. Janssen

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Recently, there has been an increased interest in using behavioral experiments to study hypotheses on the governance of social-ecological systems. A diversity of software tools are used to implement such experiments. We evaluated various publicly available platforms that could be used in research and education on the governance of social-ecological systems. The aims of the various platforms are distinct, and this is noticeable in the differences in their user-friendliness and their adaptability to novel research questions. The more easily accessible platforms are useful for prototyping experiments and for educational purposes to illustrate theoretical concepts. To advance novel research aims, more elaborate programming experience is required to either implement an experiment from scratch or adjust existing experimental software. There is no ideal platform best suited for all possible use cases, but we have provided a menu of options and their associated trade-offs.

Notes on the influence of Carlos Nelson Coutinho on Social Work in Brazil

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Mabile Caetano Cazela

2017-06-01

Full Text Available The paper reports some results of a research study conducted for the master’s thesis in Social Work entitled Fundamental ethical principles of Social Work in Brazil: a study on the influence of Carlos Nelson Coutinho. It is based on bibliographic and field research, and it identifies and recognizes the influence of Coutinho on Social Work, as well as the intellectual contribution of Social Workers that are members of the Code of Ethics Revision Committee.

Correlation between pesticide use in agriculture and adverse birth outcomes in Brazil: an ecological study.

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de Siqueira, Marília Teixeira; Braga, Cynthia; Cabral-Filho, José Eulálio; Augusto, Lia Giraldo da Silva; Figueiroa, José Natal; Souza, Ariani Impieri

2010-06-01

This ecological study analyzed the association between pesticide use and prematurity, low weight and congenital abnormality at birth, infant death by congenital abnormality, and fetal death in Brazil in 2001. Simple linear regression analysis has determined a positive association between pesticide use and prematurity, low birth weight, and congenital abnormality. The association between pesticide use and low birth weight (p = 0.045) and, congenital abnormality (p = 0.004) and infant death rate by congenital abnormality (p = 0.039) remained after the adjustment made by the proportion of pregnant women with a low number of prenatal care visits.

Social Environmental Eeterminants and Health: Rural Brazil versus Brazil Urban.

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Rackynelly Alves SARMENTO

2015-10-01

Full Text Available The rural population lives in socioeconomic inequality conditions motivated by several problems, including an insufficient sewage systems and water supply, these, sometimes, most responsibles by the appearance of waterborne diseases that contribute to the rise of child mortality and other problems. Rural areas in Brazil are defined by opposition and exclusion in urban areas. This definition is arbitrary and physical-geographic, not considering the social and economic processes involving the territories. This study purposed to verify, by means of sociodemographic aspects, environmental sanitation and main grievances/diseases importance for public health of the population from forest field and water, if the most rural municipalities (MMR are more precarious than the more urban (MMU. To this end, was carried out a descriptive study based on secondary sources (Atlas of Human Development in Brazil, IBGE census, PNAD and Sinan. Among the results, it follows that the rural population identified by IBGE boils down to 15.6% of Brazil’s population. In 29% of the municipalities, the population living in rural areas exceeds the city. The higher frequencies from IDMH very low are for MMR, while the higher frequency from IDMH very high and high are for MMU. In health, the MMR also exhibit deficiency. It was observed high incidence rates of diseases related to poor conditions of sanitation. From these results, it was identified a more precarious health profile in MMR when compared to MMU.

The problem of spatial fit in social-ecological systems: detecting mismatches between ecological connectivity and land management in an urban region

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Arvid Bergsten

2014-12-01

Full Text Available The problem of institutional fit in social-ecological systems has been empirically documented and conceptually discussed for decades, yet there is a shortage of approaches to systematically and quantitatively examine the level of fit. We address this gap, focusing on spatial fit in an urban and peri-urban regional landscape. Such landscapes typically exhibit significant fragmentation of remnant habitats, which can limit critical species dispersal. This may have detrimental effects on species persistence and ecosystem functioning if land use is planned without consideration of the spatial patterns of fragmentation. Managing habitat fragmentation is particularly challenging when the scale of fragmentation reaches beyond the control of single managers, thereby requiring different actors to coordinate their activities to address the problem at the appropriate scale. We present a research approach that maps patterns of collaborations between actors who manage different parts of a landscape, and then relates these patterns to structures of ecological connectivity. We applied our approach to evaluate the fit between a collaborative wetland management network comprising all 26 municipalities in the Stockholm County in Sweden and an ecologically defined network of dispersed but ecologically interconnected wetlands. Many wetlands in this landscape are either intersected by the boundary between two or more municipalities, or are located close to such boundaries, which implies a degree of ecological interconnectedness and a need for intermunicipal coordination related to wetland management across boundaries. We first estimated the level of ecological connectivity between wetlands in neighboring municipalities, and then used this estimate to elaborate the level of social-ecological fit vis-à-vis intermunicipal collaboration. We found that the level of fit was generally weak. Also, we identified critical misalignments of ecological connectivity and

The dynamic of urban and protected areas at Balai Raja Wildlife Reserve, Riau, Indonesia: a social ecology approach

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Suwondo; Darmadi; Yunus, M.

2018-01-01

The development process has resulted in deforestation. A comprehensive study is needed to obtain an objective solution by integrating the ecological dimension and human dimension. This study was conducted within Balai Raja Wildlife Reserve (BRWR), Bengkalis Regency, Riau Province, Indonesia. We used the social-ecological systems (SES) approach based on local characteristics, categorized into ecological status, social status and actors. Each factoris ranked using Multi-Dimensional Scaling (MDS).BRWR sustainability levels are in moderate condition. The ecological dimension is in a less sustainable state, with leverage: (1) forest conversion; (2) local ecological knowledge; (3) high conservation value. The social dimension is in a less sustainable state, with leverage: (1) community empowerment; (2) social conflict; (3) participation in landscape management. Dimensions actors are on a fairly sustainable status, with leverage: (1) institutional interaction; (2) stakeholder’s commitment; (3) law enforcement. We recommend strengthening community empowerment, local ecological knowledge, interaction, and stakeholder commitment

Geography as destiny? Social and ecological resilience in rangelands of the American southwest

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Background/Question/Methods: Social-ecological systems perspectives focus on the reciprocal relationships between human and natural ecosystem elements and how these interactions determine human well-being, ecological state change, and land use change. In the arid southwestern US, which is dominated...

Resilient Social Relationships and Collaboration in the Management of Social-Ecological Systems

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Abraham B. Nkhata

2008-06-01

Full Text Available This paper proposes and articulates a social relationships perspective of collaboration in the management of social-ecological systems (SESs. It provides a conceptual premise for understanding the dynamics of long-term social relationships that underlie collaborative processes. We argue that a resilience approach offers a better perspective for the study of change in long-term relationships. A conceptual framework based on the theories of resilience and social relationships is developed for analyzing the evolution of collaborative schemes. The essence of the framework is to facilitate understanding and building of resilient social relationships for effective collaboration through interpreting and managing relational change. We suggest that an analysis of resilient social relationships requires an understanding of the complexity and extent of relational change. The elements of a behavioral approach to relationships theory are discussed as a foundation for resilient social relationships. By incorporating the models of Holling (1995 and Cousins (2002 into a behavioral approach to relationships theory, the framework we propose can be used to determine the potential for change based on the amount of relational capital and the degree of relational connectedness in long-term social relationships.

Short-rotation eucalypt plantations in Brazil: Social and environmental issues

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Couto, L. [Universidade Federal de Vicosa, Minas Gerais (Brasil). Dept. de Engenharia Florestal; Betters, D.R. [Colorado State Univ., Fort Collins, CO (United States). Dept. of Forest Sciences

1995-02-01

This report presents an overview of the historical and current legislative, social, and environmental aspects of the establishment of large-scale eucalypt plantations in Brazil. The report consolidates the vast experience and knowledge relating to these forest plantation systems and highlights lessons learned and new trends. The overview should prove useful to those interested in comparing or beginning similar endeavors.

Local ecological knowledge of artisanal fishermen in southern Bahia, Brazil, about trophic interactions of sharks

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Márcio Luiz Vargas Barbosa Filho

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Despite the serious threats that affect shark species living along the central coast of Brazil, knowledge about the life history of these animals is still scarce. The present study describes the knowledge and perceptions of fishermen from southern Bahia, Brazil, on the trophic interactions of sharks. The objective of this work was to generate information that contributes to a better understanding of the life history of sharks from this poorly known region. In 2012, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 65 fishermen, with over 15 years of experience, about fisheries and aspects of shark feeding behavior. The study found that the participants have comprehensive ethno-ecological knowledge about shark feeding habits, describing 39 types of items as components of the diets of these animals. They are also able to recognize the favored items in the diet of each ethnospecies of shark. Similar studies about shark feeding habits along the Brazilian coast should be developed. This will generate more detailed knowledge and/or new scientific hypotheses about the interspecific relationships of these predators and their prey.

The Next Generation of Scientists: Examining the Experiences of Graduate Students in Network-Level Social-Ecological Science

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Michele Romolini

2013-09-01

Full Text Available By integrating the research and resources of hundreds of scientists from dozens of institutions, network-level science is fast becoming one scientific model of choice to address complex problems. In the pursuit to confront pressing environmental issues such as climate change, many scientists, practitioners, policy makers, and institutions are promoting network-level research that integrates the social and ecological sciences. To understand how this scientific trend is unfolding among rising scientists, we examined how graduate students experienced one such emergent social-ecological research initiative, Integrated Science for Society and Environment, within the large-scale, geographically distributed Long Term Ecological Research (LTER Network. Through workshops, surveys, and interviews, we found that graduate students faced challenges in how they conceptualized and practiced social-ecological research within the LTER Network. We have presented these conceptual challenges at three scales: the individual/project, the LTER site, and the LTER Network. The level of student engagement with and knowledge of the LTER Network was varied, and students faced different institutional, cultural, and logistic barriers to practicing social-ecological research. These types of challenges are unlikely to be unique to LTER graduate students; thus, our findings are relevant to other scientific networks implementing new social-ecological research initiatives.

Defining acceptable levels for ecological indicators: an approach for considering social values.

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Smyth, Robyn L; Watzin, Mary C; Manning, Robert E

2007-03-01

Ecological indicators can facilitate an adaptive management approach, but only if acceptable levels for those indicators have been defined so that the data collected can be interpreted. Because acceptable levels are an expression of the desired state of the ecosystem, the process of establishing acceptable levels should incorporate not just ecological understanding but also societal values. The goal of this research was to explore an approach for defining acceptable levels of ecological indicators that explicitly considers social perspectives and values. We used a set of eight indicators that were related to issues of concern in the Lake Champlain Basin. Our approach was based on normative theory. Using a stakeholder survey, we measured respondent normative evaluations of varying levels of our indicators. Aggregated social norm curves were used to determine the level at which indicator values shifted from acceptable to unacceptable conditions. For seven of the eight indicators, clear preferences were interpretable from these norm curves. For example, closures of public beaches because of bacterial contamination and days of intense algae bloom went from acceptable to unacceptable at 7-10 days in a summer season. Survey respondents also indicated that the number of fish caught from Lake Champlain that could be safely consumed each month was unacceptably low and the number of streams draining into the lake that were impaired by storm water was unacceptably high. If indicators that translate ecological conditions into social consequences are carefully selected, we believe the normative approach has considerable merit for defining acceptable levels of valued ecological system components.

Contact structure, mobility, environmental impact and behaviour: the importance of social forces to infectious disease dynamics and disease ecology.

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Arthur, Ronan F; Gurley, Emily S; Salje, Henrik; Bloomfield, Laura S P; Jones, James H

2017-05-05

Human factors, including contact structure, movement, impact on the environment and patterns of behaviour, can have significant influence on the emergence of novel infectious diseases and the transmission and amplification of established ones. As anthropogenic climate change alters natural systems and global economic forces drive land-use and land-cover change, it becomes increasingly important to understand both the ecological and social factors that impact infectious disease outcomes for human populations. While the field of disease ecology explicitly studies the ecological aspects of infectious disease transmission, the effects of the social context on zoonotic pathogen spillover and subsequent human-to-human transmission are comparatively neglected in the literature. The social sciences encompass a variety of disciplines and frameworks for understanding infectious diseases; however, here we focus on four primary areas of social systems that quantitatively and qualitatively contribute to infectious diseases as social-ecological systems. These areas are social mixing and structure, space and mobility, geography and environmental impact, and behaviour and behaviour change. Incorporation of these social factors requires empirical studies for parametrization, phenomena characterization and integrated theoretical modelling of social-ecological interactions. The social-ecological system that dictates infectious disease dynamics is a complex system rich in interacting variables with dynamically significant heterogeneous properties. Future discussions about infectious disease spillover and transmission in human populations need to address the social context that affects particular disease systems by identifying and measuring qualitatively important drivers.This article is part of the themed issue 'Opening the black box: re-examining the ecology and evolution of parasite transmission'. © 2017 The Author(s).

Social Interface Model: Theorizing Ecological Post-Delivery Processes for Intervention Effects.

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Pettigrew, Jonathan; Segrott, Jeremy; Ray, Colter D; Littlecott, Hannah

2018-01-03

Successful prevention programs depend on a complex interplay among aspects of the intervention, the participant, the specific intervention setting, and the broader set of contexts with which a participant interacts. There is a need to theorize what happens as participants bring intervention ideas and behaviors into other life-contexts, and theory has not yet specified how social interactions about interventions may influence outcomes. To address this gap, we use an ecological perspective to develop the social interface model. This paper presents the key components of the model and its potential to aid the design and implementation of prevention interventions. The model is predicated on the idea that intervention message effectiveness depends not only on message aspects but also on the participants' adoption and adaptation of the message vis-à-vis their social ecology. The model depicts processes by which intervention messages are received and enacted by participants through social processes occurring within and between relevant microsystems. Mesosystem interfaces (negligible interface, transference, co-dependence, and interdependence) can facilitate or detract from intervention effects. The social interface model advances prevention science by theorizing that practitioners can create better quality interventions by planning for what occurs after interventions are delivered.

Farmers' assessment of the social and ecological values of land uses in central highland Ethiopia.

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Duguma, Lalisa Alemayehu; Hager, Herbert

2011-05-01

Often in land use evaluations, especially those in developing countries, only the financial aspect receives serious attention, while the social and ecological values are overlooked. This study compared the social and ecological values of four land use types (small-scale woodlot [SSW], boundary tree and shrub planting [BTP], homestead tree and shrub growing [HTG] and cereal farming [CF]) by a criteria-based scoring approach using a bao game. The impacts of local wealth status and proximity to a forest on the value the community renders to the land use types were also assessed. The value comparison, assessed by relative scoring, was accompanied by farmer's explanations to reveal the existing local knowledge about land use values. It was found that HTG ≥ SSW > BTP > CF for both social and ecological values. Though this trend applies for the medium and rich households, the poor ones chose SSW as the most valuable. With increasing distance from a forest, the social and ecological values of land uses increased. The accompanying scoring justifications indicated the existence of in-depth ecological knowledge, which conform to contemporary scientific reports. Generally, this study showed that social and ecological values, besides financial values, strongly influence farmer's decision in implementing various practices related to the land use types. Thus, such values are worth considering for a holistic understanding of the diverse benefits of land uses. Finally, the strong preference for tree and shrub-based land use types is a good opportunity for enhancing tree and shrub growing to minimize the major environmental problems (e.g., soil degradation, wood shortage and deforestation) in the central highlands of Ethiopia.

Farmers' Assessment of the Social and Ecological Values of Land Uses in Central Highland Ethiopia

Science.gov (United States)

Duguma, Lalisa Alemayehu; Hager, Herbert

2011-05-01

Often in land use evaluations, especially those in developing countries, only the financial aspect receives serious attention, while the social and ecological values are overlooked. This study compared the social and ecological values of four land use types (small-scale woodlot [SSW], boundary tree and shrub planting [BTP], homestead tree and shrub growing [HTG] and cereal farming [CF]) by a criteria-based scoring approach using a bao game. The impacts of local wealth status and proximity to a forest on the value the community renders to the land use types were also assessed. The value comparison, assessed by relative scoring, was accompanied by farmer's explanations to reveal the existing local knowledge about land use values. It was found that HTG ≥ SSW > BTP > CF for both social and ecological values. Though this trend applies for the medium and rich households, the poor ones chose SSW as the most valuable. With increasing distance from a forest, the social and ecological values of land uses increased. The accompanying scoring justifications indicated the existence of in-depth ecological knowledge, which conform to contemporary scientific reports. Generally, this study showed that social and ecological values, besides financial values, strongly influence farmer's decision in implementing various practices related to the land use types. Thus, such values are worth considering for a holistic understanding of the diverse benefits of land uses. Finally, the strong preference for tree and shrub-based land use types is a good opportunity for enhancing tree and shrub growing to minimize the major environmental problems (e.g., soil degradation, wood shortage and deforestation) in the central highlands of Ethiopia.

Social protection and people with disabilities in Brazil.

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Costa, Nilson do Rosário; Marcelino, Miguel Abud; Duarte, Cristina Maria Rabelais; Uhr, Deborah

2016-10-01

The article analyzes the social protection policy for people with disabilities in Brazil. It describes the patterns of demand and eligibility for Continued Benefit of Social Assistance (Benefício de Prestação Continuada - BPC) in the 1996-2014 period. The article argues that BPC is a direct result of the social pact achieved by the Brazilian Federal Constitution of 1988. BPC is a social assistance benefit consisting in an unconditional and monthly transference of the equivalent of a minimum wage, to poor people with deficiency and elders with more than 65 years. Disabled person eligibility depends on means-test, and social and medical evaluation by public bureaucracy. The research strategy was based on time series, and cross-sectional data collection and analysis. Dummy qualitative variables were also used to describe the pattern of demand and eligibility. The article demonstrates that BPC has provided income to disabled and elder people. However, systematic barriers were identified to disabled people's access to BPC. The work suggests that the pattern of refusal could be associated to a means testing application by street-level-bureaucracy. In this sense, the work draws attention to the necessary revision of street-level-bureaucracy tools and procedures to increase BPC positive discrimination.

Rural Mental Health Ecology: A Framework for Engaging with Mental Health Social Capital in Rural Communities.

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Wilson, Rhonda L; Wilson, G Glenn; Usher, Kim

2015-09-01

The mental health of people in rural communities is influenced by the robustness of the mental health ecosystem within each community. Theoretical approaches such as social ecology and social capital are useful when applied to the practical context of promoting environmental conditions which maximise mental health helping capital to enhance resilience and reduce vulnerably as a buffer for mental illness. This paper explores the ecological conditions that affect the mental health and illness of people in rural communities. It proposes a new mental health social ecology framework that makes full use of the locally available unique social capital that is sufficiently flexible to facilitate mental health helping capital best suited to mental health service delivery for rural people in an Australian context.

Urbanism, Ecology and Sustainable development: The social production of the spaces

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nogueira D, O.A.

1998-01-01

A review over social concepts as urbanism, ecology and production and their interrelationship are exposed. The importance over theoretical themes as sustainable development, and politics and spaces also are presented. Different problems that involve the urbanism as extension, services to provide, social fragmentation, planning, infrastructures, administration, rest areas, violence, commercial areas, neighborhood, architecture and impacts of immigrants are described

A practical procedure for assessing resilience of social-ecological system using the System Dynamics Approach

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Newton Paulo Bueno

2009-12-01

Full Text Available While growing attention has been paid to the idea of resilience of social-ecological systems, it seems that there still are a number of gaps to bridge before we could really use this concept for practical purposes. The main problem is that the most of the works in the field are unclear on how to unequivocally measure the degree of resilience of particular social-ecological systems. In this paper, we suggest to be possible identifying the loss of resilience of social-ecological systems as a process of loop dominance shift. In order to illustrate the argument, we use a very stylized system dynamics model for irrigation systems developed by scholars associated to the Workshop in Political Theory and Policy Analysis at Indiana University.

Culture and the Immune System: Cultural Consonance in Social Support and C-reactive Protein in Urban Brazil.

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Dressler, William W; Balieiro, Mauro C; Ribeiro, Rosane P; Dos Santos, José Ernesto

2016-06-01

In this article, we examine the distribution of a marker of immune system stimulation-C-reactive protein-in urban Brazil. Social relationships are associated with immunostimulation, and we argue that cultural dimensions of social support, assessed by cultural consonance, are important in this process. Cultural consonance is the degree to which individuals, in their own beliefs and behaviors, approximate shared cultural models. A measure of cultural consonance in social support, based on a cultural consensus analysis regarding sources and patterns of social support in Brazil, was developed. In a survey of 258 persons, the association of cultural consonance in social support and C-reactive protein was examined, controlling for age, sex, body mass index, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, depressive symptoms, and a social network index. Lower cultural consonance in social support was associated with higher C-reactive protein. Implications of these results for future research are discussed. © 2016 by the American Anthropological Association.

The European Water Framework Directive: How Ecological Assumptions Frame Technical and Social Change

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Patrick Steyaert

2007-06-01

Full Text Available The European Water Framework Directive (WFD is built upon significant cognitive developments in the field of ecological science but also encourages active involvement of all interested parties in its implementation. The coexistence in the same policy text of both substantive and procedural approaches to policy development stimulated this research as did our concerns about the implications of substantive ecological visions within the WFD policy for promoting, or not, social learning processes through participatory designs. We have used a qualitative analysis of the WFD text which shows the ecological dimension of the WFD dedicates its quasi-exclusive attention to a particular current of thought in ecosystems science focusing on ecosystems status and stability and considering human activities as disturbance factors. This particular worldview is juxtaposed within the WFD with a more utilitarian one that gives rise to many policy exemptions without changing the general underlying ecological model. We discuss these policy statements in the light of the tension between substantive and procedural policy developments. We argue that the dominant substantive approach of the WFD, comprising particular ecological assumptions built upon "compositionalism," seems to be contradictory with its espoused intention of involving the public. We discuss that current of thought in regard to more functionalist thinking and adaptive management, which offers greater opportunities for social learning, i.e., place a set of interdependent stakeholders in an intersubjective position in which they operate a "social construction" of water problems through the co-production of knowledge.

Ecological Momentary Assessment of social functioning in schizophrenia: impact of performance appraisals and affect on social interactions.

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Granholm, Eric; Ben-Zeev, Dror; Fulford, Daniel; Swendsen, Joel

2013-04-01

Research concerning the complex interplay between factors that contribute to poor social functioning in schizophrenia has been hampered by limitations of traditional measures, most notably the ecological validity and accuracy of retrospective self-report and interview measures. Computerized Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMAc) permits the real-time assessment of relationships between daily life experiences, thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. In the current study, EMAc was used to record daily social interactions, subjective performance appraisals of these interactions (e.g., "I succeeded/failed"; "I was liked/rejected"), and affect in 145 individuals with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder. Participants completed electronic questionnaires on a personal digital assistant (PDA) four times per day for one week. Time-lagged multilevel modeling of the data revealed that more positive interaction appraisals at any point in a day were associated with greater positive affect which, in turn, was a strong predictor of more social interactions over subsequent hours. Social functioning, therefore, was linked to positive performance beliefs about social interactions that were associated with greater positive affect. The findings suggest a useful treatment target for cognitive behavioral therapy and other psychosocial interventions that can be used to challenge defeatist beliefs and increase positive affect to enhance social functioning in schizophrenia. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Towards a Political Ecology of Education: The Educational Politics of Scale in Southern Pará, Brazil

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Meek, David

2015-01-01

Social movements have initiated both academic programs and disciplines. I present ethnographic data that I gathered during 17 months of fieldwork with the Brazilian Landless Workers' Movement (MST) in southeastern Pará, Brazil, to explore the MST's role in creating agroecological education opportunities. My analysis highlights three factors in…

Social-ecological dynamics of the small scale fisheries in Sundarban Mangrove Forest, Bangladesh

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Mohammad Mojibul Hoque Mozumder

2018-01-01

Full Text Available The Sundarban Mangrove Forest (SMF is an intricate ecosystem containing the most varied and profuse natural resources of Bangladesh. This study presents empirical research, based on primary and secondary data, regarding the social-ecological system (SES, social-ecological dynamics, different stakeholders and relevant management policies of small-scale or artisanal fisheries such as the SMF; showing how, despite extensive diversification, the livelihood activities of the artisanal fishers in the SMF all depend on the forest itself. Regardless of this critical importance of mangroves, however, deforestation continues due to immature death of mangroves, illegal logging, increased salinity, natural disasters and significant household consumption of mangrove wood by local people. As the mangroves are destroyed fish stocks, and other fishery resources are reduced, leading to moves of desperation among those whose livelihood has traditionally been fishing. The present study also considers several risks and shock factors in the fishers' livelihood: attacks by wild animals (especially tigers and local bandits, illness, natural disasters, river bank erosion, and the cost of paying off corrupt officials. The artisanal fishers of the SMF have adopted different strategies for coping with these problems: developing partnerships, violating the fisheries management laws and regulations, migrating, placing greater responsibility on women, and bartering fishing knowledge and information. This study shows how the social component (human, the ecological component (mangrove resources and the interphase aspects (local ecological knowledge, stakeholder's interest, and money lenders or middle man roles of the SMF as an SES are linked in mutual interaction. It furthermore considers how the social-ecological dynamics of the SMF have negative impacts on artisanal fishermen's livelihoods. Hence there is an urgency to update existing policies and management issues for the

Organ Donation in Brazil: Analysis of Governmental Campaigns Under the Perspective of Social Marketing

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Leonardo Benedito Oliveira Rezende

2015-09-01

Full Text Available The Focus on Social Marketing: An analysis of the governmental campaigns about donation of organs in Brazil. Currently in Brazil the demand of organ donation is higher than the offer of them. Although the relevant legislation, which is identified in the country is a high demand of people waiting for a compatible organ donor and , on the other hand, a low supply of possible potential donors. Before this situation, the following research has as an objective to analyze the perspective of donors and potential organ donors in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil concerning social marketing strategies used by the government. To do so, a research in quantitative and qualitative approach was done. The data in the quantitative part was collected directly through a survey done with 412 individuals and for the qualitative part, 23 semi-structured interviews with people directly involved in the process of organ donation were held. The results indicate that one of the main factors which interfere negatively in the intention of donating organs is related to safety matters. It emphasizes, still, a low perception concerning the efficiency of social marketing campaigns towards organ donation. Yet, according to the interviewees , such campaigns should merge calls negative and positive in order to provide individuals in addition to the emotional awareness , emotional or cognitive imbalances.

Assessing the Role of Free-Roaming Horses in a Social-Ecological System

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Bhattacharyya, Jonaki; Murphy, Stephen D.

2015-08-01

Management actions concerning free-roaming horses attract controversy in many areas. In the Chilcotin region of British Columbia, Canada, social and cultural values influence debates about management of free-roaming horses and perceptions of their ecological impacts. A dearth of current, empirical research on the role and impacts of horses in local ecosystems results in management decisions being informed largely by studies from other ecoregions and locations, which may not accurately represent local ecological, social, cultural, and economic influences. We initiated the first socio-ecological study of horse sub-populations, their grazing habitat, and past management approaches affecting current conditions in the ?Elegesi Qayuse Wild Horse Preserve in Xeni Gwet'in (Tsilhqot'in) First Nations' territory. This exploratory study used mixed methods including a review of literature and unpublished data, assessment of vegetation in core grazing habitat, and exploration of local ecological and cultural knowledge and perceptions. Plant community composition and abundance in core grazing habitat of the Wild Horse Preserve are consistent with a structurally sound ecosystem. Socio-cultural factors are important for managers to consider in effective decision-making concerning horse populations.

Ecologic, Economic, and Social Considerations for Rangeland Sustainability: An Integrated Conceptual Framework

Science.gov (United States)

Daniel W. McCollum; H. Theodore Jr. Heintz; Aaron J. Harp; John A. Tanaka; Gary R. Evans; David Radloff; Louis E. Swanson; William E. III Fox; Michael G. Sherm Karl; John E. Mitchell

2006-01-01

Use and sustainability of rangelands are inherently linked to the health and sustainability of the land. They are also inherently linked to the social and economic infrastructures that complement and support those rangelands and rangeland uses. Ecological systems and processes provide the biological interactions underlying ecosystem health and viability. Social and...

The Development of Wisdom: A Social Ecological Approach.

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Igarashi, Heidi; Levenson, Michael R; Aldwin, Carolyn M

2018-02-07

This study examined the development of wisdom within the context of difficult life events (DLEs), and the importance of individuals and their social environments in this process of growth. Social support has long been studied in adulthood, yet less is known about the ways social transactions can promote wisdom. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with men (n = 14) and women (n = 36), ages 56-91 years (M = 71.71; SD = 8.8) who described a DLE and how they coped with it. The analysis was guided by constructivist grounded theory. DLEs included those from childhood through later life. When personal meaning was disrupted by adversity, the social environment played a key role in facilitating new perspectives that corresponded with aspects of wisdom: self-knowledge, compassion, comfort with uncertainty, and accepting complexity. Wisdom is often studied as an individual characteristic, but this study highlighted the relevance of a social ecological perspective to understanding how wisdom development is also facilitated through social transactions. © The Author(s) 2018. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Gerontological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Diversity and aspects of the ecology of social wasps (Vespidae, Polistinae in Central Amazonian "terra firme" forest

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Alexandre Somavilla

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Diversity and aspects of the ecology of social wasps (Vespidae, Polistinae in Central Amazonian "terra firme" forest. The knowledge of social wasp richness and biology in the Amazonian region is considered insufficient. Although the Amazonas state is the largest in the region, until now only two brief surveys were conducted there. Considering that the systematic inventory of an area is the first step towards its conservation and wise use, this study presents faunal data on social wasp diversity in a 25 km² area of "terra firme" (upland forest at the Ducke Reserve, Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil. Wasps were collected in the understory, following a protocol of three collectors walking along 60 trails 1,000 m in extension for 16 days between August and October 2010. Methods used were active search of individuals with entomological nets and nest collecting. Fifty-eight species of social wasps, allocated in 13 genera, were recorded; 67% of the collected species belong to Polybia, Agelaia and Mischocyttarus; other genera were represented by only four species or less. The most frequent species in active searches were Agelaia fulvofasciata (DeGeer, 1773, Agelaia testacea (Fabricius, 1804 and Angiopolybia pallens (Lepeletier, 1836. Twelve species were collected in nests. Prior to this study, 65 Polistinae species were deposited at the INPA Collection. Collecting in the study grid, an area not previously sampled for wasps, resulted in an increase of 25% species, and species richness was 86. According to the results, there is evidence that the diversity of social wasps at the Ducke Reserve is even higher, making it one of the richest areas in the Brazilian Amazonia.

Social ecology of resilience and Sumud of Palestinians.

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Marie, Mohammad; Hannigan, Ben; Jones, Aled

2018-01-01

The aim of this article is to provide an overview of theoretical perspectives and practical research knowledge in relation to 'resilience', the resilience of Palestinians in particular and the related concept of 'Sumud'. 'Sumud' is a Palestinian idea that is interwoven with ideas of personal and collective resilience and steadfastness. It is also a socio-political concept and refers to ways of surviving in the context of occupation, chronic adversity, lack of resources and limited infrastructure. The concept of 'resilience' has deep roots, going back at least to the 10th century when Arabic scholars suggested strategies to cope with life adversity. In Europe, research into resilience extends back to the 1800s. The understanding of resilience has developed over four overlapping waves. These focus on individual traits, protective factors, ecological assets and (in the current wave) social ecological factors. The current wave of resilience research focuses on the contribution of cultural contextualisation and is an approach that is discussed in this article, which draws on Arabic and English language literature located through a search of multiple databases (CINAHL, British Nursing Index, ASSIA, MEDLINE, PsycINFO and EMBASE). Findings suggest that 'Sumud' is linked to the surrounding cultural context and can be thought of as an innovative, social ecological, approach to promoting resilience. We show that resilience is a prerequisite to 'Sumud', meaning that the individual has to be resilient in order to stay and not to leave their place, position or community. We close by pressing the case for studies which investigate resilience especially in underdeveloped countries such as Palestine (occupied Palestinian territories), and which reveal how resilience is embedded in pre-existing cultural contexts.

The Burden of Disaster: Part I. Challenges and Opportunities Within a Child’s Social Ecology

OpenAIRE

Noffsinger, Mary A.; Pfefferbaum, Betty; Pfefferbaum, Rose L.; Sherrieb, Kathleen; Norris, Fran H.

2012-01-01

Child development and adaptation are best understood as biological and psychological individual processes occurring within the context of interconnecting groups, systems, and communities which, along with family, constitute the child’s social ecology. This first of two articles describes the challenges and opportunities within a child’s social ecology, consisting of Micro-, Meso-, Exo-, and Macrosystems. The parent-child relationship, the most salient Microsystem influence in children’s lives...

[Social responsibility argument for the tobacco industry in Brazil].

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Cavalcante, Tânia; Carvalho, Aline de Mesquita; Rangel, Erica Cavalcanti

2006-01-01

The issue of "corporate social responsibility" has been one of great importance and concern in the world and has received different names, such as social responsibility, corporate citizenship, sustainable development and corporate ethics. Today, more than ever, it has been necessary for governments, as well as the diverse representatives of "organized civil society," to act in accordance with the concept of sustainable development. This implies an understanding that preservation of the environment, health and education is related to economic productivity; it means an understanding that healthy populations are essential to the reduction of poverty, as well as economic growth and sustainable development. The various positive experiences in Brazil in confronting the tobacco industry's strategies to undermine national tobacco control efforts are due to the existence of a wide network that has played a fundamental role in social control with respect to both the monitoring of public policies that control tobacco and tobacco industry strategies.

Environmental and Social Accounting for Brazil

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lenzen, M.; Schaeffer, R.

2004-01-01

An environmentally extended Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) has been constructed for Brazil for the first time. We review in detail previous studies in this field, describe the construction, structure and data sources of the Brazilian SAM, and demonstrate the effect of system closure. Examining a range of type-I and type-II multipliers, we show that incomes generated by final consumption are highly skewed towards rich households, but energy requirements and carbon emissions are higher for the consumption of the poor. A significant negative correlation exists between employment and income on one hand, and energy requirements and carbon emissions on the other, while a significant positive correlation exists between imports, and energy and carbon. These correlations demonstrate that there is scope for policies that pursue imports substitution and reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions whilst increasing employment and income

Connecting Social Networks with Ecosystem Services for Watershed Governance: a Social-Ecological Network Perspective Highlights the Critical Role of Bridging Organizations

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Kaitlyn J. Rathwell

2012-06-01

Full Text Available In many densely settled agricultural watersheds, water quality is a point of conflict between amenity and agricultural activities because of the varied demands and impacts on shared water resources. Successful governance of these watersheds requires coordination among different activities. Recent research has highlighted the role that social networks between management entities can play to facilitate cross-scale interaction in watershed governance. For example, bridging organizations can be positioned in social networks to bridge local initiatives done by single municipalities across whole watersheds. To better understand the role of social networks in social-ecological system dynamics, we combine a social network analysis of the water quality management networks held by local governments with a social-ecological analysis of variation in water management and ecosystem services across the Montérégie, an agricultural landscape near Montréal, Québec, Canada. We analyze municipal water management networks by using one-mode networks to represent direct collaboration between municipalities, and two-mode networks to capture how bridging organizations indirectly connect municipalities. We find that municipalities do not collaborate directly with one another but instead are connected via bridging organizations that span the water quality management network. We also discovered that more connected municipalities engaged in more water management activities. However, bridging organizations preferentially connected with municipalities that used more tourism related ecosystem services rather than those that used more agricultural ecosystem services. Many agricultural municipalities were relatively isolated, despite being the main producers of water quality problems. In combination, these findings suggest that further strengthening the water management network in the Montérégie will contribute to improving water quality in the region. However, such

Promoting biodiversity values of small forest patches in agricultural landscapes: Ecological drivers and social demand.

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Varela, Elsa; Verheyen, Kris; Valdés, Alicia; Soliño, Mario; Jacobsen, Jette B; De Smedt, Pallieter; Ehrmann, Steffen; Gärtner, Stefanie; Górriz, Elena; Decocq, Guillaume

2018-04-01

Small forest patches embedded in agricultural (and peri-urban) landscapes in Western Europe play a key role for biodiversity conservation with a recognized capacity of delivering a wide suite of ecosystem services. Measures aimed to preserve these patches should be both socially desirable and ecologically effective. This study presents a joint ecologic and economic assessment conducted on small forest patches in Flanders (Belgium) and Picardie (N France). In each study region, two contrasted types of agricultural landscapes were selected. Open field (OF) and Bocage (B) landscapes are distinguished by the intensity of their usage and higher connectivity in the B landscapes. The social demand for enhancing biodiversity and forest structure diversity as well as for increasing the forest area at the expenses of agricultural land is estimated through an economic valuation survey. These results are compared with the outcomes of an ecological survey where the influence of structural features of the forest patches on the associated herbaceous diversity is assessed. The ecological and economic surveys show contrasting results; increasing tree species richness is ecologically more important for herbaceous diversity in the patch, but both tree species richness and herbaceous diversity obtain insignificant willingness to pay estimates. Furthermore, although respondents prefer the proposed changes to take place in the region where they live, we find out that social preferences and ecological effectiveness do differ between landscapes that represent different intensities of land use. Dwellers where the landscape is perceived as more "degraded" attach more value to diversity enhancement, suggesting a prioritization of initiatives in these area. In contrast, the ecological analyses show that prioritizing the protection and enhancement of the relatively better-off areas is more ecologically effective. Our study calls for a balance between ecological effectiveness and welfare

Emergence, institutionalization and renewal: Rhythms of adaptive governance in complex social-ecological systems.

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Chaffin, Brian C; Gunderson, Lance H

2016-01-01

Adaptive governance provides the capacity for environmental managers and decision makers to confront variable degrees of uncertainty inherent to complex social-ecological systems. Current theoretical conceptualizations of adaptive governance represent a series of structures and processes best suited for either adapting or transforming existing environmental governance regimes towards forms flexible enough to confront rapid ecological change. As the number of empirical examples of adaptive governance described in the literature grows, the conceptual basis of adaptive governance remains largely under theorized. We argue that reconnecting adaptive governance with foundational concepts of ecological resilience-specifically Panarchy and the adaptive cycle of complex systems-highlights the importance of episodic disturbances and cross-scale interactions in triggering reorganizations in governance. By envisioning the processes of adaptive governance through the lens of Panarchy, scholars and practitioners alike will be better able to identify the emergence of adaptive governance, as well as take advantage of opportunities to institutionalize this type of governance in pursuit of sustainability outcomes. The synergistic analysis of adaptive governance and Panarchy can provide critical insight for analyzing the role of social dynamics during oscillating periods of stability and instability in social-ecological systems. A deeper understanding of the potential for cross-scale interactions to shape adaptive governance regimes may be useful as society faces the challenge of mitigating the impacts of global environmental change. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Vulnerability of social-ecological system to climate change in Mongolia

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Kakinuma, K.; Yanagawa, A.; Sasaki, T.; Kanae, S.

2017-12-01

Coping with future climate changes are one of the most important issues in the world. IPCC (2014) suggested that vulnerability and exposure of social-ecological systems to extreme climatic events (hazard) determine the impact of climate changes. Although the schematic framework is widely accepted, there are high uncertainty of vulnerability of social and ecological systems and it makes difficult to examine it in empirical researches. Our objective is to assess the climate change impact on the social-ecological system in Mongolia. We review researches about trends of climate (Hazard), vegetation, pastoral mobility (Vulnerability) and livestock distribution (Exposure) across Mongolia Climate trends are critical for last several decades and thus hazard may be increasing in Mongolia. Temperature is increasing with high confidence in all regions. Precipitation are slightly decreasing with medium confidence across the country, especially in northern and central regions. Exposure would also be increasing especially in northern, central and western regions, because livestock population are concentrating these regions after 1990. Generally, less productive ecosystems (e.g. few plant productivity and less species richness) are vulnerable to extreme climatic events such as drought. In that sense, southern region may be more vulnerable to climate changes than other regions. However, if we focus on pastoral mobility forms for drought, we get contractive conclusions. Pastoralists in southern region keep mobility to variable and scarce vegetation while pastoralists in northern region less mobile because of stable and much vegetation. Exclusive managements in northern region is able to maximized the number of livestock only under stable precipitation regimes. But at the same time, it is difficult to escape from hazardous areas when it is drought. Thus, in term of rangeland management, northern region would be more vulnerable to increase of drought intensity. Although northern and

Impact of income inequality and other social determinants on suicide rate in Brazil.

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Machado, Daiane Borges; Rasella, Davide; Dos Santos, Darci Neves

2015-01-01

To analyze whether income inequality and other social determinants are associated with suicide rate in Brazil. This study used panel data from all 5,507 Brazilian municipalities from 2000 to 2011. Suicide rates were calculated by sex and standardized by age for each municipality and year. The independent variables of the regression model included the Gini Index, per capita income, percentage of individuals with up to eight years of education, urbanization, average number of residents per household, percentage of divorced people, of Catholics, Pentecostals, and Evangelicals. A multivariable negative binomial regression for panel data with fixed-effects specification was performed. The Gini index was positively associated with suicide rates; the rate ratio (RR) was 1.055 (95% CI: 1.011-1.101). Of the other social determinants, income had a significant negative association with suicide rates (RR: 0.968, 95% CI: 0.948-0.988), whereas a low-level education had a positive association (RR: 1.015, 95% CI: 1.010-1.021). Income inequality represents a community-level risk factor for suicide rates in Brazil. The decrease in income inequality, increase in income per capita, and decrease in the percentage of individuals who did not complete basic studies may have counteracted the increase in suicides in the last decade. Other changes, such as the decrease in the mean residents per household, may have contributed to their increase. Therefore, the implementation of social policies that may improve the population's socioeconomic conditions and reduce income inequality in Brazil, and in other low and middle-income countries, can help to reduce suicide rates.

A Social-Ecological, Process-Oriented Perspective on Political Violence and Child Development.

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Cummings, E Mark; Goeke-Morey, Marcie; Merrilees, Christine E; Taylor, Laura K; Shirlow, Peter A

2014-06-01

Youths' risk for adjustment problems in contexts of political violence is well-documented. However, outcomes vary widely, with many children functioning well. Accordingly, moving beyond further documenting the risk for many negative outcomes associated with living in contexts of political violence, a second generation of research is moving towards identifying the mechanisms and conditions that contribute to children's adjustment. Increasing support is emerging for understanding effects on children in terms of changes in the social contexts in which children live, and in the psychological processes engaged by these social ecologies. Selected themes are considered, including (a) the need to study multiple levels of the social ecology, (b) differentiating between the effects of exposure to contexts of political versus non-political violence, and (c) theories about explanatory processes. Selected research pertinent to these directions is reviewed, including findings from a six-wave longitudinal study on political violence and children in Northern Ireland.

AGRODIESELESPAÇO: SEAL FUEL SOCIAL AND PEASANT AGRICULTURE IN BRAZIL

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José Antonio Lobo dos Santos

2013-12-01

Full Text Available In the context of the national production of new sources of energy from biomass, it is important to study and discuss the process of implementation of the National Program for Production and Use of Biodiesel in Brazil (PNPB and the social productive relationship of the land. Therefore we analyzed how the social fuel seal was formulated in the scope of the PNPB in becoming articulated to foster the creation of ties that brings formation to new affiliations in the production of capital agrochemical financial sectors, the state and the farmers. The Social Fuel Seal has been placed as an instrument of articulation in the process of building productive relationships between farmers and industries producing biodiesel, for example, agents historically antagonistic for land space. This tangled web of sociopolitical relation involves circumstances such as of subordination of income.

Corporate sustainability: a social-ecological research agenda for South African business

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Haywood, LK

2010-01-01

Full Text Available In this paper authors consider the increasingly prominent expectations that business can and will significantly contribute to sustainable development. They use the framework of social-ecological systems, and the principles thereof, as a lens...

Organising a safe space for navigating social-ecological transformations to sustainability

OpenAIRE

Pereira, L.; Karpouzoglou, T.D.; Doshi, S.; Frantzeskaki, N.

2015-01-01

textabstractThe need for developing socially just living conditions for the world’s growing population whilst keeping human societies within a ‘safe operating space’ has become a modern imperative. This requires transformative changes in the dominant social norms, behaviours, governance and management regimes that guide human responses in areas such as urban ecology, public health, resource security (e.g., food, water, energy access), economic development and biodiversity conservation. Howeve...

Social science in the context of the long term ecological research program

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Ted L. Gragson; Morgan Grove

2006-01-01

This special issue of Society and Natural Resources brings the results of long-term ecological research with an explicit social dimension to the attention of the social scientific research community. Contributions are from the Baltimore Ecosystem Study LTER, the Central Arizona-Phoenix LTER, the Coweeta LTER and the Northern Temperate Lakes LTER. The range of practice...

Social vulnerability from a social ecology perspective: a cohort study of older adults from the National Population Health Survey of Canada

Science.gov (United States)

2014-01-01

Background Numerous social factors, generally studied in isolation, have been associated with older adults’ health. Even so, older people’s social circumstances are complex and an approach which embraces this complexity is desirable. Here we investigate many social factors in relation to one another and to survival among older adults using a social ecology perspective to measure social vulnerability among older adults. Methods 2740 adults aged 65 and older were followed for ten years in the Canadian National Population Health Survey (NPHS). Twenty-three individual-level social variables were drawn from the 1994 NPHS and five Enumeration Area (EA)-level variables were abstracted from the 1996 Canadian Census using postal code linkage. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was used to identify dimensions of social vulnerability. All social variables were summed to create a social vulnerability index which was studied in relation to ten-year mortality. Results The PCA was limited by low variance (47%) explained by emergent factors. Seven dimensions of social vulnerability emerged in the most robust, yet limited, model: social support, engagement, living situation, self-esteem, sense of control, relations with others and contextual socio-economic status. These dimensions showed complex inter-relationships and were situated within a social ecology framework, considering spheres of influence from the individual through to group, neighbourhood and broader societal levels. Adjusting for age, sex, and frailty, increasing social vulnerability measured using the cumulative social vulnerability index was associated with increased risk of mortality over ten years in a Cox regression model (HR 1.04, 95% CI:1.01-1.07, p = 0.01). Conclusions Social vulnerability has important independent influence on older adults’ health though relationships between contributing variables are complex and do not lend themselves well to fragmentation into a small number of discrete factors. A

Educating toward Direct Democracy and Ecological Sustainability: Theory of Social Ecology as a Framework for Critical, Democratic, and Community-Based Education

Science.gov (United States)

Holohan, Kevin J.

2012-01-01

The aim of this dissertation project was to explore and extrapolate the work of the left-libertarian social theorist, Murray Bookchin (1921-2006), paying particular attention to his theory of social ecology and to examine its implications for and use as a comprehensive philosophical/theoretical framework for alternative secondary education that…

A social-ecological impact assessment for public lands management: application of a conceptual and methodological framework

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Amanda L. Bentley Brymer

2016-09-01

Full Text Available According to the U.S. National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA, federal action to manipulate habitat for species conservation requires an environmental impact statement, which should integrate natural, physical, economic, and social sciences in planning and decision making. Nonetheless, most impact assessments focus disproportionately on physical or ecological impacts rather than integrating ecological and socioeconomic components. We developed a participatory social-ecological impact assessment (SEIA that addresses the requirements of NEPA and integrates social and ecological concepts for impact assessments. We cooperated with the Bureau of Land Management in Idaho, USA on a project designed to restore habitat for the Greater Sage-Grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus. We employed questionnaires, workshop dialogue, and participatory mapping exercises with stakeholders to identify potential environmental changes and subsequent impacts expected to result from the removal of western juniper (Juniperus occidentalis. Via questionnaires and workshop dialogue, stakeholders identified 46 environmental changes and associated positive or negative impacts to people and communities in Owyhee County, Idaho. Results of the participatory mapping exercises showed that the spatial distribution of social, economic, and ecological values throughout Owyhee County are highly associated with the two main watersheds, wilderness areas, and the historic town of Silver City. Altogether, the SEIA process revealed that perceptions of project scale varied among participants, highlighting the need for specificity about spatial and temporal scales. Overall, the SEIA generated substantial information concerning potential impacts associated with habitat treatments for Greater Sage-Grouse. The SEIA is transferable to other land management and conservation contexts because it supports holistic understanding and framing of connections between humans and ecosystems. By applying

Our Social Roots: How Local Ecology Shapes Our Social Structures

Science.gov (United States)

Mace, Ruth

There is overwhelming evidence that wide-ranging aspects of human biology and human behavior can be considered as adaptations to different subsistence systems. Wider environmental and ecological correlates of behavioral and cultural traits are generally best understood as being mediated by differences in subsistence strategies. Modes of subsistence profoundly influence both human biology, as documented in genetic changes, and human social behavior and cultural norms, such as kinship, marriage, descent, wealth inheritance, and political systems. Thus both cultural and biological factors usually need to be considered together in studies of human evolutionary ecology, combined in specifically defined evolutionary models. Models of cultural adaptation to environmental conditions can be subjected to the same or similar tests that behavioral ecologists have used to seek evidence for adaptive behavior in other species. Phylogenetic comparative methods are proving useful, both for studying co-evolutionary hypotheses (cultural and/or gene-culture co-evolution), and for estimating ancestral states of prehistoric societies. This form of formal cross-cultural comparison is helping to put history back into anthropology, and helping us to understand cultural evolutionary processes at a number of levels.

Studying the neurobiology of human social interaction : Making the case for ecological validity

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hogenelst, Koen; Schoevers, Robert A.; Rot, Marije Aan Het

2015-01-01

With this commentary we make the case for an increased focus on the ecological validity of the measures used to assess aspects of human social functioning. Impairments in social functioning are seen in many types of psychopathology, negatively affecting the lives of psychiatric patients and those

Participatory scenario planning in place-based social-ecological research: insights and experiences from 23 case studies

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Elisa Oteros-Rozas

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Participatory scenario planning (PSP is an increasingly popular tool in place-based environmental research for evaluating alternative futures of social-ecological systems. Although a range of guidelines on PSP methods are available in the scientific and grey literature, there is a need to reflect on existing practices and their appropriate application for different objectives and contexts at the local scale, as well as on their potential perceived outcomes. We contribute to theoretical and empirical frameworks by analyzing how and why researchers assess social-ecological systems using place-based PSP, hence facilitating the appropriate uptake of such scenario tools in the future. We analyzed 23 PSP case studies conducted by the authors in a wide range of social-ecological settings by exploring seven aspects: (1 the context; (2 the original motivations and objectives; (3 the methodological approach; (4 the process; (5 the content of the scenarios; (6 the outputs of the research; and (7 the monitoring and evaluation of the PSP process. This was complemented by a reflection on strengths and weaknesses of using PSP for the place-based social-ecological research. We conclude that the application of PSP, particularly when tailored to shared objectives between local people and researchers, has enriched environmental management and scientific research through building common understanding and fostering learning about future planning of social-ecological systems. However, PSP still requires greater systematic monitoring and evaluation to assess its impact on the promotion of collective action for transitions to sustainability and the adaptation to global environmental change and its challenges.

Feeding ecology of the beach silverside Atherinella blackburni (Atherinopsidae in a tropical sandy beach, Southeastern Brazil

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Júlio Guazzelli Gonzalez

Full Text Available Abstract The feeding ecology of the beach silverside (Atherinella blackburni in the surf zone of a tropical sand beach, located in the southeastern Brazil, was accessed through the gut content analysis of 198 fish. Factors such as fish's size, season and day period were analysed to understand how these variables affect the diet composition of the species. Results show that A. blackburni is a coastal neritic fish with a broad feeding niche. Most recurrent prey were zooplanktonic crustaceans, insects and benthic molluscs, in which Copepoda crustaceans were the dominant dietary item in occurrence and abundance. A. blackburni appears to have a slight ontogenetic shift in its diet, changing from benthic molluscs to crustaceans and insects along its life cycle. The diel activity also reveals to be an important factor to the A. blackburni feeding ecology. The predominant occurrence of small fish during the morning, along with the main preys for this size class, suggests that small individuals use shallower waters as feeding grounds during the morning and, during the night, they move to deeper waters for protection against predators.

Integrating Ecological and Social Ranges of Variability in Conservation of Biodiversity: Past, Present, and Future

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Sally L. Duncan

2010-03-01

Full Text Available Historical range of variability has been proposed as a concept that can be used by forest land managers to guide conservation of ecosystem functions and biodiversity conservation. The role of humans in historical range of variability has remained somewhat murky and unsettled, even though it is clear that humans have been, are, and will continue to be forces of disturbance and recovery in forested landscapes. We attempt to develop concepts that integrate the ecological and social forces affecting landscape variability. Toward that end, we present a conceptual framework that places "range of variability" into a broader context and integrates the ecological and social forces affecting landscapes past, present, and future. We use two terms to aid us in understanding the utility of historical range of variability as a context and future range of variability as a point of comparison: (1 the ecological range of variability is the estimated range of some ecological condition as a function of the biophysical and social forces affecting the area and (2 the social range of variability is the range of an ecological condition that society finds acceptable at a given time. We find it is important to recognize that future range of variability represents a constantly emerging and changing set of conditions, and that the more humans push a system to depart from its historical range of variabiloity domain, the less likely it becomes that historical range of variability processes will prove useful as benchmarks in recovering a system.

Ecological and social dimensions of ecosystem restoration in the Nordic countries

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hagen, Dagmar; Svavarsdottir, Kristin; Nilsson, Christer

2013-01-01

An international overview of the extent and type of ecological restoration can offer new perspectives for understanding, planning, and implementation. The Nordic countries, with a great range of natural conditions but historically similar social and political structures, provide an opportunity...... and among countries, both in the Nordic countries and internationally. An obvious advantage of such cooperation is that a wider range of experiences from different habitats and different socio-economic conditions becomes available and thus provides a more solid basis for developing practical solutions...... to compare restoration approaches and efforts across borders. The aim of this study was to explore variation in ecological restoration using the Nordic countries as an example. We used recent national assessments and expert evaluations of ecological restoration. Restoration efforts differed among countries...

A Corporate Social Responsibility Project to Improve the Democratization of Scientific Education in Brazil

OpenAIRE

Denise Levy

2016-01-01

Nuclear technology is part of our everyday life and its beneficial applications help to improve the quality of our lives. Nevertheless, in Brazil, most often the media and social networks tend to associate radiation to nuclear weapons and major accidents, and there is still great misunderstanding about the peaceful applications of nuclear science. The Educational Portal Radioatividades (Radioactivities) is a corporate social responsibility initiative that takes advantage of the growing impact...

Humans and Seagrasses in East Africa : A social-ecological systems approach

OpenAIRE

de la Torre-Castro, Maricela

2006-01-01

The present study is one of the first attempts to analyze the societal importance of seagrasses (marine flowering plants) from a Natural Resource Management perspective, using a social-ecological systems (SES) approach. The interdisciplinary study takes place in East Africa (Western Indian Ocean, WIO) and includes in-depth studies in Chwaka Bay, Zanzibar, Tanzania. Natural and social sciences methods were used. The results are presented in six articles, showing that seagrass ecosystems are ri...

Impact of income inequality and other social determinants on suicide rate in Brazil.

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Daiane Borges Machado

Full Text Available PURPOSE: To analyze whether income inequality and other social determinants are associated with suicide rate in Brazil. METHOD: This study used panel data from all 5,507 Brazilian municipalities from 2000 to 2011. Suicide rates were calculated by sex and standardized by age for each municipality and year. The independent variables of the regression model included the Gini Index, per capita income, percentage of individuals with up to eight years of education, urbanization, average number of residents per household, percentage of divorced people, of Catholics, Pentecostals, and Evangelicals. A multivariable negative binomial regression for panel data with fixed-effects specification was performed. RESULTS: The Gini index was positively associated with suicide rates; the rate ratio (RR was 1.055 (95% CI: 1.011-1.101. Of the other social determinants, income had a significant negative association with suicide rates (RR: 0.968, 95% CI: 0.948-0.988, whereas a low-level education had a positive association (RR: 1.015, 95% CI: 1.010-1.021. CONCLUSIONS: Income inequality represents a community-level risk factor for suicide rates in Brazil. The decrease in income inequality, increase in income per capita, and decrease in the percentage of individuals who did not complete basic studies may have counteracted the increase in suicides in the last decade. Other changes, such as the decrease in the mean residents per household, may have contributed to their increase. Therefore, the implementation of social policies that may improve the population's socioeconomic conditions and reduce income inequality in Brazil, and in other low and middle-income countries, can help to reduce suicide rates.

Social-ecological enabling conditions for payments for ecosystem services

OpenAIRE

Heidi R. Huber-Stearns; Drew E. Bennett; Stephen Posner; Ryan C. Richards; Jenn Hoyle. Fair; Stella J. M. Cousins; Chelsie L. Romulo

2017-01-01

The concept of "enabling conditions" centers on conditions that facilitate approaches to addressing social and ecological challenges. Although multiple fields have independently addressed the concept of enabling conditions, the literature lacks a shared understanding or integration of concepts. We propose a more synthesized understanding of enabling conditions beyond disciplinary boundaries by focusing on the enabling conditions that influence the implementation of a range of environmental p...

Ecosystem Services are Social-ecological Services in a Traditional Pastoral System: the Case of California's Mediterranean Rangelands

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Lynn Huntsinger

2014-03-01

Full Text Available When attempting to value ecosystem services and support their production, two critical aspects may be neglected. The term "ecosystem services" implies that they are a function of natural processes; yet, human interaction with the environment may be key to the production of many. This can contribute to a misconception that ecosystem service production depends on, or is enhanced by, the coercion or removal of human industry. Second, in programs designed to encourage ecosystem service production and maintenance, too often the inter-relationship of such services with social and ecological processes and drivers at multiple scales is ignored. Thinking of such services as "social-ecological services" can reinforce the importance of human culture, perspectives, and economies to the production of ecosystem services. Using a social-ecological systems perspective, we explore the integral role of human activity and decisions at pasture, ranch, and landscape scales. Just as it does for understanding ecosystems, a hierarchical, multiscaled framework facilitates exploring the complexity of social-ecological systems as producers of ecosystem services, to develop approaches for the conservation of such services. Using California's Mediterranean rangelands as a study area, we suggest that using a multiscaled approach that considers the importance of the differing drivers and processes at each scale and the interactions among scales, and that incorporates social-ecological systems concepts, may help avoid mistakes caused by narrow assumptions about "natural" systems, and a lack of understanding of the need for integrated, multiscaled conservation programs.

Oak conservation and restoration on private forestlands: negotiating a social-ecological landscape.

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Knoot, Tricia G; Schulte, Lisa A; Rickenbach, Mark

2010-01-01

In the midwestern United States, oak (Quercus spp.) forests are considered critical habitat for conserving biodiversity and are a declining resource. Ecological conditions, such as deer herbivory and competition from more mesic broad-leaved deciduous species, have been linked to poor oak regeneration. In the Midwest, where up to 90% of forestland is privately owned, a greater understanding of social dimensions of oak regeneration success is especially critical to designing effective restoration strategies. We sought to determine factors that serve as direct and indirect constraints to oak restoration and identify policy mechanisms that could improve the likelihood for restoration success. We conducted in-depth qualitative interviews with 32 natural resource professionals working in the Midwest Driftless Area. We found that most professionals anticipate that oak will remain only a component of the future forest. Furthermore, they identified the general unwillingness of landowners to adopt oak restoration practices as a primary driving force of regional forest change. The professionals pointed to interdependent ecological and social factors, occurring at various scales (e.g., economic cost of management, deer herbivory, and exurban residential development) as influencing landowner oak restoration decisions. Professionals emphasized the importance of government cost-share programs and long-term personal relationships to securing landowner acceptance of oak restoration practices. However, given finite societal resources, ecologically- and socially-targeted approaches were viewed as potential ways to optimize regional success.

Anthroposphere theses of social and political ecology (for project of Kazakstan's agenda conception on the 21 century)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vasilenko, V.N.

1996-01-01

The main problems, priorities and principles are considered for environmental safety and sustainable development in Kazakstan under the condition of transition period from standpoint of anthroposphere examination of problems of environment and socio-nature interaction. Complex problems include the common methodical aspects of management and required environmental safety and sustainable development aspects: natural and scientific (theses on bio spheric natural history); scientific and technical (theses on engineering ecology); human (theses of human ecology); social (theses of social, political, legal and economical ecology); theses on environmental safety, environmental management and marketing, and others. (author)

Mechanisms to solve the problems of social-ecological adaptation of students of higher school

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Lobanov V.G.

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The purpose: studying of educational opportunities of sports tourism in processes of early social adaptation of students and gender features of ecological knowledge of students of higher education institutions of various profiles. Material and methods. Questioning of students of 2 and 3 courses of agrarian (n=147and medical (n=147 of universities of Saratov age till 21 year in a gender ratio 1:1 is conducted. Results. Low ecological literacy of students of agrarian and medical universities, and also very "vague" ecological outlook is revealed. Gender distinctions in perception of environmental problems have been established. So, girls of medical university are more ecologically competent, than young men. Girls of both higher education institutions are more concerned about an ecological situation on the planet, but in too time a peculiar social and psychological mimicry which was shown in lack of correlation between the correct answers to questions of endoecology and value of a healthy lifestyle and a conduct of life of students was observed. Research has shown the high importance of occupations by physical culture and sport. The way of increase of popularity of tourism as sport is offered. Are given a work experience of section of sports tourism. Conclusion. The received results indicate the need of enhancement of methodology of teaching ecological bases of the higher school taking into account gender features of students.

A guideline to improve qualitative social science publishing in ecology and conservation journals

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Katie Moon

2016-09-01

Full Text Available A rise in qualitative social science manuscripts published in ecology and conservation journals speaks to the growing awareness of the importance of the human dimension in maintaining and improving Earth's ecosystems. Given the rise in the quantity of qualitative social science research published in ecology and conservation journals, it is worthwhile quantifying the extent to which this research is meeting established criteria for research design, conduct, and interpretation. Through a comprehensive review of this literature, we aimed to gather and assess data on the nature and extent of information presented on research design published qualitative research articles, which could be used to judge research quality. Our review was based on 146 studies from across nine ecology and conservation journals. We reviewed and summarized elements of quality that could be used by reviewers and readers to evaluate qualitative research (dependability, credibility, confirmability, and transferability; assessed the prevalence of these elements in research published in ecology and conservation journals; and explored the implications of sound qualitative research reporting for applying research findings. We found that dependability and credibility were reasonably well reported, albeit poorly evolved in relation to critical aspects of qualitative social science such as methodology and triangulation, including reflexivity. Confirmability was, on average, inadequately accounted for, particularly with respect to researchers' ontology, epistemology, or philosophical perspective and their choice of methodology. Transferability was often poorly developed in terms of triangulation methods and the suitability of the sample for answering the research question/s. Based on these findings, we provide a guideline that may be used to evaluate qualitative research presented in ecology and conservation journals to help secure the role of qualitative research and its application

Organising a safe space for navigating social-ecological transformations to sustainability.

Science.gov (United States)

Pereira, Laura; Karpouzoglou, Timothy; Doshi, Samir; Frantzeskaki, Niki

2015-05-28

The need for developing socially just living conditions for the world's growing population whilst keeping human societies within a 'safe operating space' has become a modern imperative. This requires transformative changes in the dominant social norms, behaviours, governance and management regimes that guide human responses in areas such as urban ecology, public health, resource security (e.g., food, water, energy access), economic development and biodiversity conservation. However, such systemic transformations necessitate experimentation in public arenas of exchange and a deepening of processes that can widen multi-stakeholder learning. We argue that there is an emergent potential in bridging the sustainability transitions and resilience approaches to create new scientific capacity that can support large-scale social-ecological transformations (SETs) to sustainability globally, not just in the West. In this article, we elucidate a set of guiding principles for the design of a 'safe space' to encourage stronger interactions between these research areas and others that are relevant to the challenges faced. We envisage new opportunities for transdisciplinary collaboration that will develop an adaptive and evolving community of practice. In particular, we emphasise the great opportunity for engaging with the role of emerging economies in facilitating safe space experimentation.

Interrogating Social Sustainability in the Biofuels Sector in Latin America: Tensions Between Global Standards and Local Experiences in Mexico, Brazil, and Colombia

Science.gov (United States)

Selfa, Theresa; Bain, Carmen; Moreno, Renata; Eastmond, Amarella; Sweitz, Sam; Bailey, Conner; Pereira, Gustavo Simas; Souza, Tatiana; Medeiros, Rodrigo

2015-12-01

Across the Americas, biofuels production systems are diverse due to geographic conditions, historical patterns of land tenure, different land use patterns, government policy frameworks, and relations between the national state and civil society, all of which shape the role that biofuels play in individual nations. Although many national governments throughout the Americas continue to incentivize growth of the biofuels industry, one key challenge for biofuels sustainability has been concern about its social impacts. In this article, we discuss some of the key social issues and tensions related to the recent expansion of biofuels production in Mexico, Colombia, and Brazil. We argue that a process of "simplification" of ecological and cultural diversity has aided the expansion of the biofuels frontier in these countries, but is also undermining their viability. We consider the ability of governments and non-state actors in multi-stakeholder initiatives (MSI) to address social and environmental concerns that affect rural livelihoods as a result of biofuels expansion. We analyze the tensions between global sustainability standards, national level policies for biofuels development, and local level impacts and visions of sustainability. We find that both government and MSI efforts to address sustainability concerns have limited impact, and recommend greater incorporation of local needs and expertise to improve governance.

Interrogating Social Sustainability in the Biofuels Sector in Latin America: Tensions Between Global Standards and Local Experiences in Mexico, Brazil, and Colombia.

Science.gov (United States)

Selfa, Theresa; Bain, Carmen; Moreno, Renata; Eastmond, Amarella; Sweitz, Sam; Bailey, Conner; Pereira, Gustavo Simas; Souza, Tatiana; Medeiros, Rodrigo

2015-12-01

Across the Americas, biofuels production systems are diverse due to geographic conditions, historical patterns of land tenure, different land use patterns, government policy frameworks, and relations between the national state and civil society, all of which shape the role that biofuels play in individual nations. Although many national governments throughout the Americas continue to incentivize growth of the biofuels industry, one key challenge for biofuels sustainability has been concern about its social impacts. In this article, we discuss some of the key social issues and tensions related to the recent expansion of biofuels production in Mexico, Colombia, and Brazil. We argue that a process of "simplification" of ecological and cultural diversity has aided the expansion of the biofuels frontier in these countries, but is also undermining their viability. We consider the ability of governments and non-state actors in multi-stakeholder initiatives (MSI) to address social and environmental concerns that affect rural livelihoods as a result of biofuels expansion. We analyze the tensions between global sustainability standards, national level policies for biofuels development, and local level impacts and visions of sustainability. We find that both government and MSI efforts to address sustainability concerns have limited impact, and recommend greater incorporation of local needs and expertise to improve governance.

Heterospecific sociality of birds on beaches from southeastern Brazil

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César Cestari

2009-12-01

Full Text Available Studies on the sociality of heterospecific assemblages of birds have promoted a greater understanding of the types of interactions and survivorship between coexisting species. This study verified the group compositions in bird assemblages and analyzed the sociality of migratory and resident species on sandy beaches of southeastern Brazil. A transect was established on the median portion of beaches and all the groups of bird species (monospecific, heterospecific and solitary individuals were registered four days per month from November 2006 to April 2007. The sociality of each species was calculated by its frequency in heterospecific groups, its proportional number of contacts with other species in heterospecific groups, and the number of species that it associated with. Semipalmated Sandpiper Calidris pusilla (Linnaeus, 1766 and Semipalmated Plover Charadrius semipalmatus Bonaparte, 1825 (both migratory had the highest degree of sociality and did not show a preference to associate with either residents or migratory species. Sanderling Calidris alba (Pallas, 1764 (migratory occupied the third position in the sociality rank and associated with migratory species frequently. Southern Caracara Carara plancus (Miller, 1777 and Black Vulture Coragyps atratus (Beschstein, 1793 (both resident were uniquely found among heterospecific groups with necrophagous and resident species. Kelp Gull Larus dominicanus Lichtenstein, 1823 (resident associated more frequently with resident species. The sociality in assemblages of birds may promote advantages such as an increased collective awareness in dangerous situations and indication of sites with abundant food sources.

Examining ecological validity in social interaction: problems of visual fidelity, gaze, and social potential.

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Reader, Arran T; Holmes, Nicholas P

2016-01-01

Social interaction is an essential part of the human experience, and much work has been done to study it. However, several common approaches to examining social interactions in psychological research may inadvertently either unnaturally constrain the observed behaviour by causing it to deviate from naturalistic performance, or introduce unwanted sources of variance. In particular, these sources are the differences between naturalistic and experimental behaviour that occur from changes in visual fidelity (quality of the observed stimuli), gaze (whether it is controlled for in the stimuli), and social potential (potential for the stimuli to provide actual interaction). We expand on these possible sources of extraneous variance and why they may be important. We review the ways in which experimenters have developed novel designs to remove these sources of extraneous variance. New experimental designs using a 'two-person' approach are argued to be one of the most effective ways to develop more ecologically valid measures of social interaction, and we suggest that future work on social interaction should use these designs wherever possible.

Linking Bayesian and agent-based models to simulate complex social-ecological systems in semi-arid regions

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Aloah J Pope

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Interdependencies of ecologic, hydrologic, and social systems challenge traditional approaches to natural resource management in semi-arid regions. As a complex social-ecological system, water demands in the Sonoran Desert from agricultural and urban users often conflicts with water needs for its ecologically-significant riparian corridors. To explore this system, we developed an agent-based model to simulate complex feedbacks between human decisions and environmental conditions in the Rio Sonora Watershed. Cognitive mapping in conjunction with stakeholder participation produced a Bayesian model of conditional probabilities of local human decision-making processes resulting to changes in water demand. Probabilities created in the Bayesian model were incorporated into the agent-based model, so that each agent had a unique probability to make a positive decision based on its perceived environment at each point in time and space. By using a Bayesian approach, uncertainty in the human decision-making process could be incorporated. The spatially-explicit agent-based model simulated changes in depth-to-groundwater by well pumping based on an agent’s water demand. Changes in depth-to-groundwater feedback to influence agent behavior, as well as determine unique vegetation classes within the riparian corridor. Each vegetation class then provides varying stakeholder-defined quality values of ecosystem services. Using this modeling approach allowed us to examine effects on both the ecological and social system of semi-arid riparian corridors under various scenarios. The insight provided by the model contributes to understanding how specific interventions may alter the complex social-ecological system in the future.

A Typology of Benefit Sharing Arrangements for the Governance of Social-Ecological Systems in Developing Countries

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Bimo Abraham. Nkhata

2012-03-01

Full Text Available This study explores and interprets relevant literature to construct a typology of benefit sharing arrangements for the governance of social-ecological systems in developing countries. The typology comprises three generic categories of benefit sharing arrangements: collaborative, market-oriented, and egalitarian. We contend that the three categories provide a useful basis for exploring and classifying the different societal arrangements required for governance of social-ecological systems. The typology we present is founded on a related set of explicit assumptions that can be used to explore and better understand the linkages among ecosystem services, benefit sharing, and governance. Issues that are strongly related to sustainability in developing countries form the core basis of our assumptions. Our aim is not to write a definitive exposition, but to spark debate and engage ongoing dialogue on governance and benefit sharing in the field of social-ecological systems.

Organic Farming and Social-Ecological Resilience: the Alpine Valleys of Sölktäler, Austria

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Rebecka Milestad

2003-12-01

Full Text Available Farming in the Austrian Alps is small in scale and involves a high degree of manual labor. In the face of structural changes in agriculture, alpine farms are finding it increasingly difficult to remain economically viable. Organic farming presents a promising alternative for alpine farmers because it receives considerable financial support under the Common Agricultural Policy of the European Union. Recent years have seen an increase in the number of organic farms in Austria in general, and in alpine areas in particular. Using data from an empirical study carried out in the alpine area of Sölktäler, Austria, this paper examines the issues of how closely the regulations and principles of organic farming match farmers' perspectives on sustainable agriculture and whether or not organic farming is capable of building social-ecological resilience for local farms. Qualitative interviews and a series of workshops were used to learn about farmers' "desired system state" with regard to their region, disturbances to this system, and their perspectives on organic farming. The desired system in Sölktäler as formulated by the farmers depicts a vivid farming community that manages a diverse traditional agricultural landscape and performs a number of ecological services. The desired system and the principles of organic farming have several aspects in common, and many management practices and features of the social system support social-ecological resilience. The vulnerability of farms increases, however, when farmers must deal with structural changes in agriculture, the erosion of traditional ecological knowledge, and societal transformation. In conclusion, organic farming is a tool that can be used to build social-ecological resilience for Sölktäler farms, because it secures economic funding for the area and makes it possible to sustain environmentally benign practices. What remains is the question of whether the farming community is capable of

The role of social message using norm abstraction level and ecological value orientation to achieve sustainable consumption

Science.gov (United States)

Ekasari, A.

2018-01-01

Pro-environmental behavior is one of human activities to achieve sustainability. In order to encourage people to do so, it needs contribution from marketing discipline using social message. The research aims to investigate the effect of social message framed by norm abstraction level and ecological value orientation on attitude and intention to act pro-environmental behavior in the context of littering. This study implemented a 3 (message framing: biospheric/altruistic/egoistic) × 2 (norm abstraction level : abstract/concrete) between subject experimental design to collect the data. An independent sample t test was used to analyze the data. The results indicate that a social message using concrete norm combined with the three ecological value orientation gains more positive response than the use of abstract norm with the same ecological value orientations. Findings of the research are expected to help government or other institutions to create an appropriate social message in anti littering campaign and motivates people to change their behavior in practicing sustainable consumption.

Individual dispersal delays in a cooperative breeder: Ecological constraints, the benefits of philopatry and the social queue for dominance.

Science.gov (United States)

Nelson-Flower, Martha J; Wiley, Elizabeth M; Flower, Tom P; Ridley, Amanda R

2018-03-20

Delayed dispersal is a key step in the evolution of familial animal societies and cooperative breeding. However, no consensus has been reached on the ecological and social circumstances driving delayed dispersal. Here, we test predictions from the ecological constraints and benefits of philopatry hypotheses as well as the recently proposed dual benefits hypothesis to better understand the evolution of group-living and cooperative breeding. Furthermore, we consider how individual social circumstances within groups affect dispersal decisions. We examine 11 years of life-history information on a wild population of cooperatively breeding southern pied babblers Turdoides bicolor. We investigate the effects of ecological conditions, natal-group membership and individual social context on male and female dispersal delays, disperser survival and acquisition of dominance. Female dispersal decisions are generally unconstrained by ecological or social circumstances. In contrast, males disperse in response to relaxed ecological constraints, decreases in nepotistic tolerance or when low social rank in the queue for dominance decreases their likelihood of gaining a dominant breeding position. Early dispersal by end-of-queue males often leads to a head-of-queue subordinate position in a non-natal group, thereby increasing access to dominant breeding positions. However, males and females remaining in natal groups gain benefits of philopatry via increased survival and, for head-of-queue males, very high likelihood of acquisition of a breeding position. Overall, predictions from the dual benefits hypothesis best describe these results, while some predictions from each of the ecological constraints and benefits of philopatry hypotheses were supported. The benefits of living and working together (collective action benefits) in large stable groups are of central importance in shaping dispersal delays in southern pied babbler societies. In addition, position in the subordinate social

An ecological public health approach to understanding the relationships between sustainable urban environments, public health and social equity.

Science.gov (United States)

Bentley, Michael

2014-09-01

The environmental determinants of public health and social equity present many challenges to a sustainable urbanism-climate change, water shortages and oil dependency to name a few. There are many pathways from urban environments to human health. Numerous links have been described but some underlying mechanisms behind these relationships are less understood. Combining theory and methods is a way of understanding and explaining how the underlying structures of urban environments relate to public health and social equity. This paper proposes a model for an ecological public health, which can be used to explore these relationships. Four principles of an ecological public health-conviviality, equity, sustainability and global responsibility-are used to derive theoretical concepts that can inform ecological public health thinking, which, among other things, provides a way of exploring the underlying mechanisms that link urban environments to public health and social equity. Theories of more-than-human agency inform ways of living together (conviviality) in urban areas. Political ecology links the equity concerns about environmental and social justice. Resilience thinking offers a better way of coming to grips with sustainability. Integrating ecological ethics into public health considers the global consequences of local urban living and thus attends to global responsibility. This way of looking at the relationships between urban environments, public health and social equity answers the call to craft an ecological public health for the twenty-first century by re-imagining public health in a way that acknowledges humans as part of the ecosystem, not separate from it, though not central to it. © The Author (2013). Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Solving problems in social-ecological systems: definition, practice and barriers of transdisciplinary research.

Science.gov (United States)

Angelstam, Per; Andersson, Kjell; Annerstedt, Matilda; Axelsson, Robert; Elbakidze, Marine; Garrido, Pablo; Grahn, Patrik; Jönsson, K Ingemar; Pedersen, Simen; Schlyter, Peter; Skärbäck, Erik; Smith, Mike; Stjernquist, Ingrid

2013-03-01

Translating policies about sustainable development as a social process and sustainability outcomes into the real world of social-ecological systems involves several challenges. Hence, research policies advocate improved innovative problem-solving capacity. One approach is transdisciplinary research that integrates research disciplines, as well as researchers and practitioners. Drawing upon 14 experiences of problem-solving, we used group modeling to map perceived barriers and bridges for researchers' and practitioners' joint knowledge production and learning towards transdisciplinary research. The analysis indicated that the transdisciplinary research process is influenced by (1) the amount of traditional disciplinary formal and informal control, (2) adaptation of project applications to fill the transdisciplinary research agenda, (3) stakeholder participation, and (4) functional team building/development based on self-reflection and experienced leadership. Focusing on implementation of green infrastructure policy as a common denominator for the delivery of ecosystem services and human well-being, we discuss how to diagnose social-ecological systems, and use knowledge production and collaborative learning as treatments.

[Sociology of health, social ecology and media democracy].

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Julesz, Máté

2012-05-27

The correlation of the sociology of health, social ecology and media democracy is demonstrated in the study. In societies of today, the role of the media is unquestionable in disseminating information relating to health and the environment. According to Paragraph (1) of Article XXI of the Hungarian Constitution of 2011, everyone has the right to a healthy environment. An environmentalist media democracy may forward environmental justice, environmental education, and environmentalist economy, etc. All these are required in order to establish a society where the healthy environment is an objective value.

How does network governance affect social-ecological fit across the land-sea interface? An empirical assessment from the Lesser Antilles

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Jeremy Pittman

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Governance across the land-sea interface presents many challenges related to (1 the engagement of diverse actors and systems of knowledge, (2 the coordinated management of shared ecological resources, and (3 the development of mechanisms to address or account for biogeochemical (e.g., nutrient flows and ecological (e.g., species movements interdependencies between marine and terrestrial systems. If left unaddressed, these challenges can lead to multiple problems of social-ecological fit stemming from governance fragmentation or inattention to various components of land-sea systems. Network governance is hypothesized to address these multiple challenges, yet its specific role in affecting social-ecological fit across the land-sea interface is not well understood. We aim to improve this understanding by examining how network governance affects social-ecological fit across the land-sea interface in two empirical case studies from the Lesser Antilles: Dominica and Saint Lucia. We found that network governance plays a clear role in coordinating management of shared resources and providing capacity to address interactions between ecological entities. Yet, its potential role in engaging diverse actors and addressing, specifically, biogeochemical interactions across the land-sea interface has not been fully realized. Our research suggests that network governance is beneficial, but not sufficient, to improve social-ecological fit across the land-sea interface. Strategically leveraging the network processes (e.g., triadic closure leading to the existing governance networks could prove useful in addressing the current deficiencies in the networks. Additionally, the interplay between hierarchical and networked modes of governance appears to be a critical issue in determining social-ecological fit at the land-sea interface.

Sustainability science: accounting for nonlinear dynamics in policy and social-ecological systems

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Resilience is an emergent property of complex systems. Understanding resilience is critical for sustainability science, as linked social-ecological systems and the policy process that governs them are characterized by non-linear dynamics. Non-linear dynamics in these systems mean...

Pyriproxyfen and the microcephaly epidemic in Brazil - an ecological approach to explore the hypothesis of their association

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Maria de Fatima P Militão de Albuquerque

Full Text Available The microcephaly epidemic in Brazil generated intense debate regarding its causality, and one hypothesised cause of this epidemic, now recognised as congenital Zika virus syndrome, was the treatment of drinking water tanks with pyriproxyfen to control Aedes aegypti larvae. We present the results of a geographical analysis of the association between the prevalence of microcephaly confirmed by Fenton growth charts and the type of larvicide used in the municipalities that were home to the mothers of the affected newborns in the metropolitan region of Recife in Pernambuco, the state in Brazil where the epidemic was first detected. The overall prevalence of microcephaly was 82 per 10,000 live births in the three municipalities that used the larvicide Bti (Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis instead of pyriproxyfen, and 69 per 10,000 live births in the eleven municipalities that used pyriproxyfen. The difference was not statistically significant. Our results show that the prevalence of microcephaly was not higher in the areas in which pyriproxyfen was used. In this ecological approach, there was no evidence of a correlation between the use of pyriproxyfen in the municipalities and the microcephaly epidemic.

Social Anxiety and Cannabis Use: An Analysis from Ecological Momentary Assessment

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Buckner, Julia D.; Crosby, Ross D.; Wonderlich, Stephen A.; Schmidt, Norman B.

2011-01-01

Individuals with elevated social anxiety appear especially vulnerable to cannabis-related problems, yet little is known about the antecedents of cannabis-related behaviors among this high-risk population. The present study used ecological momentary assessment (EMA) to examine the relations among social anxiety, cannabis craving, state anxiety, situational variables, and cannabis use in the natural environment during ad-lib cannabis use episodes. Participants were 49 current cannabis users. During the two-week EMA period, social anxiety significantly interacted with cannabis craving to predict cannabis use both cross-sectionally and prospectively. Specifically, individuals with higher social anxiety and craving were most likely to use cannabis. There was a significant social anxiety X state anxiety X others’ use interaction such that when others were using cannabis, those with elevations in both trait social anxiety and state anxiety were the most likely to use cannabis. PMID:22246109

Social and cultural dimensions of hypertension in Brazil: a review

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William W. Dressler

Full Text Available Elevated arterial blood pressure varies substantially in relation to social and cultural variables. Early work on acculturation, socioeconomic status, and blood pressure documented this variation, which could not be explained entirely by conventional factors such as diet, physical activity, or access to medical care. These findings stimulated the development of a model of stress and disease. The stress model emphasizes social and psychological factors that are perceived by individuals to be stressful, as well as factors that help individuals to respond to those stressors. Conventional stress models are, however, problematic because the primary emphasis is on individual perception, with little consideration of the social and cultural context in which stress occurs. This paper describes a complementary model of social and cultural influences on disease risk, placing greater emphasis on how individuals are able to approximate, in their own behaviors, shared cultural models of life, referred to as "cultural consonance". Findings from research in Brazil indicate that the higher an individual's cultural consonance, the lower his or her blood pressure. These results indicate the importance of linking different levels of analysis - the cultural, the individual, and the biological - to understand disease risk.

Social and cultural dimensions of hypertension in Brazil: a review

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Dressler William W.

2000-01-01

Full Text Available Elevated arterial blood pressure varies substantially in relation to social and cultural variables. Early work on acculturation, socioeconomic status, and blood pressure documented this variation, which could not be explained entirely by conventional factors such as diet, physical activity, or access to medical care. These findings stimulated the development of a model of stress and disease. The stress model emphasizes social and psychological factors that are perceived by individuals to be stressful, as well as factors that help individuals to respond to those stressors. Conventional stress models are, however, problematic because the primary emphasis is on individual perception, with little consideration of the social and cultural context in which stress occurs. This paper describes a complementary model of social and cultural influences on disease risk, placing greater emphasis on how individuals are able to approximate, in their own behaviors, shared cultural models of life, referred to as "cultural consonance". Findings from research in Brazil indicate that the higher an individual's cultural consonance, the lower his or her blood pressure. These results indicate the importance of linking different levels of analysis - the cultural, the individual, and the biological - to understand disease risk.

Organising a Safe Space for Navigating Social-Ecological Transformations to Sustainability

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Laura Pereira

2015-05-01

Full Text Available The need for developing socially just living conditions for the world’s growing population whilst keeping human societies within a ‘safe operating space’ has become a modern imperative. This requires transformative changes in the dominant social norms, behaviours, governance and management regimes that guide human responses in areas such as urban ecology, public health, resource security (e.g., food, water, energy access, economic development and biodiversity conservation. However, such systemic transformations necessitate experimentation in public arenas of exchange and a deepening of processes that can widen multi-stakeholder learning. We argue that there is an emergent potential in bridging the sustainability transitions and resilience approaches to create new scientific capacity that can support large-scale social-ecological transformations (SETs to sustainability globally, not just in the West. In this article, we elucidate a set of guiding principles for the design of a ‘safe space’ to encourage stronger interactions between these research areas and others that are relevant to the challenges faced. We envisage new opportunities for transdisciplinary collaboration that will develop an adaptive and evolving community of practice. In particular, we emphasise the great opportunity for engaging with the role of emerging economies in facilitating safe space experimentation.

Organising a Safe Space for Navigating Social-Ecological Transformations to Sustainability

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Pereira, Laura; Karpouzoglou, Timothy; Doshi, Samir; Frantzeskaki, Niki

2015-01-01

The need for developing socially just living conditions for the world’s growing population whilst keeping human societies within a ‘safe operating space’ has become a modern imperative. This requires transformative changes in the dominant social norms, behaviours, governance and management regimes that guide human responses in areas such as urban ecology, public health, resource security (e.g., food, water, energy access), economic development and biodiversity conservation. However, such systemic transformations necessitate experimentation in public arenas of exchange and a deepening of processes that can widen multi-stakeholder learning. We argue that there is an emergent potential in bridging the sustainability transitions and resilience approaches to create new scientific capacity that can support large-scale social-ecological transformations (SETs) to sustainability globally, not just in the West. In this article, we elucidate a set of guiding principles for the design of a ‘safe space’ to encourage stronger interactions between these research areas and others that are relevant to the challenges faced. We envisage new opportunities for transdisciplinary collaboration that will develop an adaptive and evolving community of practice. In particular, we emphasise the great opportunity for engaging with the role of emerging economies in facilitating safe space experimentation. PMID:26030471

Spatial distribution of pregnancy in adolescence and associations with socioeconomic and social responsibility indicators: State of Minas Gerais, Southeast of Brazil.

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Roza, Daiane Leite da; Martinez, Edson Zangiacomi

2015-08-01

To describe associations between pregnancy rates in adolescence and socioeconomic and social responsibility indicators in the municipalities of the State of Minas Gerais, Southeast of Brazil, in the year of 2010. Ecological study using data from the Brazilian Live Birth Information System (SINASC). The percentage of live births to adolescent mothers (LBAM) for each municipality was calculated based on the quotient between number of born alive infants of mothers aged 10-19 years old and total number of live births in the year of 2010. Fully Bayesian models were used to obtain the percentages of LBAM adjusted for spatial effects and to assess possible associations with socioeconomic and social responsibility indicators. The crude percentage of LBAM for the total number of live births in the municipalities of Minas Gerais in 2010 ranged from 0 to 46.4%, with median percentage being 19.6% and the first and third quartiles being 15.6 and 23.1%, respectively. This study has demonstrated a close relationship between adolescent pregnancy and socioeconomic indicators. LBAM percentages were found to be higher in municipalities with low population density, low human development index and other low development indicators. The strong relationship between LBAM percentages and socioeconomic indicators suggests that adolescent pregnancy is more a social than a biological problem. Therefore, programs and actions should go beyond sexual education and information on preventive health methods.

Ecological and social outcomes of a new protected area in Tanzania.

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Hall, Jaclyn M; Burgess, Neil D; Rantala, Salla; Vihemäki, Heini; Jambiya, George; Gereau, Roy E; Makonda, Fortunatus; Njilima, Fadhili; Sumbi, Peter; Kizaji, Adam

2014-12-01

Balancing ecological and social outcomes of conservation actions is recognized in global conservation policy but is challenging in practice. Compensation to land owners or users for foregone assets has been proposed by economists as an efficient way to mitigate negative social impacts of human displacement from protected areas. Joint empirical assessments of the conservation and social impacts of protected area establishment involving compensation payments are scarce. We synthesized social and biological studies related to the establishment of the Derema forest corridor in Tanzania's biodiverse East Usambara Mountains. This lengthy conservation process involved the appropriation of approximately 960 ha of native canopy agroforest and steep slopes for the corridor and monetary compensation to more than 1100 claimants in the surrounding villages. The overarching goals from the outset were to conserve ecological processes while doing no harm to the local communities. We evaluated whether these goals were achieved by analyzing 3 indicators of success: enhancement of forest connectivity, improvement of forest condition, and mitigation of negative impacts on local people's livelihoods. Indicators of forest connectivity and conditions were enhanced through reductions of forest loss and exotic species and increases in native species and canopy closure. Despite great efforts by national and international organizations, the intervention failed to mitigate livelihood losses especially among the poorest people. The Derema case illustrates the challenges of designing and implementing compensation schemes for conservation-related displacement of people. © 2014 Society for Conservation Biology.

Ecological and Social Dimensions of Ecosystem Restoration in the Nordic Countries

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Dagmar Hagen

2013-12-01

Full Text Available An international overview of the extent and type of ecological restoration can offer new perspectives for understanding, planning, and implementation. The Nordic countries, with a great range of natural conditions but historically similar social and political structures, provide an opportunity to compare restoration approaches and efforts across borders. The aim of this study was to explore variation in ecological restoration using the Nordic countries as an example. We used recent national assessments and expert evaluations of ecological restoration. Restoration efforts differed among countries: forest and peatland restoration was most common in Finland, freshwater restoration was most common in Sweden, restoration of natural heathlands and grasslands was most common in Iceland, restoration of natural and semi-cultural heathlands was most common in Norway, and restoration of cultural ecosystems, mainly abandoned agricultural land, was most common in Denmark. Ecological restoration currently does not occur on the Faroe Islands. Economic incentives influence ecological restoration and depend on laws and policies in each country. Our analyses suggest that habitat types determine the methods of ecological restoration, whereas socio-economic drivers are more important for the decisions concerning the timing and location of restoration. To improve the understanding, planning, and implementation of ecological restoration, we advocate increased cooperation and knowledge sharing across disciplines and among countries, both in the Nordic countries and internationally. An obvious advantage of such cooperation is that a wider range of experiences from different habitats and different socio-economic conditions becomes available and thus provides a more solid basis for developing practical solutions for restoration methods and policies.

Social medicine, feminism and the politics of population: From transnational knowledge networks to national social movements in Brazil and Mexico.

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de la Dehesa, Rafael

2018-02-28

This article examines the role of national actors articulated with an explicitly counter-hegemonic transnational knowledge network (TKN) mobilising around social medicine in policy debates on population control and family planning. It focuses primarily on Brazil, using Mexico as a shadow case to highlight salient points of contrast. In doing so, it makes two contributions to larger debates about TKNs. First, it highlights the plural and contested nature of the knowledge production they enact, underscoring contestation around a global reproductive regime that consolidated around family planning. Second, it underscores how the position and relative influence of actors articulated with TKNs is shaped by political and institutional contexts at the national level, producing variable opportunities for the mobilisation of applied knowledge. Reflecting its advocates' embeddedness in larger opposition movements to authoritarian states, social medicine had a greater influence on these debates in Brazil, where synergies with a resurgent feminist movement reinforced a shared insistence on comprehensive women's healthcare and increased the salience of sterilisation abuse on the political agenda.

Economic, ecological, and social performance of conventional and organic broiler production in the Netherlands.

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Bokkers, E A M; de Boer, I J M

2009-09-01

1. In this study, we compared a conventional broiler production system keeping fast growing broilers with an organic broiler production system keeping slow growing broilers in the Netherlands, both managed by one person working a full time year (Full Time Equivalent, FTE). This comparison was based on a quantification of economic, ecological and social indicators. Indicators were quantified using scientific literature and national data sets. 2. The organic system performed better for the economic indicator net farm income per FTE than the conventional system. 3. Regarding ecological indicators, calculations showed a higher on-farm emission of ammonia per kg live weight for the organic system. Moreover, an organic system includes a higher risk for eutrophication per ha due to outdoor access. Emission of green house gasses, use of fossil fuels and use of land required for the production of one kg of live weight is higher for an organic than for a conventional system. This is mainly due to a lower feed conversion in organic production and use of organic feed. 4. The organic system performed better than the conventional system for the social indicators related to animal welfare time spent on walking, footpad lesions, mortality, and sound legs. Regarding the social indicator food safety was found that meat from an organic system contained less antibiotic residues and Salmonella contaminations but more Campylobacter contaminations than meat from a conventional system. 5. Changing from a conventional to an organic broiler production system, therefore, not only affects animal welfare, but also affects economic, ecological and other social issues. In this study, we ran into the situation that some information needed was lacking in literature and quantifications had to be based upon several sources. Therefore, an integrated on-farm assessment is needed, which can be used to develop a broiler production system that is economically profitable, ecologically sound, and

The social ecology of resolving family conflict among West African immigrants in New York: a grounded theory approach.

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Rasmussen, Andrew; Chu, Tracy; Akinsulure-Smith, Adeyinka M; Keatley, Eva

2013-09-01

The current study employs a grounded theory approach to examine West African immigrants' resolution of parent-child conflict and intimate partner conflict. Data from 59 participants present an interactive social ecological framework, where a lack of resolution at one level results in attempts to resolve problems at higher levels. Four levels are identified within West African immigrants' problem solving ecology, each with specific actors in positions of authority: individual/dyadic (parents and spouses), extended family (which includes distant relatives and relatives living in home countries), community leadership (non-family elders and religious leaders), and state authorities. From participants' descriptions of family challenges emerged a picture of a social ecology in flux, with traditional, socially conservative modes of resolving family conflict transposed across migration into the more liberal and state-oriented familial context of the United States. This transposition results in a loss spiral for the traditional social ecology, differentially affecting individual actors within families. Implications for helping professionals working with new immigrant communities include identifying variability in openness to adapting structures that are not working well (e.g., patriarchal protection of abusive husbands) and supporting structures known to be associated with well being (e.g., collective monitoring of youth).

The paraty artisanal fishery (southeastern Brazilian coast: ethnoecology and management of a social-ecological system (SES

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Begossi Alpina

2012-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract This study intends to give recommendations to the management of Paraty fishery in Brazil through an interplay of local and scientific knowledge. In particular, the objectives are the following: 1 to describe the Paraty fishery; 2 to compare the fishermen’s local ecological knowledge with recorded fish landings and previous studies in Paraty; 3 to combine the data on local fishing and on local/Caiçara livelihoods with the SES (social-ecological systems Model. The methods include a systematic survey of fishing in Tarituba and Praia Grande, which are located in the northern end and the central part of the Paraty municipality, respectively. For four days each month, systematic data on catches at landing points were collected, as well as macroscopic gonad analysis data for the fishes Centropomus parallelus and C. undecimalis (snook, robalo, Epinephelus marginatus (grouper, garoupa, Scomberomorus cavalla (King mackerel, cavala, and Lutjanus synagris (Lane snapper, vermelho. Spring and summer are important seasons during which some species reproduce, and the integration of fishing periods for some target species could assist in fishing management through the use of closed seasons. Fishermen could obtain complementary earnings from tourism and from the “defeso system” (closed season including a salary payment to conserve fishing stocks. The SES model facilitates an understanding of the historical context of fishing, its economic importance for local livelihoods, the constraints from conservation measures that affect fishermen, and the management processes that already exist, such as the defeso. If used to integrate fishing with complementary activities (tourism, such a system could improve the responsibility of fishermen regarding the conservation of fish stocks.

Achieving social-ecological fit through bottom-up collaborative governance: an empirical investigation

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Angela M. Guerrero

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Significant benefits can arise from collaborative forms of governance that foster self-organization and flexibility. Likewise, governance systems that fit with the extent and complexity of the system under management are considered essential to our ability to solve environmental problems. However, from an empirical perspective the fundamental question of whether self-organized (bottom-up collaborative forms of governance are able to accomplish adequate fit is unresolved. We used new theory and methodological approaches underpinned by interdisciplinary network analysis to address this gap by investigating three governance challenges that relate to the problem of fit: shared management of ecological resources, management of interconnected ecological resources, and cross-scale management. We first identified a set of social-ecological network configurations that represent the hypothesized ways in which collaborative arrangements can contribute to addressing these challenges. Using social and ecological data from a large-scale biodiversity conservation initiative in Australia, we empirically determined how well the observed patterns of stakeholder interactions reflect these network configurations. We found that stakeholders collaborate to manage individual parcels of native vegetation, but not for the management of interconnected parcels. In addition, our data show that the collaborative arrangements enable management across different scales (local, regional, supraregional. Our study provides empirical support for the ability of collaborative forms of governance to address the problem of fit, but also suggests that in some cases the establishment of bottom-up collaborative arrangements would likely benefit from specific guidance to facilitate the establishment of collaborations that better align with the ways ecological resources are interconnected across the landscape. In our case study region, this would improve the capacity of stakeholders to

Vulnerability of family livestock farming on the Livramento-Rivera border of Brazil and Uruguay: Comparative analysis

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P. D. Waquil

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Social, ecological, and economic sciences have all shown interest in studying the social group called family livestock farmers. The main characteristic of this group, which is present in the Pampa biome in Southern Brazil and Uruguay, is beef cattle production based on family work on small lands, expressing an autonomous way of life which is, however, highly dependent on strong relations with the physical environment and marked by risk aversion. In this study we made a comparative analysis of vulnerability factors of family livestock farming in Brazil and Uruguay. We also compared these social actors’ perceptions of risks, and the strategies built to mitigate threats. A survey was thus carried out and included 16 family livestock farmers’ interviews, eight in each country,near the cities of Santana do Livramento (Brazil and Rivera (Uruguay. Although these cities are next to each other on each side of the border and thus present environmental similarities, we chose them because family farming was not subjected to the same political and economic conditions which might (or might not have influenced farmers’ perceptions and reactions. Results showed that livestock farmers were mainly affected by vulnerabilities arising from external elements such as the climate (e.g. droughts or harsh winters, but also from internal elements (lack of land access and successors. From the family livestock farmers’ standpoint, the highest risks to their production systems and social system reproduction were more related to climate than to price and market variations.

Using the forest, people, fire agent-based social network model to investigate interactions in social-ecological systems

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Paige Fischer; Adam Korejwa; Jennifer Koch; Thomas Spies; Christine Olsen; Eric White; Derric Jacobs

2013-01-01

Wildfire links social and ecological systems in dry-forest landscapes of the United States. The management of these landscapes, however, is bifurcated by two institutional cultures that have different sets of beliefs about wildfire, motivations for managing wildfire risk, and approaches to administering policy. Fire protection, preparedness, and response agencies often...

Preserving and maintaining vital Ecosystem Services: the importance of linking knowledge from Geosciences and social-ecological System analysis

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Finger, David; Petursdottir, Thorunn

2013-04-01

Human kind has always been curios and motivated to understand and quantify environmental processes in order to predict and anticipate the evolution of vital ecosystem services. Even the very first civilizations used empirical correlations to predict outcomes of rains and subsequent harvest efficiencies. Along with the insights into the functioning of ecosystems, humans also became aware that their anthropogenic activities can have positive and negative impact on ecosystem services. In recent years, geosciences have brought forward new sophisticated observations and modeling tools, with the aim to improve predictions of ecological developments. At the same time, the added value of linking ecological factors to the surrounding social structure has received a growing acceptance among scientists. A social-ecological system approach brings in a holistic understanding of how these systems are inevitably interlinked and how their sustainability can be better maintained. We claim that the biggest challenge for geoscience in the coming decades will be to link these two disciplines in order to establish adequate strategies to preserve natural ecosystems and their services, parallel to their utilization. We will present various case studies from more than a decade of research, ranging from water quality in mountain lakes, climate change impacts on water availability and declining fishing yields in freshwaters and discuss how the studies outcomes could be given added value by interpreting them via social-ecological system analysis. For instance, sophisticated field investigations revealed that deep water mixing in lake Issyk-Kul, Kirgizstan, is intensively distributing pollutants in the entire lake. Although fishery is an important sector in the region, the local awareness of the importance of water quality is low. In Switzerland, strict water protection laws led to ologotrophication of alpine lakes, reducing fishing yields. While local fishermen argued that local fishery is

A social-ecological database to advance research on infrastructure development impacts in the Brazilian Amazon.

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Tucker Lima, Joanna M; Valle, Denis; Moretto, Evandro Mateus; Pulice, Sergio Mantovani Paiva; Zuca, Nadia Lucia; Roquetti, Daniel Rondinelli; Beduschi, Liviam Elizabeth Cordeiro; Praia, Amanda Salles; Okamoto, Claudia Parucce Franco; da Silva Carvalhaes, Vinicius Leite; Branco, Evandro Albiach; Barbezani, Bruna; Labandera, Emily; Timpe, Kelsie; Kaplan, David

2016-08-30

Recognized as one of the world's most vital natural and cultural resources, the Amazon faces a wide variety of threats from natural resource and infrastructure development. Within this context, rigorous scientific study of the region's complex social-ecological system is critical to inform and direct decision-making toward more sustainable environmental and social outcomes. Given the Amazon's tightly linked social and ecological components and the scope of potential development impacts, effective study of this system requires an easily accessible resource that provides a broad and reliable data baseline. This paper brings together multiple datasets from diverse disciplines (including human health, socio-economics, environment, hydrology, and energy) to provide investigators with a variety of baseline data to explore the multiple long-term effects of infrastructure development in the Brazilian Amazon.

Seeing the forest for the trees: hybridity and social-ecological symbols, rituals and resilience in postdisaster contexts

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Keith G. Tidball

2014-12-01

Full Text Available The role of community-based natural resources management in the form of "greening" after large scale system shocks and surprises is argued to provide multiple benefits via engagement with living elements of social-ecological systems and subsequent enhanced resilience at multiple scales. The importance of so-called social-ecological symbols, especially the potent hybrid symbols of trees and their handling after a disaster is interrogated. The paper explores the notion of hybridity, and applies it to the hybrid symbol of the tree in postdisaster contexts. The paper briefly highlights three U.S. cases documenting the symbolic roles of trees in a context of significant shock to a social-ecological system: the terrorist attacks on New York City in 2001, the devastating hurricane that struck New Orleans in 2005, and the sudden tornadoes that wreaked havoc upon the small Midwestern city of Joplin, Missouri in 2011.

Ocean Acidification May Aggravate Social-Ecological Trade-Offs in Coastal Fisheries

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Voss, Rudi; Quaas, Martin F.; Schmidt, Jörn O.; Kapaun, Ute

2015-01-01

Ocean Acidification (OA) will influence marine ecosystems by changing species abundance and composition. Major effects are described for calcifying organisms, which are significantly impacted by decreasing pH values. Direct effects on commercially important fish are less well studied. The early life stages of fish populations often lack internal regulatory mechanisms to withstand the effects of abnormal pH. Negative effects can be expected on growth, survival, and recruitment success. Here we study Norwegian coastal cod, one of the few stocks where such a negative effect was experimentally quantified, and develop a framework for coupling experimental data on OA effects to ecological-economic fisheries models. In this paper, we scale the observed physiological responses to the population level by using the experimentally determined mortality rates as part of the stock-recruitment relationship. We then use an ecological-economic optimization model, to explore the potential effect of rising CO2 concentration on ecological (stock size), economic (profits), consumer-related (harvest) and social (employment) indicators, with scenarios ranging from present day conditions up to extreme acidification. Under the assumptions of our model, yields and profits could largely be maintained under moderate OA by adapting future fishing mortality (and related effort) to changes owing to altered pH. This adaptation comes at the costs of reduced stock size and employment, however. Explicitly visualizing these ecological, economic and social tradeoffs will help in defining realistic future objectives. Our results can be generalized to any stressor (or stressor combination), which is decreasing recruitment success. The main findings of an aggravation of trade-offs will remain valid. This seems to be of special relevance for coastal stocks with limited options for migration to avoid unfavorable future conditions and subsequently for coastal fisheries, which are often small scale local

Ocean acidification may aggravate social-ecological trade-offs in coastal fisheries.

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Voss, Rudi; Quaas, Martin F; Schmidt, Jörn O; Kapaun, Ute

2015-01-01

Ocean Acidification (OA) will influence marine ecosystems by changing species abundance and composition. Major effects are described for calcifying organisms, which are significantly impacted by decreasing pH values. Direct effects on commercially important fish are less well studied. The early life stages of fish populations often lack internal regulatory mechanisms to withstand the effects of abnormal pH. Negative effects can be expected on growth, survival, and recruitment success. Here we study Norwegian coastal cod, one of the few stocks where such a negative effect was experimentally quantified, and develop a framework for coupling experimental data on OA effects to ecological-economic fisheries models. In this paper, we scale the observed physiological responses to the population level by using the experimentally determined mortality rates as part of the stock-recruitment relationship. We then use an ecological-economic optimization model, to explore the potential effect of rising CO2 concentration on ecological (stock size), economic (profits), consumer-related (harvest) and social (employment) indicators, with scenarios ranging from present day conditions up to extreme acidification. Under the assumptions of our model, yields and profits could largely be maintained under moderate OA by adapting future fishing mortality (and related effort) to changes owing to altered pH. This adaptation comes at the costs of reduced stock size and employment, however. Explicitly visualizing these ecological, economic and social tradeoffs will help in defining realistic future objectives. Our results can be generalized to any stressor (or stressor combination), which is decreasing recruitment success. The main findings of an aggravation of trade-offs will remain valid. This seems to be of special relevance for coastal stocks with limited options for migration to avoid unfavorable future conditions and subsequently for coastal fisheries, which are often small scale local

Multidimensional assessment of sustainability extractivism of mangrove oyster Crassostrea spp. in the estuary of Cananéia, São Paulo, Brazil.

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Machado, I C; Fagundes, L; Henriques, M B

2015-08-01

This study was carried out with groups of extractivists of mangrove oysters in the estuary of Cananéia, São Paulo State, Brazil, between the years 1999 and 2007 with the objective to evaluate and compare trends in the sustainability of this activity, in a multidimensional and integrated way, in social, economic, ecological, technological and ethical dimensions, using the method RAPFISH. The different groups had distinct trends related to sustainability and the social, technological and ethical dimensions had more influence on trends in sustainability than the ecological and economic dimensions. The group with the best performance in the sustainability assessment was Mandira, due to advances promoted by local social organization. On the other hand, the Porto Cubatão group showed the worst performance, once this is very recent group in the extractivism of oysters. The RAPFISH proved to be a useful tool for data assessment.

Multidimensional assessment of sustainability extractivism of mangrove oyster Crassostrea spp. in the estuary of Cananéia, São Paulo, Brazil

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IC Machado

Full Text Available AbstractThis study was carried out with groups of extractivists of mangrove oysters in the estuary of Cananéia, São Paulo State, Brazil, between the years 1999 and 2007 with the objective to evaluate and compare trends in the sustainability of this activity, in a multidimensional and integrated way, in social, economic, ecological, technological and ethical dimensions, using the method RAPFISH. The different groups had distinct trends related to sustainability and the social, technological and ethical dimensions had more influence on trends in sustainability than the ecological and economic dimensions. The group with the best performance in the sustainability assessment was Mandira, due to advances promoted by local social organization. On the other hand, the Porto Cubatão group showed the worst performance, once this is very recent group in the extractivism of oysters. The RAPFISH proved to be a useful tool for data assessment.

Corporate social responsibility to improve access to medicines: the case of Brazil.

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Thorsteinsdóttir, Halla; Ovtcharenko, Natasha; Kohler, Jillian Clare

2017-02-21

Access to medicines and the development of a strong national pharmaceutical industry are two longstanding pillars of health policy in Brazil. This is reflected in a clear emphasis by Brazil's Federal Government on improving access to medicine in national health plans and industrial policies aimed at promoting domestic pharmaceutical development. This research proposes that such policies may act as incentives for companies to pursue a strategic Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) agenda. CSR that supports Governmental priorities could help companies to benefit significantly from the Governmental industrial policy. We sought to determine whether CSR activities of Brazilian pharmaceutical firms are currently aligned with the Federal Government's health prioritization. To do so we examined key Brazilian health related policies since 2004, including the specific priorities of Brazil's 2012-2015 Health Plan, and compared these with CSR initiatives that are reported on the websites of select pharmaceutical firms in Brazil. Brazil's national health plans and industrial policies demonstrated that the Federal Government has followed diverse approaches for improving access to medicines, including strengthening health care infrastructure, increasing transparency, and supporting product development partnerships. Case studies of six pharmaceutical firms, representing both public and private companies of varying size, support the perspective that CSR is a priority for firms. However, while many programs target issues such as health infrastructure, health care training, and drug donation, more programs focus on areas other than health and do not seem to be connected to Governmental prioritization. This research suggests that there are loose connections between Governmental priorities and pharmaceutical firm CSR. However, there remains a significant opportunity for greater alignment, which could improve access to medicines in the country and foster a stronger relationship between

Sustainable Future for Biodiesel in Brazil

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dias, Maria Amélia de Paula

This thesis aims to study alternatives to biodiesel industry in Brazil, for 2030, taking in account the sustainability dimensions, namely economic, environmental, ecological, social, national and international politics, territorial, cultural, and technological, through the development of scenarios...... for agriculture and pasture. Thus, a simulation, using linear programming models, was made in order to verify the alternatives of feedstock to produce biodiesel. It was observed that it is possible to decentralize the market, reduce land use, and regionalize production, making better use of the availability...... to identify the driving forces to develop the scenario storylines. This proposition was tested in an in-depth interview with the biodiesel market stakeholders. Based on the findings of the two approaches, the simulations and the interviews, it was possible to obtain future alternatives, where the biodiesel...

Social Ecology and Diabetes Self-Management among Pacific Islanders in Arkansas.

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McElfish, Pearl Anna; Moore, Ramey; Woodring, David; Purvis, Rachel S; Maskarinec, Gregory G; Bing, Williamina Ioanna; Hudson, Jonell; Kohler, Peter O; Goulden, Peter A

2016-01-01

Chronic diseases disproportionately affect ethnic and racial minorities. Pacific Islanders, including the Marshallese, experience some of the highest documented rates of type 2 diabetes. Northwest Arkansas is home to the largest population of Marshallese outside of the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and many migrants are employed by the local poultry industry. This migrant population continues to increase because of climate change, limited health care and educational infrastructure in the Marshall Islands, and the ongoing health effects of US nuclear testing. The US nuclear weapons testing program had extensive social, economic, and ecological consequences for the Marshallese and many of the health disparities they face are related to the nuclear fallout. Beginning in 2013, researchers using a community-based participatory (CBPR) approach began working with the local Marshallese community to address diabetes through the development and implementation of culturally appropriate diabetes self-management education in a family setting. Preliminary research captured numerous and significant environmental barriers that constrain self-management behaviors. At the request of our CBPR stakeholders, researchers have documented the ecological barriers faced by the Marshallese living in Arkansas through a series of qualitative research projects. Using the Social Ecological Model as a framework, this research provides an analysis of Marshallese health that expands the traditional diabetes self-management perspective. Participants identified barriers at the organizational, community, and policy levels that constrain their efforts to achieve diabetes self-management. We offer practice and policy recommendations to address barriers at the community, organizational, and policy level.

Governance and the making and breaking of social-ecological traps

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Dana M. Baker

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Many countries in sub-Saharan Africa have areas of significant ecological importance that overlap with pressing development needs and high levels of natural resource dependence. This makes the design of effective natural resource governance and management systems both challenging and critical. In Ghana, this challenge is made more complex by the necessity of connecting formal, state-led systems of governance with Ghana's informal governance systems through which customary authorities exert considerable control over land and resources. We present findings from two multimethod research projects in two regions of Ghana that have significant issues related to resource exploitation and that have experienced extensive management interventions. The goals of the research were to characterize the social-ecological traps from a local perspective, to describe how governance and management structures interact with and relate to those traps, and to discuss the strategies used and challenges encountered when community-based natural resource management initiatives seek to reverse persistent social-ecological traps. In both case studies, participants described persistent cycles of resource dependence, overexploitation, and unsustainable land-use practices, which are exacerbated by illegal logging, intensive agricultural development, and population growth. Findings highlight how natural resource management is constrained by a lack of capacity to implement and enforce state policies, ongoing tension between customary and state institutions, and ambiguity regarding management responsibility and resource tenure. Interventions included targeted governance reform that centred on improving linkages between customary and state institutions, new and nonlocal actors, and complementary investments in capacity building and training. We conclude with a discussion of implications for the design of effective natural resource governance regimes in Ghana and beyond.

The Ecology of Social Learning in Animals and its Link with Intelligence.

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van Schaik, Carel; Graber, Sereina; Schuppli, Caroline; Burkart, Judith

2017-01-09

Classical ethology and behavioral ecology did not pay much attention to learning. However, studies of social learning in nature reviewed here reveal the near-ubiquity of reliance on social information for skill acquisition by developing birds and mammals. This conclusion strengthens the plausibility of the cultural intelligence hypothesis for the evolution of intelligence, which assumes that selection on social learning abilities automatically improves individual learning ability. Thus, intelligent species will generally be cultural species. Direct tests of the cultural intelligence hypothesis require good estimates of the amount and kind of social learning taking place in nature in a broad variety of species. These estimates are lacking so far. Here, we start the process of developing a functional classification of social learning, in the form of the social learning spectrum, which should help to predict the mechanisms of social learning involved. Once validated, the categories can be used to estimate the cognitive demands of social learning in the wild.

Testing a social ecological model for relations between political violence and child adjustment in Northern Ireland.

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Cummings, E Mark; Merrilees, Christine E; Schermerhorn, Alice C; Goeke-Morey, Marcie C; Shirlow, Peter; Cairns, Ed

2010-05-01

Relations between political violence and child adjustment are matters of international concern. Past research demonstrates the significance of community, family, and child psychological processes in child adjustment, supporting study of interrelations between multiple social ecological factors and child adjustment in contexts of political violence. Testing a social ecological model, 300 mothers and their children (M = 12.28 years, SD = 1.77) from Catholic and Protestant working class neighborhoods in Belfast, Northern Ireland, completed measures of community discord, family relations, and children's regulatory processes (i.e., emotional security) and outcomes. Historical political violence in neighborhoods based on objective records (i.e., politically motivated deaths) were related to family members' reports of current sectarian antisocial behavior and nonsectarian antisocial behavior. Interparental conflict and parental monitoring and children's emotional security about both the community and family contributed to explanatory pathways for relations between sectarian antisocial behavior in communities and children's adjustment problems. The discussion evaluates support for social ecological models for relations between political violence and child adjustment and its implications for understanding relations in other parts of the world.

Local perceptions on social-ecological dynamics in Latin America in three community-based natural resource management systems

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Maria del Mar Delgado-Serrano

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Several examples of community-based natural resource management in Latin American social-ecological systems exist in which communities control the management of common-pool resources. Understanding community perceptions of the performance of these systems is essential to involve communities in sustainable management strategies. In this analysis of three areas in Colombia, Mexico, and Argentina, we analyzed the local perceptions of the social and environmental challenges faced by these social-ecological systems and how these challenges and drivers affect their resilience. To do this, we combined prospective structural analysis to unravel stakeholders' perceptions of each system's functioning along with network analysis to assess resilience. We identified external variables as the most influential variables in the Colombian and Argentine cases. In the Mexican case, larger influence is exerted by internal variables, particularly those linked to the governance system. The case study analysis revealed that the community-based natural resource management approach needs external support and recognition to work effectively. In the Argentine and Colombian cases, megaprojects were perceived as controllers with medium or strong influence but low dependence. The use of ancestral knowledge (Colombia, the history of land use (Mexico, and the history of the artisanal fishery (Argentina were all perceived as common challenges to community-based natural resource management. In terms of social-ecological resilience, framed within the three-dimensional model of the adaptive cycle, all three social-ecological systems were considered to be highly connected and resilient but with different degrees of capacity or cumulative potential.

Managing social-ecological systems under uncertainty: implementation in the real world

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Ana Nuno

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Management decisions for natural resources are not made in a vacuum; the environmental and ecological conditions as well as the socioeconomic and political contexts affect goals, the choice of interventions, their feasibility, and which outcomes are obtained. Although uncertainty is recognized as a feature of natural resource management, little attention has been given to the uncertainty generated by institutional settings, historical contingency, and individual people's influence. These implementation uncertainties, related to the translation of policy into practice, make it difficult to predict the outcomes of management interventions within social-ecological systems. Using the conservation of species hunted for bushmeat in the Serengeti as a case study, we investigated the challenges and potential barriers to successful implementation of natural resource management policies. We used a mixed-methods approach, combining semistructured interviews with scenario building, social network, and institutional analysis exercises. Using a management strategy evaluation (MSE conceptual framework, we obtained insights into the constraints and opportunities for fulfilling stakeholder aspirations for the social-ecological system, analyzed the multiple roles played by different institutions in the system, and described the interactions between different actor types. We found that the respondents had generally similar views about the current and future status of the Serengeti but disagreed about how to address issues of conservation concern and were more uncertain about the actual outcomes of management interventions. Improving conservation implementation (rather than research, monitoring, or status assessment was perceived as the key priority to be addressed. Institutional barriers were perceived as an important challenge given that the decision-making and implementation processes were broadly distributed across a number of institutions. Conservation social

Culturally compelling strategies for behaviour change: a social ecology model and case study in malaria prevention.

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Panter-Brick, Catherine; Clarke, Sian E; Lomas, Heather; Pinder, Margaret; Lindsay, Steve W

2006-06-01

Behaviour change is notoriously difficult to initiate and sustain, and the reasons why efforts to promote healthy behaviours fail are coming under increasing scrutiny. To be successful, health interventions should build on existing practices, skills and priorities, recognise the constraints on human behaviour, and either feature community mobilisation or target those most receptive to change. Furthermore, interventions should strive to be culturally compelling, not merely culturally appropriate: they must engage local communities and nestle within social and ecological landscapes. In this paper, we propose a social ecology perspective to make explicit the links between intention to change, actual behaviour change, and subsequent health impact, as relating to both theory-based models and practical strategies for triggering behaviour change. A social ecology model focuses attention on the contexts of behaviour when designing, implementing or critically evaluating interventions. As a case study, we reflect on a community-directed intervention in rural Gambia designed to reduce malaria by promoting a relatively simple and low-cost behaviour: repairing holes in mosquito bednets. In phase 1, contextual information on bednet usage, transactions and repairs (the 'social lives' of nets) was documented. In phase 2 (intervention), songs were composed and posters displayed by community members to encourage repairs, creating a sense of ownership and a compelling medium for the transmission of health messages. In phase 3 (evaluation), qualitative and quantitative data showed that household responses were particularly rapid and extensive, with significant increase in bednet repairs (psocial ecology-of behaviour practices that are the bedrock of health interventions.

Social Capital is Associated With Late HIV Diagnosis: An Ecological Analysis.

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Ransome, Yusuf; Galea, Sandro; Pabayo, Roman; Kawachi, Ichiro; Braunstein, Sarah; Nash, Denis

2016-10-01

Late HIV diagnosis is associated with higher medical costs, early mortality among individuals, and HIV transmission in the population. Even under optimal configurations of stable or declining HIV incidence and increase in HIV case findings, no change in proportion of late HIV diagnosis is projected after year 2019. We investigated the association among social capital, gender, and late HIV diagnosis. We conduct ecological analyses (ZIP code, N = 166) using negative binomial regression of gender-specific rates of late HIV diagnoses (an AIDS defining illness or a CD4 count ≤200 cell/μL within 12 months of a new HIV diagnosis) in 2005 and 2006 obtained from the New York City HIV Surveillance Registry, and social capital indicators (civic engagement, political participation, social cohesion, and informal social control) from the New York Social Indicators Survey, 2004. Overall, low to high political participation and social cohesion corresponded with significant (P social control [RR = 0.67, 95% CI: (0.48 to 0.93)] among men only and moderate social cohesion [RR = 0.71, 95% CI: (0.55 to 0.92)] among women only were associated with the outcome adjusting for social fragmentation, income inequality, and racial composition. The magnitude of association between social capital and late HIV diagnosis varies by gender and by social capital indicator.

The social ecology of resilience: a handbook of theory and practice

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Ungar, Michael

2012-01-01

..., who helped with many of the logistical supports that made this book possible, and Dorothy Bottrell for her helpful review of my own contributions. Finally, a sincere thank you to my support team at Springer. v ContentsContents 1 Introduction to the Volume ... Michael Ungar 1 Part I Introduction to the Theory 2 3 4 5 Social Ecologies and Their Contribu...

Resilience and adaptability of rice terrace social-ecological systems: a case study of a local community's perception in Banaue, Philippines

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Adam C. Castonguay

2016-06-01

Full Text Available The social-ecological systems of rice terraces across Southeast Asia are the result of centuries of long-term interactions between human communities and their surrounding ecosystems. Processes and structures in these systems have evolved to provide a diversity of ecosystem services and benefits to human societies. However, as Southeast Asian countries experience rapid economic growth and related land-use changes, the remaining extensive rice cultivation systems are increasingly under pressure. We investigated the long-term development of ecosystem services and the adaptive capacity of the social-ecological system of rice terrace landscapes using a case study of Banaue (Ifugao Province, Northern-Luzon, Philippines. A set of indicators was used to describe and assess changes in the social-ecological state of the study system. The resilience of the rice terraces and the human communities that maintain them was examined by comparing the current state of the system with results from the literature. Our findings indicate that, although the social-ecological system has not yet shifted to an alternative state, pressures are increasing and some cultural ecosystem services have already been lost.

The Participatory Construction of Agro-Ecological Knowledge As A Soil Conservation Strategy In The Mountain Region of Rio de Janeiro State (Brazil

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de Assis Renato Linhares

2018-02-01

Full Text Available Agriculture in the mountain region of Rio de Janeiro State is characterized by intensive soil use and input. Such mountainous environments are vulnerable to climate events; thus, the current article presents a report on methods applied to exchange academic and traditional knowledge. The aim is to expand farmers’ perception about the need of implementing agro-ecological practices, mainly soil management practices, which are important for agricultural sustainability in mountainous environments. The study was conducted in a Nova Friburgo family production unit, in the mountain region of Rio de Janeiro State (Brazil. It consisted of implementing three observation and soil organic-matter management units. The idea was to reduce the incidence of clubroot of crucifers disease caused by Plasmidiophora brassicae. The soil fauna was discussed with local farmers, with emphasis on the association between ecological processes and soil management. The present study improved the discussion with farmers and the need of introducing other innovative conservation practices such as no-tillage system and participatory research based on agro-ecological propositions.

Social capital and political culture in Brazil: prospectives and constrains Capital social y cultura política en brasil: posibilidades y límites

OpenAIRE

Cesar Marcelo BAQUERO JACOME

2010-01-01

This article examines the relationship between political culture and social capital in Brazil. It emphasizes the importance of constructing a political system founded in the interpersonal or reciprocal trust, as well as the confidence in the political institutions. After examining the main controversies about the definition of social capital, this article defends the idea of reterritorializing this concept, giving a strategic value insofar as the instrumental dimension is concerned, which is,...

Future ecological studies of Brazilian headwater streams under global-changes

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Marcos Callisto

Full Text Available This paper results from discussions triggered during the "Stream Ecology Symposium" that took place at the XIII Congress of the Brazilian Society of Limnology in September of 2011 in Natal, Brazil. Based on our experiences, we have raised several questions regarding ecological studies of headwater streams facing threats under global-changes and proposed numerous subjects to be addressed in future studies in Brazil. These studies deal with the necessity of knowing species biology and the elaboration of models to assess changes (which implies the availability of time-series or large-scale data sets; the ecology of riparian zones and the interchange of materials and energy across the land-water boundaries; forest conversions and standardized sampling strategies and data treatment to assess global change.

Social-ecological influences on interpersonal support in people with physical disability.

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Devereux, Paul G; Bullock, Charles C; Gibb, Zebbedia G; Himler, Heidi

2015-10-01

People with physical disability report lower amounts of emotional and informational social support compared with other populations but it is unclear how influences at the broader societal level impact support in this population. To address this question, Berkman and Glass's social-ecological model was used to examine the influence of upstream factors on interpersonal support in people with physical disability. It was predicted that these factors would influence support even after controlling for the traditional measures linked to social support. 331 adult participants with physical disability (43% female; mean age = 42.7; 88% White) completed an online cross-sectional survey measuring types and sources of social support, social integration, disability impact in social domains, environmental barriers, and relevant psychosocial variables such as depression. A hierarchical linear regression analysis showed that level of disability, perceived tangible support, social integration, depressive symptoms, environmental barriers, occupational independence, and having family or friends as primary support sources were significantly associated with perceived support at the final step (R(2) = .60, F(22, 255) = 17.68, p disability than typical measures studied in the literature. Improving environmental factors will help improve social support. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Integrating Ecological and Social Knowledge: Learning from CHANS Research

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Bruce Shindler

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Scientists are increasingly called upon to integrate across ecological and social disciplines to tackle complex coupled human and natural system (CHANS problems. Integration of these disciplines is challenging and many scientists do not have experience with large integrated research projects. However, much can be learned about the complicated process of integration from such efforts. We document some of these lessons from a National Science Foundation-funded CHANS project (Forests, People, Fire and present considerations for developing and engaging in coupled human and natural system projects. Certainly we are not the first to undertake this endeavor, and many of our findings complement those of other research teams. We focus here on the process of coming together, learning to work as an integrated science team, and describe the challenges and opportunities of engaging stakeholders (agency personnel and citizen communities of interests in our efforts. Throughout this project our intention was to foster dialogue among diverse interests and, thus, incorporate this knowledge into uncovering primary social and ecological drivers of change. A primary tool was an agent-based model, Envision, that used this information in landscape simulation, visualization models, and scenario development. Although integration can be an end in itself, the proof of value in the approach can be the degree to which it provides new insights or tools to CHANS, including closer interaction among multiple stakeholders, that could not have been reached without it.

River basins as social-ecological systems: linking levels of societal and ecosystem water metabolism in a semiarid watershed

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Violeta Cabello

2015-09-01

Full Text Available River basin modeling under complexity requires analytical frameworks capable of dealing with the multiple scales and dimensions of environmental problems as well as uncertainty in the evolution of social systems. Conceptual and methodological developments can now be framed using the wide socio-eco-hydrological approach. We add hierarchy theory into the mix to discuss the conceptualization of river basins as complex, holarchic social-ecological systems. We operationalize the social-ecological systems water metabolism framework in a semiarid watershed in Spain, and add the governance dimension that shapes human-environment reciprocity. To this purpose, we integrate an eco-hydrological model with the societal metabolism accounting scheme for land use, human activity, and water use. We explore four types of interactions: between societal organization and water uses/demands, between ecosystem organization and their water requirements/supplies, between societal metabolism and aquatic ecosystem health, and between water demand and availability. Our results reveal a metabolic pattern of a high mountain rural system striving to face exodus and agricultural land abandonment with a multifunctional economy. Centuries of social-ecological evolution shaping waterscapes through traditional water management practices have influenced the eco-hydrological functioning of the basin, enabling adaptation to aridity. We found a marked spatial gradient on water supply, use pattern, and impact on water bodies from the head to the mouth of the basin. Management challenges posed by the European water regulatory framework as a new driver of social-ecological change are highlighted.

Ecology of Lutzomyia longipalpis in an area of visceral leishmaniasis transmission in north-eastern Brazil.

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Costa, Pietra Lemos; Dantas-Torres, Filipe; da Silva, Fernando José; Guimarães, Vanessa Cristina Fitipaldi Veloso; Gaudêncio, Kamila; Brandão-Filho, Sinval Pinto

2013-05-01

Visceral leishmaniasis is a major public health issue in South America, where the disease is rapidly spreading. Changes in ecology and distribution of the principal vector, Lutzomyia longipalpis are among the factors accounting for the increasing incidence of the disease in this region. However, information about the ecology of L. longipalpis is still incipient, which may directly impair the implementation of effective control programs. Herein, the ecology of L. longipalpis was studied in a focus of visceral leishmaniasis in north-eastern Brazil. From August 2009 to August 2010, phlebotomine sand flies were monthly collected in four localities using CDC light traps (~37 per month) and a lantern-baited Shannon trap with mouth aspirators. A total of 24,226 phlebotomine sand flies were collected with light traps and 375 with mouth aspirators. The most abundant species was L. longipalpis, representing 97.9% of the specimens collected with light traps and 91.5% with the mouth aspirator. Other species (Lutzomyia evandroi, Lutzomyia lenti and Lutzomyia sallesi) were found in low numbers. Most phlebotomine sand flies (94.6%) were collected at chicken coops and corrals. No significant correlation was found between the monthly abundance of phlebotomine sand flies and the monthly averages of temperature, relative humidity or rainfall. However, interestingly enough, 82.4% of L. longipalpis specimens were collected in months when relative humidity surpassed 75%. This study points out that this vector is well adapted to live in different habitats and to different climate conditions. It also suggests that some north-eastern populations of L. longipalpis may be more xerotolerant than southern populations. Further studies to assess the relationship between microclimate and L. longipalpis density in different Brazilian regions are advised. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Lack of Ecological and Life History Context Can Create the Illusion of Social Interactions in Dictyostelium discoideum.

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Martínez-García, Ricardo; Tarnita, Corina E

2016-12-01

Studies of social microbes often focus on one fitness component (reproductive success within the social complex), with little information about or attention to other stages of the life cycle or the ecological context. This can lead to paradoxical results. The life cycle of the social amoeba Dictyostelium discoideum includes a multicellular stage in which not necessarily clonal amoebae aggregate upon starvation to form a possibly chimeric (genetically heterogeneous) fruiting body made of dead stalk cells and spores. The lab-measured reproductive skew in the spores of chimeras indicates strong social antagonism that should result in low genotypic diversity, which is inconsistent with observations from nature. Two studies have suggested that this inconsistency stems from the one-dimensional assessment of fitness (spore production) and that the solution lies in tradeoffs between multiple life-history traits, e.g.: spore size versus viability; and spore-formation (via aggregation) versus staying vegetative (as non-aggregated cells). We develop an ecologically-grounded, socially-neutral model (i.e. no social interactions between genotypes) for the life cycle of social amoebae in which we theoretically explore multiple non-social life-history traits, tradeoffs and tradeoff-implementing mechanisms. We find that spore production comes at the expense of time to complete aggregation, and, depending on the experimental setup, spore size and viability. Furthermore, experimental results regarding apparent social interactions within chimeric mixes can be qualitatively recapitulated under this neutral hypothesis, without needing to invoke social interactions. This allows for simple potential resolutions to the previously paradoxical results. We conclude that the complexities of life histories, including social behavior and multicellularity, can only be understood in the appropriate multidimensional ecological context, when considering all stages of the life cycle.

Water RATs (Resilience, Adaptability, and Transformability in Lake and Wetland Social-Ecological Systems

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Lance H. Gunderson

2006-06-01

Full Text Available The lakes in the northern highlands of Wisconsin, USA, the lakes and wetlands of Kristianstads Vattenrike in southern Sweden, and the Everglades of Florida, USA, provide cases that can be used to compare the linkages between ecological resilience and social dynamics. The erosion of ecological resilience in aquatic and wetland ecosystems is often a result of past management actions and is manifest as a real or perceived ecological crisis. Learning is a key ingredient in response to the loss of ecological resilience. Learning is facilitated through networks that operate in distinct arenas and are structured for dialogue, synthesis, and imaginative solutions to chart alternative futures. The networks also help counter maladaptive processes such as information control or manipulation, bureaucratic inertia, or corruption. The networks help create institutional arrangements that provide for more learning and flexibility and for the ability to change. Trust and leadership appear to be key elements for adaptability and transformability.

Corporate Social Responsibility: a Case Study in Subsidiaries from Brazil and China

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Caroline Chagas Prates

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Corporate Social Responsibility refers to the business’ role in providing Sustainable Development through fair and appropriate relationships with its stakeholders. This study aimed to describe and analyze the CSR evolution in two subsidiaries within the same group, one located in Brazil and other in China. In general, observed similarities in CSR evolution. In both companies, the order in which the dimensions received incentives was the same, first the economic, then the environmental and lastly the social dimension. However, some differences were noted, such as the initial situation of dimensions and the time to consolidate the pillars. In Chinese company, the initial situation about environmental and social dimension was worst. Other point refers to time toward CSR. In Brazilian’ subsidiary, the CSR evolution occurred slower. The last point refers to requirements of second order, given the non-observance of these in both subsidiaries.

Adaptive management of social-ecological systems: the path forward

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Allen, Craig R.

2015-01-01

Adaptive management remains at the forefront of environmental management nearly 40 years after its original conception, largely because we have yet to develop other methodologies that offer the same promise. Despite the criticisms of adaptive management and the numerous failed attempts to implement it, adaptive management has yet to be replaced with a better alternative. The concept persists because it is simple, allows action despite uncertainty, and fosters learning. Moving forward, adaptive management of social-ecological systems provides policymakers, managers and scientists a powerful tool for managing for resilience in the face of uncertainty.

Social Monitoring Matters for Deterring Social Deviance in Stable but Not Mobile Socio-Ecological Contexts.

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Su, Jenny C; Chiu, Chi-Yue; Lin, Wei-Fang; Oishi, Shigehiro

2016-01-01

Previous research suggests that reputational concerns can incentivize cooperation and deter socially deviant behavior. The current research showed that social monitoring of information that has the potential to damage one's reputation has differential effects on deviant behavior in social-ecological environments that vary in level of mobility. Study 1 showed that residentially stable cities that employed more journalists-who can be regarded as social monitoring agents in a community-tended to have lower rates of violent crime than residentially stable cities that employed fewer journalists; by contrast, in residentially mobile cities, violent crime rates did not vary as a function of the number of journalists employed. In Study 2, we found that individual differences in perceptions of relational mobility moderated the effects of social monitoring on cheating in a die-under-cup game. Specifically, social monitoring cues reduced the likelihood of cheating but only among participants who perceived their immediate social environment to be low in relational mobility. The same results were replicated in Study 3, an experiment in which participants' perception of relational mobility was manipulated before completing an online maze game that allowed them to earn extra cash. In the low mobility condition, the percentage of participants who continued working on the mazes after reaching the time limit decreased as a function of social monitoring; however, this pattern was not observed in the high mobility condition. Together, our findings suggest that socioecological context matters for understanding effective mechanisms of social control.

Environmental security as related to scale mismatches of disturbance patterns in a panarchy of social-ecological landscapes

Science.gov (United States)

Giovanni Zurlini; Irene Petrosillo; Nicola Zaccarelli; Kurt Riitters

2008-01-01

Environmental security, as the opposite of environmental fragility (vulnerability), is multilayered, multi-scale and complex, existing in both the objective realm of biophysics and society, and the subjective realm of individual human perception. For ecological risk assessments (ERAs), the relevant objects of environmental security are social-ecological landscapes (...

Social and ecological factors in the formation of population health in surveillance zone of nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Prilipko, V.A.; Petrichenko, O.O.

2014-01-01

Most people of radiation-control area estimated ecological state as safe. Respondents pointed to such ecological factors as radionuclide pollutions, irresponsible ecological behavior of people, Rivne Nuclear Power Plant functioning consequences. The last one affects changes of water sanitation and ecological parameters.There is no significant difference between mental state of people of radiation-control area and control group of people by GHQ-28 indices, by somatization scale, anxiety, social disfunction and reactive anxiety. The living life peculiarities are grounded by double risk: life in conditions of radioactive polluted territory and life in radiation-control area. Authors defined the correlation between mental state and factors that characterize ecological living conditions

From innovation to application: social-ecological context, diagnostics, drugs and integrated control of schistosomiasis.

Science.gov (United States)

Utzinger, Jürg; N'goran, Eliézer K; Caffrey, Conor R; Keiser, Jennifer

2011-09-01

Compared to malaria, tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS, schistosomiasis remains a truly neglected tropical disease. Schistosomiasis, perhaps more than any other disease, is entrenched in prevailing social-ecological systems, since transmission is governed by human behaviour (e.g. open defecation and patterns of unprotected surface water contacts) and ecological features (e.g. living in close proximity to suitable freshwater bodies in which intermediate host snails proliferate). Moreover, schistosomiasis is intimately linked with poverty and the disease has spread to previously non-endemic areas as a result of demographic, ecological and engineering transformations. Importantly though, thanks to increased advocacy there is growing awareness, financial and technical support to control and eventually eliminate schistosomiasis as a public health problem at local, regional and global scales. The purpose of this review is to highlight recent progress made in innovation, validation and application of new tools and strategies for research and integrated control of schistosomiasis. First, we explain that schistosomiasis is deeply embedded in social-ecological systems and explore linkages with poverty. We then summarize and challenge global statistics, risk maps and burden estimates of human schistosomiasis. Discovery and development research pertaining to novel diagnostics and drugs forms the centrepiece of our review. We discuss unresolved issues and emerging opportunities for integrated and sustainable control of schistosomiasis and conclude with a series of research needs. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Unpacking Changes in Mangrove Social-Ecological Systems: Lessons from Brazil, Zanzibar, and Vietnam

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Claire H. Quinn

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Mangroves provide multiple benefits, from carbon storage and shoreline protection to food and energy for natural resource-dependent coastal communities. However, they are coming under increasing pressure from climate change, coastal development, and aquaculture. There is increasing need to better understand the changes mangroves face and whether these changes differ or are similar in different parts of the world. Using a multiple case study approach, focused on Vietnam, Zanzibar, and Brazil, this research analyzed the drivers, pressures, states, impacts, and responses (DPSIR of mangrove systems. A qualitative content analysis was used on a purposively sampled document set for each country to identify and collate evidence under each of the DPSIR categories. Population growth and changing political and economic processes were key drivers across the three countries, leading to land use change and declining states of mangroves. This had an impact on the delivery of regulatory and provisioning ecosystem services from mangroves and on the welfare of coastal communities. Responses have been predominantly regulatory and aim to improve mangrove states, but without always considering ecosystem services or the consequences for welfare. The issue of scale emerged as a critical factor with drivers, pressures, impacts, and responses operating at different levels (from international to local, with consequences for response effectiveness.

Rising Expectations in Brazil and Chile

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Elacqua, Gregory; Alves, Fatima

2014-01-01

Two themes connect Brazil and Chile: one is economic success; the other is social unrest. Protests rocked cities across Brazil in June 2013, and in Chile, recent student protests turned violent. Yet living conditions in both nations are better now than they've ever been. Successful economic and social reforms over the last two decades have led to…

Populations' identification, Indian culture and environmentalism: The social network in Tefe

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Faulhaber, Priscila

2001-01-01

In this text, it is done an anthropological reflection on the field of relationships settled down among agencies and actors involved in the emergency of the indigenous movement and of the ecological movement in the city of Tefe (Amazons), Brazil. It is problems associated to the delimitation and demarcation of the indigenous lands, carried out by the Funai (Fundafao Nacional de apoio ao Indio) and to the creation and recognition in 1991 of the ecological station Mamiraua, transform in 1996 as reservation of sustainable development Mamiraua (RDSM1). The author treats topics like the ethnic and social identities and of the implications of the investigation projects

Coupling ecological and social network models to assess “transmission” and “contagion” of an aquatic invasive species

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Haak, Danielle M.; Fath, Brian D.; Forbes, Valery E.; Martin, Dustin R.; Pope, Kevin L.

2017-01-01

Network analysis is used to address diverse ecological, social, economic, and epidemiological questions, but few efforts have been made to combine these field-specific analyses into interdisciplinary approaches that effectively address how complex systems are interdependent and connected to one another. Identifying and understanding these cross-boundary connections improves natural resource management and promotes proactive, rather than reactive, decisions. This research had two main objectives; first, adapt the framework and approach of infectious disease network modeling so that it may be applied to the socio-ecological problem of spreading aquatic invasive species, and second, use this new coupled model to simulate the spread of the invasive Chinese mystery snail (Bellamya chinensis) in a reservoir network in Southeastern Nebraska, USA. The coupled model integrates an existing social network model of how anglers move on the landscape with new reservoir-specific ecological network models. This approach allowed us to identify 1) how angler movement among reservoirs aids in the spread of B. chinensis, 2) how B. chinensisalters energy flows within individual-reservoir food webs, and 3) a new method for assessing the spread of any number of non-native or invasive species within complex, social-ecological systems.

Art and artistic processes bridge knowledge systems about social-ecological change: An empirical examination with Inuit artists from Nunavut, Canada

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Kaitlyn J. Rathwell

2016-06-01

Full Text Available The role of art and artistic processes is one fruitful yet underexplored area of social-ecological resilience. Art and art making can nurture Indigenous knowledge and at the same time bridge knowledge across generations and cultures (e.g., Inuit and scientific. Experiences in two Inuit communities in northern Canada (Cape Dorset and Pangnirtung, Nunavut provide the context in which we empirically examine the mechanisms through which art and art making may bridge knowledge systems about social-ecological change. Art making and artworks create continuity between generations via symbols and skill development (e.g., seal skin stretching for a modern artistic mural and by creating mobile and adaptive boundary objects that function as a shared reference point to connect different social worlds. Our results indicate how art and artistic processes may bridge knowledge systems through six mechanisms, and in so doing contribute to social-ecological resilience during change and uncertainty. These mechanisms are (1 embedding knowledge, practice and belief into art objects; (2 sharing knowledge using the language of art; (3 sharing of art making skills; (4 art as a contributor to monitoring social-ecological change; (5 the role of art in fostering continuity through time; and (6 art as a site of knowledge coproduction.

Understanding the psychology of bullying: Moving toward a social-ecological diathesis-stress model.

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Swearer, Susan M; Hymel, Shelley

2015-01-01

With growing recognition that bullying is a complex phenomenon, influenced by multiple factors, research findings to date have been understood within a social-ecological framework. Consistent with this model, we review research on the known correlates and contributing factors in bullying/victimization within the individual, family, peer group, school and community. Recognizing the fluid and dynamic nature of involvement in bullying, we then expand on this model and consider research on the consequences of bullying involvement, as either victim or bully or both, and propose a social-ecological, diathesis-stress model for understanding the bullying dynamic and its impact. Specifically, we frame involvement in bullying as a stressful life event for both children who bully and those who are victimized, serving as a catalyst for a diathesis-stress connection between bullying, victimization, and psychosocial difficulties. Against this backdrop, we suggest that effective bullying prevention and intervention efforts must take into account the complexities of the human experience, addressing both individual characteristics and history of involvement in bullying, risk and protective factors, and the contexts in which bullying occurs, in order to promote healthier social relationships. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

The burden of disaster: part II. applying interventions across the child's social ecology.

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Pfefferbaum, Rose L; Jacobs, Anne K; Noffsinger, Mary A; Pfefferbaum, Betty; Sherrieb, Kathleen; Norris, Fran H

2012-01-01

This second of two articles describes the application of disaster mental health interventions within the context of the childs social ecology consisting of the Micro-, Meso-, Exo-, and Macrosystems. Microsystem interventions involving parents, siblings, and close friends include family preparedness planning andpractice, psychoeducation, role modeling, emotional support, and redirection. Mesosystem interventions provided by schools and faith-based organizations include safety and support, assessment, referral, and counseling. Exosystem interventions include those provided through community-based mental health programs, healthcare organizations, the workplace, the media, local volunteer disaster organizations, and other local organizations. Efforts to build community resilience to disasters are likely to have influence through the Exosystem. The Macrosystem - including the laws, history, cultural and subcultural characteristics, and economic and social conditions that underlie the other systems - affects the child indirectly through public policies and disaster programs and services that become available in the child's Exosystem in the aftermath of a disaster The social ecology paradigm, described more fully in a companion article (Noffsinger Pfefferbaum, Pfefferbaum, Sherrieb, & Norris,2012), emphasizes relationships among systems and can guide the development and delivery of services embedded in naturally-occurring structures in the child's environment.

"Stuck in the muck": an eco-idiom of distress from childhood respiratory diseases in an urban mangrove in Northeast Brazil.

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Nations, Marilyn; Gondim, Ana Paula Soares

2013-02-01

Situated in neo-democratic globalizing Northeast Brazil, this anthropological study probes the role of ecological context in framing, experiencing, and expressing human distress. Ethnographic interviews, narratives, and "contextualized semantic analysis" reveal the lived experience of childhood respiratory diseases among 22 urban mangrove dwellers. Informants speak an "eco-idiom of respiratory distress" based on a popular "eco-logic", reflecting the harsh reality of "living in dampness". "Higher-up" residents legitimize their feelings of superiority by stigmatizing "lowlanders" as taboo, diseased (with porcine cysticercosis, swine flu) "filthy pigs, stuck in the muck" (atolados na lama). Animalizing inhabitants' identities demotes them to nonpersons. Besides infections, children suffer social stigma, ostracism, and barriers for accessing care. Promoting a "favorable environment" requires reducing ecological risk, challenging class-based prejudice, and restoring human dignity.

Environmental Education for Social-Ecological System Resilience: A Perspective from Activity Theory

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Krasny, Marianne E.; Roth, Wolff-Michael

2010-01-01

In this paper we attempt to integrate environmental education, with a focus on building capacity at the level of the individual, with frameworks for resilience, with a focus on adaptive capacity at the level of the social-ecological system. Whereas previous work has focused on enhancing system-level capacity through building adaptive capacity in…

Lessons from Philippines MPA Management: Social Ecological Interactions, Participation, and MPA Performance

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Twichell, Julia; Pollnac, Richard; Christie, Patrick

2018-06-01

International interest in increasing marine protected area (MPA) coverage reflects broad recognition of the MPA as a key tool for marine ecosystems and fisheries management. Nevertheless, effective management remains a significant challenge. The present study contributes to enriching an understanding of best practices for MPA management through analysis of archived community survey data collected in the Philippines by the Learning Project (LP), a collaboration with United States Coral Triangle Initiative (USCTI), United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and partners. We evaluate stakeholder participation and social ecological interactions among resource users in MPA programs in the Palawan, Occidental Mindoro, and Batangas provinces in the Philippines. Analysis indicates that a complex suite of social ecological factors, including demographics, conservation beliefs, and scientifically correct knowledge influence participation, which in turn is related to perceived MPA performance. Findings indicate positive feedbacks within the system that have potential to strengthen perceptions of MPA success. The results of this evaluation provide empirical reinforcement to current inquiries concerning the role of participation in influencing MPA performance.

Shooting the Rapids: Navigating Transitions to Adaptive Governance of Social-Ecological Systems

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Per Olsson

2006-06-01

Full Text Available The case studies of Kristianstads Vattenrike, Sweden; the Northern Highlands Lake District and the Everglades in the USA; the Mae Nam Ping Basin, Thailand; and the Goulburn-Broken Catchment, Australia, were compared to assess the outcome of different actions for transforming social-ecological systems (SESs. The transformations consisted of two phases, a preparation phase and a transition phase, linked by a window of opportunity. Key leaders and shadow networks can prepare a system for change by exploring alternative system configurations and developing strategies for choosing from among possible futures. Key leaders can recognize and use or create windows of opportunity and navigate transitions toward adaptive governance. Leadership functions include the ability to span scales of governance, orchestrate networks, integrate and communicate understanding, and reconcile different problem domains. Successful transformations rely on epistemic and shadow networks to provide novel ideas and ways of governing SESs. We conclude by listing some ð"„¬rules of thumb" that can help build leadership and networks for successful transformations toward adaptive governance of social-ecological systems.

Lessons from Philippines MPA Management: Social Ecological Interactions, Participation, and MPA Performance.

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Twichell, Julia; Pollnac, Richard; Christie, Patrick

2018-06-01

International interest in increasing marine protected area (MPA) coverage reflects broad recognition of the MPA as a key tool for marine ecosystems and fisheries management. Nevertheless, effective management remains a significant challenge. The present study contributes to enriching an understanding of best practices for MPA management through analysis of archived community survey data collected in the Philippines by the Learning Project (LP), a collaboration with United States Coral Triangle Initiative (USCTI), United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and partners. We evaluate stakeholder participation and social ecological interactions among resource users in MPA programs in the Palawan, Occidental Mindoro, and Batangas provinces in the Philippines. Analysis indicates that a complex suite of social ecological factors, including demographics, conservation beliefs, and scientifically correct knowledge influence participation, which in turn is related to perceived MPA performance. Findings indicate positive feedbacks within the system that have potential to strengthen perceptions of MPA success. The results of this evaluation provide empirical reinforcement to current inquiries concerning the role of participation in influencing MPA performance.

Novelties in the genus Persicaria (Polygonaceae) in Brazil

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Funez, Luís A.; Hassemer, Gustavo

2018-01-01

This work presents novelties in the genus Persicaria in Brazil. More specifically, we describe P. sylvestris, a new species from the Atlantic rainforest in subtropical Brazil, propose the new combination P. diospyrifolium and designate a lectotype for its basionym, Polygonum diospyrifolium. The new...... species has until now been identified as P. acuminata, from which it differs by morphological characters as well as ecological aspects. We also provide photographs of the new species and of similar species along with a distribution map and a key to the species of Persicaria in Brazil....

STIMULATING SUSTAINABLE CONSUMPTION THROUGH SOCIAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL BUSINESS BEHAVIOR: AN STUDY IN WALMART BRAZIL

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Minelle Enéas da Silva

2013-08-01

Full Text Available Under a market dynamic current, increasingly new behaviors of business are required in relation to the social and environmental aspects. Thus, considering the emergence of a new consumption paradigm, this paper aims to identify how a social and environmental behavior of Wal-Mart Brazil can be stimulating an effective sustainable consumption in the supermarket retail. According to this idea, this research had a qualitative approach and was conducted by a case of study, in which we identified that with an incorporation of responsible practices exist a stimulus to sustainable consumption in the retail studied, in order to a new behavior in the company. For this, we can identify that was necessary a set of social interactions that contribute with a different perspective.

Cross-Scale and Cross-Level Dynamics: Governance and Capacity for Resilience in a Social-Ecological System in Taiwan

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Hsing-Sheng Tai

2015-02-01

Full Text Available Resilience thinking has strongly influenced how people understand and pursue sustainability of linked social-ecological systems. Resilience thinking highlights the need to build capacity and manage general system properties in a complex, constantly changing world. I modified an analytical framework to address associations among cross-scale and cross-level dynamics, attributes of governance, and capacity to enhance resilience. The Danungdafu Forestation Area represents one of Taiwan’s most controvisal cases concerning land use, indigenous rights, and environmental issues. Analysis of this Taiwanese experience from a social-ecological perspective can show how current capacities for managing resilience are related to critical governance attributes. Analysis helped identify fundamental flaws in current governance and key issues needing to be addressed. The Danungdafu Forestation Area should transition towards a governance regime that is more participatory, deliberative, multi-layered, accountable, just, and networked. This can be done by developing an intermediate level institution that coordinates the cross-scale and cross-level interactions that better fit this social-ecological system.

How Does Football Influence the Political System and Juridify Social Movements? Brazil, June 2013

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Germano Schwartz

2016-09-01

Full Text Available According to current trends in the analysis of new social movements, protests are related to economic issues or social inequalities, particularly those of a religious or ethnic nature which, in turn, produce new communications directed at the political system. The present study aims to determine the relationship between football and the social movements that occurred in Brazil in June 2013, as well as investigate the responses of the political system to these social grievances, centered primarily on the juridification of these social spheres. Thus, it focuses on how the legal and political systems absorb these communications into their self-referential logic. To that end, the methodology used is based on the structural functionalism of Niklas Luhmann and his theory of autopoietic social systems. The results demonstrate that both systems – political and legal – were significantly influenced by football, specifically by the substantial investments allocated to hosting the 2014 World Cup in Brazil which, when contrasted with the low return of public services in the country, reveal the root causes of June 2013. Según las tendencias actuales en el análisis de los nuevos movimientos sociales, las protestas están relacionadas con cuestiones económicas o desigualdades sociales, en particular las de carácter religioso o étnico que, a su vez, producen nuevas comunicaciones dirigidas al sistema político. Este estudio pretende determinar la relación entre el fútbol y los movimientos sociales que se produjeron en Brasil en junio de 2013, así como investigar las respuestas del sistema político a estas demandas sociales, centradas principalmente en la juridificación de estas esferas sociales. Por lo tanto, se centra en cómo los sistemas legales y políticos absorben estas comunicaciones en su lógica autorreferencial. Para ello, la metodología empleada se basa en el funcionalismo estructural de Niklas Luhmann y su teoría de los sistemas

Annual Research Review: What is Resilience within the Social Ecology of Human Development?

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Ungar, Michael; Ghazinour, Mehdi; Richter, Jorg

2013-01-01

Background: The development of Bronfenbrenner's bio-social-ecological systems model of human development parallels advances made to the theory of resilience that progressively moved from a more individual (micro) focus on traits to a multisystemic understanding of person-environment reciprocal processes. Methods: This review uses…

Health-promotion research over three decades: The social-ecological model and challenges in implementation of interventions.

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Wold, Bente; Mittelmark, Maurice B

2018-02-01

This debate paper traces the development of innovative methods for undertaking health promotion research with a socialecological orientation, with a few examples drawn from 30 years of research on adolescent health promotion research at the University of Bergen. We aim to show how the social-ecological model is becoming more evident as a guide to research, using three cases that illustrate progress and potential. The first case is the Norwegian part of the European Network of Health Promoting Schools. The second case is a project just underway, The COMPLETE study, which is a community-led effort to promote students' mental health and create a good psychosocial learning environment. The third case is a developing idea for the next generation of social-ecological research on adolescent well-being, using an asset approach to foster social inclusion and sense of community in multiple settings.

Ecology of Mabuya agilis (Raddi (Lacertilia, Scincidae at the restinga of Grumari, Rio de Janeiro, southeastern Brazil

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Davor Vrcibradic

2002-12-01

Full Text Available Some aspects of the ecology of the skink Mabuya agilis (Raddi, 1823 at the restinga habitat of Grumari, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil are studied. Most of the lizards were first sighted on the ground, though a few were using perches (mainly cacti up to 30 cm high. Mean body temperature in activity was 33.1 ± 2.4ºC and was significantly correlated to air temperature. There was sexual dimorphism in size (snout-vent length - SVL, with females growing larger than males. Frequency of broken tails was high overall (83% and did not differ between sexes. Females and males are sexually mature at 49 mm and 47 mm SVL, respectively. Brood size averaged 3.2 ± 1.0 (range 1-5 and was positively and significantly related to female SVL (r = 0.65, p = 0.001. Relative clutch mass (RCM of seven gravid females averaged 0.250 ± 0.042, being relatively low compared to those of other congeners. The diet of M. agilis was composed basically of arthropods, with relatively large and soft-bodied arthropods such as spiders, caterpillars and homopterans being the most important prey. The results of our work confirm and expand the knowledge of ecological tendencies previously observed for M. agilis in other areas.

Emergence Unites Ecology and Society

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Ronald L. Trosper

2005-06-01

Full Text Available The effort to combine analysis of ecosystems and social systems requires a firm theoretical basis. When humans are present in an ecosystem, their actions affect emergent structures; this paper examines forms of emergence that account for the presence of humans. Humans monitor and regulate ecosystems based on their cultural systems. Cultural systems consist of concepts linked in complicated ways that can form consistent world views, can contain inconsistencies, and may or may not accurately model the properties of a social-ecological system. Consequently, human monitoring and regulating processes will differ, depending on cultural systems. Humans, as agents, change or maintain pre-existing material and cultural emergent structures. The presentation is illustrated with a case study of fire-prone forests. The paper shows that explicit attention to emergence serves very well in unifying the following requirements for social-ecological analysis: coherent and observable definitions of sustainability; ways to link ecological and social phenomena; ways to understand cultural reasons for stability and instability in dynamic social-ecological systems; and ways to include human self-evaluation and culture within dynamic models of social-ecological systems. Analysis of cultural emergent structures clarifies many differences in assumptions among the fields of economics, sociology, political science, ecology, and ecological economics. Because it can be readily applied to empirical questions, the framework provides a good way to organize policy analysis that is not dominated by one or another discipline.

From aquaculture goals to real social and ecological impacts: carp introduction in rural Central Mexico.

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Tapia, Mónica; Zambrano, Luis

2003-06-01

Aquaculture has been seen as a solution to food/protein availability in rural populations of poor countries. It is mainly based on exotic species, that produce changes in host system dynamics once introduced. Aquaculture not only changes the ecology of freshwater systems, but can also lead to modification of social relations. Until now, aquaculture programs have not been adequately analyzed no questioned enough. We evaluate both ecological effects and local social benefits of common carp aquaculture programs in shallow ponds of rural areas, using a municipality in Central Mexico as a case study. Using an "environmental entitlements" approach, our findings suggest that: i) carp aquaculture increases water turbidity and depletes native species reducing the poor people's access to them; ii) aquaculture mainly benefits pond owners rather than poor peasants. This mainly results from changes in fishing rights. We conclude that aquaculture policy goals and assumptions of benefits should be reviewed, if the negative ecological effects are to be decreased and conditions for people in rural areas are to be improved.

People and water: Exploring the social-ecological condition of watersheds of the United States

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A recent paradigm shift from purely biophysical towards social-ecological assessment of watersheds has been proposed to understand, monitor, and manipulate the myriad interactions between human well-being and the ecosystem services that watersheds provide. However, large-scale, q...

Closing global knowledge gaps : Producing generalized knowledge from case studies of social-ecological systems

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Magliocca, Nicholas R.; Ellis, Erle C.; Allington, Ginger R.H.; de Bremond, Ariane; Dell'Angelo, Jampel; Mertz, Ole; Messerli, Peter; Meyfroidt, Patrick; Seppelt, Ralf; Verburg, Peter H.

2018-01-01

Concerns over rapid widespread changes in social-ecological systems and their consequences for biodiversity, ecosystem functioning, food security, and human livelihoods are driving demands for globally comprehensive knowledge to support decision-making and policy development. Claims of regional or

Risk, society and environment: the case of cooperative ecological production and the global management over biodiversity and traditional knowledge

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Guilherme Francisco Waterloo Radomsky

2011-12-01

Full Text Available This article approaches biodiversity and traditional knowledge, having the notion of risk as its background. The data presented come from an ethnographic study carried out among a network of ecological farmers, Ecovida, in Santa Catarina, southern Brazil. Ecovida is an agro-ecological network of farm producers, consumers and intermediaries. The paper aims to show that in the global context of the advent of the intellectual property regime, especially the provisions on cultivars (plant variety and seed breeding, biodiversity and farming traditional knowledge, as well as their modes of plant breeding, suffer a double "erosion": the decrease on the availability of crop varieties; and it creates a uniformity and depleting of local knowledge. The potential standardization of seeds and knowledge entices new risks to both rural production and social sustainability. Our argument is that all these social actors -- that compose the so called ecological network -- in their activities, seeking to carry on the multiplication and variability of seeds and promote the diversity of knowledge, are also creating collective strategies of social resistance vis a vis nature and knowledge modes of control.  As a political outcome of the collective efforts, the network of participatory certification works revealing the risk homogenization and corporate control over crop production.

Regime shifts and panarchies in regional scale social-ecological water systems

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Gunderson, Lance; Cosens, Barbara; Chaffin, Brian C.; Arnold, Craig Anthony (Tony); Fremier, Alexander K.; Garmestani, Ahjond S.; Kundis Craig, Robin; Gosnell, Hannah; Birge, Hannah E.; Allen, Craig R.; Benson, Melinda H.; Morrison, Ryan R.; Stone, Mark; Hamm, Joseph A.; Nemec, Kristine T.; Schlager, Edella; Llewellyn, Dagmar

2017-01-01

In this article we summarize histories of nonlinear, complex interactions among societal, legal, and ecosystem dynamics in six North American water basins, as they respond to changing climate. These case studies were chosen to explore the conditions for emergence of adaptive governance in heavily regulated and developed social-ecological systems nested within a hierarchical governmental system. We summarize resilience assessments conducted in each system to provide a synthesis and reference by the other articles in this special feature. We also present a general framework used to evaluate the interactions between society and ecosystem regimes and the governance regimes chosen to mediate those interactions. The case studies show different ways that adaptive governance may be triggered, facilitated, or constrained by ecological and/or legal processes. The resilience assessments indicate that complex interactions among the governance and ecosystem components of these systems can produce different trajectories, which include patterns of (a) development and stabilization, (b) cycles of crisis and recovery, which includes lurches in adaptation and learning, and (3) periods of innovation, novelty, and transformation. Exploration of cross scale (Panarchy) interactions among levels and sectors of government and society illustrate that they may constrain development trajectories, but may also provide stability during crisis or innovation at smaller scales; create crises, but may also facilitate recovery; and constrain system transformation, but may also provide windows of opportunity in which transformation, and the resources to accomplish it, may occur. The framework is the starting point for our exploration of how law might play a role in enhancing the capacity of social-ecological systems to adapt to climate change.

Regime shifts and panarchies in regional scale social-ecological water systems

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Lance Gunderson

2017-03-01

Full Text Available In this article we summarize histories of nonlinear, complex interactions among societal, legal, and ecosystem dynamics in six North American water basins, as they respond to changing climate. These case studies were chosen to explore the conditions for emergence of adaptive governance in heavily regulated and developed social-ecological systems nested within a hierarchical governmental system. We summarize resilience assessments conducted in each system to provide a synthesis and reference by the other articles in this special feature. We also present a general framework used to evaluate the interactions between society and ecosystem regimes and the governance regimes chosen to mediate those interactions. The case studies show different ways that adaptive governance may be triggered, facilitated, or constrained by ecological and/or legal processes. The resilience assessments indicate that complex interactions among the governance and ecosystem components of these systems can produce different trajectories, which include patterns of (a development and stabilization, (b cycles of crisis and recovery, which includes lurches in adaptation and learning, and (3 periods of innovation, novelty, and transformation. Exploration of cross scale (Panarchy interactions among levels and sectors of government and society illustrate that they may constrain development trajectories, but may also provide stability during crisis or innovation at smaller scales; create crises, but may also facilitate recovery; and constrain system transformation, but may also provide windows of opportunity in which transformation, and the resources to accomplish it, may occur. The framework is the starting point for our exploration of how law might play a role in enhancing the capacity of social-ecological systems to adapt to climate change.

'"My Land, Your Social Transformation": Conflicts within the Landless People Movement (MST), Rio De Janeiro, Brazil

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Caldeira, Rute

2008-01-01

The Brazilian "Movimento dos Trabalhadores Rurais Sem-Terra" (MST) is one of the best-known and most prominent rural social movements. The unequal distribution of land in Brazil, and the neglect of this problem by successive Brazilian governments contributed greatly to the organisation of rural movements striving for the implementation…

Social wasps (Polistinae from Pampa Biome: South Brazil, Northeastern Argentina and Uruguay

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Alexandre Somavilla

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract. This study aimed to determine social wasps’ species from Pampa Biome. Were examined samples of social wasps from south-central of Rio Grande do Sul state (Brazil, parts of Buenos Aires, Entre Rios, Corrientes, Cordoba, Santa Fé and La Pampa provinces (Argentina and in Uruguay maintained in the Coleção Entomológica de Santa Cruz do Sul (Santa Cruz do Sul-Brazil, American Museum of Natural History (USA, Natural History Museum (London-United Kingdom and Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle (Paris-France. Thirty species were recorded: Agelaia (01, Brachygastra (01, Mischocyttarus (04, Polistes (15, Polybia (08 and Protonectarina (01. Vespas sociais do Bioma Pampa: sul do Brasil, nordeste da Argentina e Uruguai. Resumo. Este estudo objetivou determinar as espécies de vespas sociais provenientes do Bioma Pampa. Foram examinadas vespas sociais provenientes de coletas da região centro-sul do Rio Grande do Sul (Brasil, parte das províncias de Buenos Aires, Entre Rios, Corrientes, Cordoba, Santa Fé e La Pampa (Argentina e Uruguai depositadas na Coleção Entomológica de Santa Cruz do Sul (Santa Cruz do Sul-Brasil, American Museum of Natural History (Nova Iorque-USA, Natural History Museum (Londres-Reino Unido e Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle (Paris-França. Trinta espécies foram registradas: Agelaia (01, Brachygastra (01, Mischocyttarus (04, Polistes (15, Polybia (08 e Protonectarina (01.

On the routes of Social Psychology in Brazil Sobre os rumos da Psicologia Social no Brasil

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Celso Pereira de Sá

2013-03-01

Full Text Available Considering the different paths of knowledge production that Social psychologists have run in Brazil, the text makes a distinction between a stricto sensu Social Psychology and the lato sensu one. The stricto sensu Social Psychologycomprises the trends found in the historical development of the discipline and in scientific modernity: the mainstream "psychological" Social Psychology; the European "sociological" Social Psychology; the "micro-sociological" perspectives, since Mead. The lato sensu Social Psychology comprises the trends that emerged aside the subject's history or very recently, following other epistemological guidelines: the Marxist Social Psychology, institutional analysis, socio-historical Psychology, socio-constructionism, and the philosophical Social Psychology. The eight trends listed are then submitted to evaluations regarding the two basic dimensions of Social Psychology: societal and psychological. A comparative picture of those evaluations discloses differences between the stricto and lato sensu sets of Social Psychology, as well as between the several trends in the scope of each set.Considerando os variados rumos de produção de conhecimento trilhados no Brasil pelos psicólogos sociais, o texto faz distinção entre uma Psicologia Social stricto sensu e outra lato sensu. À Psicologia Social stricto sensu correspondem as correntes que se situam no desenvolvimento histórico da disciplina e na modernidade científica: a Psicologia Social "psicológica" mainstream; a Psicologia Social "sociológica" europeia; as perspectivas "microssociológicas", desde Mead. À Psicologia Social lato sensu correspondem as correntes surgidas à margem da história da disciplina ou muito recentemente, com outras diretrizes epistemológicas: Psicologia Social marxista, análise institucional, Psicologia sócio-histórica, sócio-construcionismo e Psicologia Social filosófica. As oito correntes listadas são em seguida submetidas a avalia

Exposure to Violence across the Social Ecosystem and the Development of Aggression: A Test of Ecological Theory in the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

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Boxer, Paul; Huesmann, L. Rowell; Dubow, Eric F.; Landau, Simha F.; Gvirsman, Shira Dvir; Shikaki, Khalil; Ginges, Jeremy

2013-01-01

Bronfenbrenner's (1979) ecological model proposes that events in higher order social ecosystems should influence human development through their impact on events in lower order social ecosystems. This proposition was tested with respect to ecological violence and the development of children's aggression via analyses of 3 waves of data (1 wave…

Rivers are social–ecological systems: Time to integrate human dimensions into riverscape ecology and management

Science.gov (United States)

Dunham, Jason B.; Angermeier, Paul L.; Crausbay, Shelley D.; Cravens, Amanda; Gosnell, Hannah; McEvoy, Jamie; Moritz, Max A.; Raheem, Nejem; Sanford, Todd

2018-01-01

Incorporation of concepts from landscape ecology into understanding and managing riverine ecosystems has become widely known as riverscape ecology. Riverscape ecology emphasizes interactions among processes at different scales and their consequences for valued ecosystem components, such as riverine fishes. Past studies have focused strongly on understanding the ecological processes in riverscapes and how human actions modify those processes. It is increasingly clear, however, that an understanding of the drivers behind actions that lead to human modification also merit consideration, especially regarding how those drivers influence management efficacy. These indirect drivers of riverscape outcomes can be understood in the context of a diverse array of social processes, which we collectively refer to as human dimensions. Like ecological phenomena, social processes also exhibit complex interactions across spatiotemporal scales. Greater emphasis on feedbacks between social and ecological processes will lead scientists and managers to more completely understand riverscapes as complex, dynamic, interacting social–ecological systems. Emerging applications in riverscapes, as well as studies of other ecosystems, provide examples that can lead to stronger integration of social and ecological science. We argue that conservation successes within riverscapes may not come from better ecological science, improved ecosystem service analyses, or even economic incentives if the fundamental drivers of human behaviors are not understood and addressed in conservation planning and implementation.

Geographical patterns in climate and agricultural technology drive soybean productivity in Brazil.

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Caetano, Jordana Moura; Tessarolo, Geiziane; de Oliveira, Guilherme; Souza, Kelly da Silva E; Diniz-Filho, José Alexandre Felizola; Nabout, João Carlos

2018-01-01

The impacts of global climate change have been a worldwide concern for several research areas, including those dealing with resources essential to human well being, such as agriculture, which directly impact economic activities and food security. Here we evaluate the relative effect of climate (as indicated by the Ecological Niche Model-ENM) and agricultural technology on actual soybean productivity in Brazilian municipalities and estimate the future geographic distribution of soybeans using a novel statistical approach allowing the evaluation of partial coefficients in a non-stationary (Geographically Weighted Regression; GWR) model. We found that technology was more important than climate in explaining soybean productivity in Brazil. However, some municipalities are more dependent on environmental suitability (mainly in Southern Brazil). The future environmental suitability for soybean cultivation tends to decrease by up 50% in the central region of Brazil. Meanwhile, southern-most Brazil will have more favourable conditions, with an increase of ca. 25% in environmental suitability. Considering that opening new areas for cultivation can degrade environmental quality, we suggest that, in the face of climate change impacts on soybean cultivation, the Brazilian government and producers must invest in breeding programmes and more general ecosystem-based strategies for adaptation to climate change, including the development of varieties tolerant to climate stress, and strategies to increase productivity and reduce costs (social and environmental).

Irregular water supply, household usage and dengue: a bio-social study in the Brazilian Northeast

OpenAIRE

Caprara,Andrea; Lima,José Wellington de Oliveira; Marinho,Alice Correia Pequeno; Calvasina,Paola Gondim; Landim,Lucyla Paes; Sommerfeld,Johannes

2009-01-01

Despite increased vector control efforts, dengue fever remains endemic in Fortaleza, Northeast Brazil, where sporadic epidemic outbreaks have occurred since 1986. Multiple factors affect vector ecology such as social policy, migration, urbanization, city water supply, garbage disposal and housing conditions, as well as community level understanding of the disease and related practices. This descriptive study used a multi-disciplinary approach that bridged anthropology and entomology. A multip...

Agriculture, Rio Sao Francisco, Brazil, South America

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1988-01-01

The large field patterns in this view of the Rio Sao Francisco basin, Brazil, South America, (11.5S, 43.5W) indicate a commercial agriculture venture; family subsistence farms are much smaller and laid out in different patterns. Land clearing in Brazil has increased at an alarming rate in recent years and preliminary estimates suggest a 25 to 30% increase in deforestation since 1984. The long term impact on the ecological processes are still unknown.

[Political ecology, ecological economics, and public health: interfaces for the sustainability of development and health promotion].

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Porto, Marcelo Firpo; Martinez-Alier, Joan

2007-01-01

This article proposes to focus contributions from political ecology and ecological economics to the field of collective health with a view towards integrating the discussions around health promotion, socio-environmental sustainability, and development. Ecological economics is a recent interdisciplinary field that combines economists and other professionals from the social, human, and life sciences. The field has developed new concepts and methodologies that seek to grasp the relationship between the economy and ecological and social processes such as social metabolism and metabolic profile, thereby interrelating economic, material, and energy flows and producing indicators and indexes for (un)sustainability. Meanwhile, political ecology approaches ecological issues and socio-environmental conflicts based on the economic and power dynamics characterizing modern societies. Collective health and the discussions on health promotion can expand our understanding of territory, communities, and the role of science and institutions based on the contributions of political ecology and ecological economics in analyzing development models and the distributive and socio-environmental conflicts generated by them.

Setting Priorities for Urban Forest Planning. A Comprehensive Response to Ecological and Social Needs for the Metropolitan Area of Rome (Italy

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Giulia Capotorti

2015-04-01

Full Text Available Urban forests represent key elements of green infrastructure and provide essential ecosystem services in both the ecological and social spheres. Therefore, forestation planning plays a decisive role in the sustainable development strategies of metropolitan areas and addresses the challenge of maintaining biodiversity while improving human health and well-being. The aim of this work is to present a methodological approach that can be used to identify priorities in urban forest planning and can provide comprehensive responses to ecological and social needs in any metropolitan context. The approach, which is based on interdisciplinary principles of landscape ecology, ecosystem geography and dynamic plant sociology, has been adopted in the Municipality of Rome (Italy. The first step entails defining an ecological framework for forestation plans by means of the ecological land classification and assessment of landscape conservation status. The second step entails setting forestation priorities according to both ecological and social criteria. The application of the method proved to effectively select limited areas requiring intervention within an extensive metropolitan area. Furthermore, it provided responses to sustainability issues such as long-term maintenance of restored habitats, landscape perspective of planning, greening of urban agriculture, improvement in urban resilience, and cost-effective improvement in ecosystem services provision.

Social and Historical Approaches Regarding Street Children in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) in the Context of the Transition to Democracy.

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Filho, Gisalio Cerqueira; Neder, Gizlene

2001-01-01

This review examines the social literature on Brazilian street children to determine causal factors. Stressing the socioeconomic aspects of poverty and social exclusion, the analyses identify three basic themes: the family, high failure rates in school, and child/adolescent labor. The role of Brazil's economic crisis of the late 1970s and…

A participatory systems approach to modeling social, economic, and ecological components of bioenergy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Buchholz, Thomas S.; Volk, Timothy A.; Luzadis, Valerie A.

2007-01-01

Availability of and access to useful energy is a crucial factor for maintaining and improving human well-being. Looming scarcities and increasing awareness of environmental, economic, and social impacts of conventional sources of non-renewable energy have focused attention on renewable energy sources, including biomass. The complex interactions of social, economic, and ecological factors among the bioenergy system components of feedstock supply, conversion technology, and energy allocation have been a major obstacle to the broader development of bioenergy systems. For widespread implementation of bioenergy to occur there is a need for an integrated approach to model the social, economic, and ecological interactions associated with bioenergy. Such models can serve as a planning and evaluation tool to help decide when, where, and how bioenergy systems can contribute to development. One approach to integrated modeling is by assessing the sustainability of a bioenergy system. The evolving nature of sustainability can be described by an adaptive systems approach using general systems principles. Discussing these principles reveals that participation of stakeholders in all components of a bioenergy system is a crucial factor for sustainability. Multi-criteria analysis (MCA) is an effective tool to implement this approach. This approach would enable decision-makers to evaluate bioenergy systems for sustainability in a participatory, transparent, timely, and informed manner

Social-ecological perspective in the analysis of protected natural areas of the metropolitan area of Barcelona (Spain)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Iago Otero, Armengol; Boada Junca, Marti

2008-01-01

Socio ecological approach tries to integrate natural sciences and social sciences to study reality from an interdisciplinary perspective. Under this point of view, the article analyses the environmental history in the municipality of Matadepera and studies the socio ecological heritage in Olzinelles valley. Through the two case studies we link socio ecological approach with the improvement of management and conservation of two natural protected areas in the Barcelona Metropolitan Region: Sant Llorenc del Munt i l'Obac Natural Park and Montnegre i el Corredor Park

The Futures Wheel: A method for exploring the implications of social-ecological change

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D.N. Bengston

2015-01-01

Change in social-ecological systems often produces a cascade of unanticipated consequences. Natural resource professionals and other stakeholders need to understand the possible implications of cascading change to prepare for it. The Futures Wheel is a "smart group" method that uses a structured brainstorming process to uncover and evaluate multiple levels of...

The Social Ecological Model and Physical Activity Interventions for Hispanic Women With Type 2 Diabetes: A Review.

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Soderlund, Patricia Davern

2017-05-01

Hispanic women are less physically active and have higher rates of type 2 diabetes (DM2) when compared with other population groups. This review uses the social ecological model as a framework to identify the individual and social environmental factors associated with successful physical activity (PA) interventions for Hispanic women with DM2. Research questions include (a) Which social ecological levels have been applied to PA interventions? (b) Which individual and social environmental intervention strategies are associated with successful PA outcomes? Database searches using CINAHL, PubMed, and Scopus for the years 2000 to 2015 identified 10 studies; with 6 using quasi-experimental study designs and 4 using randomized controlled designs. Inclusion criteria were Hispanic/Latina women with DM2, ≥70% women, PA interventions, measures of PA, and quantitative designs. Future research should focus on a combination of intervention levels, and DM2 programs should place a greater emphasis on PA intervention strategies.

Towards Integrating Political Ecology into Resilience-Based Management

OpenAIRE

Amy Quandt

2016-01-01

One of the biggest challenges faced today is how to sustainably manage social-ecological systems for both ecological conservation and human wellbeing. This paper explores two approaches to understanding such systems: resilience thinking and political ecology. Resilience thinking is a framework that emerged over the last 40 years as a management strategy for social-ecological systems, and a resilient social-ecological system is capable of absorbing disturbances and still retaining its basic fu...

Operationalising a social-ecological system perspective on the Arctic Ocean.

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Crépin, Anne-Sophie; Gren, Åsa; Engström, Gustav; Ospina, Daniel

2017-12-01

We propose a framework to support management that builds on a social-ecological system perspective on the Arctic Ocean. We illustrate the framework's application for two policy-relevant scenarios of climate-driven change, picturing a shift in zooplankton composition and alternatively a crab invasion. We analyse archetypical system dynamics between the socio-economic, the natural, and the governance systems in these scenarios. Our holistic approach can help managers identify looming problems arising from complex system interactions and prioritise among problems and solutions, even when available data are limited.

Social Ecology of Child Soldiers: Child, Family, and Community Determinants of Mental Health, Psychosocial Wellbeing, and Reintegration in Nepal

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Kohrt, Brandon A.; Jordans, Mark J.D.; Tol, Wietse A.; Perera, Em; Karki, Rohit; Koirala, Suraj; Upadhaya, Nawaraj

2013-01-01

This study employs social ecology to evaluate psychosocial wellbeing in a cross-sectional sample of 142 former child soldiers in Nepal. Outcome measures included the Depression Self Rating Scale (DSRS), Child Posttraumatic Stress Scale (CPSS), and locally developed measures of function impairment and reintegration. At the child level, traumatic exposures, especially torture, predicted poor outcomes, while education improved outcomes. At the family level, conflict-related death of a relative, physical abuse in the household, and loss of wealth during the conflict predicted poor outcomes. At the community level, living in high caste Hindu communities predicted fewer reintegration supports. Ultimately, social ecology is well-suited to identify intervention foci across ecological levels, based on community differences in vulnerability and protective factors. PMID:21088102

Social representation of Hansen's disease thirty years after the term "leprosy" was replaced in Brazil.

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Oliveira, Maria Leide Wand-del-Rey; Mendes, Carla Maria; Tardin, Rachel Tebaldi; Cunha, Mônica Duarte; Arruda, Angela

2003-01-01

Based on the theories of social representation (SC) and Central Core (CC), a structural study was undertaken regarding the neologism hanseniase (Hansen's disease), the term adopted by Brazil's Ministry of Health in the 1970s. Carried out during 2001, this study interviewed eight hundred housewives residing in the Rio de Janeiro and Duque de Caxias municipalities. It found that Hansen's disease is part of a process of modernization of common thinking, anchored in the additional representation of leprosy. This finding is understandable from the perspective that the central structure of a social representation has a historical determination, so short -and middle-term changes are not to be expected. Furthermore, there has been no ongoing investment in social marketing to make the new terminology more widely known. The authors discuss the relation between social representation and the concept of the history of mentalities.

Political violence and child adjustment in Northern Ireland: Testing pathways in a social-ecological model including single-and two-parent families.

Science.gov (United States)

Cummings, E Mark; Schermerhorn, Alice C; Merrilees, Christine E; Goeke-Morey, Marcie C; Shirlow, Peter; Cairns, Ed

2010-07-01

Moving beyond simply documenting that political violence negatively impacts children, we tested a social-ecological hypothesis for relations between political violence and child outcomes. Participants were 700 mother-child (M = 12.1 years, SD = 1.8) dyads from 18 working-class, socially deprived areas in Belfast, Northern Ireland, including single- and two-parent families. Sectarian community violence was associated with elevated family conflict and children's reduced security about multiple aspects of their social environment (i.e., family, parent-child relations, and community), with links to child adjustment problems and reductions in prosocial behavior. By comparison, and consistent with expectations, links with negative family processes, child regulatory problems, and child outcomes were less consistent for nonsectarian community violence. Support was found for a social-ecological model for relations between political violence and child outcomes among both single- and two-parent families, with evidence that emotional security and adjustment problems were more negatively affected in single-parent families. The implications for understanding social ecologies of political violence and children's functioning are discussed.

Political violence and child adjustment in Northern Ireland: Testing pathways in a social ecological model including single and two-parent families

Science.gov (United States)

Cummings, E. Mark; Schermerhorn, Alice C.; Merrilees, Christine E.; Goeke-Morey, Marcie C.; Shirlow, Peter; Cairns, Ed

2013-01-01

Moving beyond simply documenting that political violence negatively impacts children, a social ecological hypothesis for relations between political violence and child outcomes was tested. Participants were 700 mother-child (M=12.1years, SD=1.8) dyads from 18 working class, socially deprived areas in Belfast, Northern Ireland, including single- and two-parent families. Sectarian community violence was associated with elevated family conflict and children’s reduced security about multiple aspects of their social environment (i.e., family, parent-child relations, and community), with links to child adjustment problems and reductions in prosocial behavior. By comparison, and consistent with expectations, links with negative family processes, child regulatory problems and child outcomes were less consistent for nonsectarian community violence. Support was found for a social ecological model for relations between political violence and child outcomes among both single and two parent families, with evidence that emotional security and adjustment problems were more negatively affected in single-parent families. The implications for understanding social ecologies of political violence and children’s functioning are discussed. PMID:20604605

Aldo Leopold's land health from a resilience point of view: self-renewal capacity of social-ecological systems.

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Berkes, Fikret; Doubleday, Nancy C; Cumming, Graeme S

2012-09-01

Health approaches to ecology have a strong basis in Aldo Leopold's thinking, and contemporary ecohealth in turn has a strong philosophical basis in Leopold. To commemorate the 125th anniversary of Leopold's birth (1887-1948), we revisit his ideas, specifically the notions of stewardship (land ethic), productive use of ecosystems (land), and ecosystem renewal. We focus on Leopold's perspective on the self-renewal capacity of the land, as understood in terms of integrity and land health, from the contemporary perspective of resilience theory and ecological theory more generally. Using a broad range of literature, we explore insights and implications of Leopold's work for today's human-environment relationships (integrated social-ecological systems), concerns for biodiversity, the development of agency with respect to stewardship, and key challenges of his time and of ours. Leopold's seminal concept of land health can be seen as a triangulation of productive use, self-renewal, and stewardship, and it can be reinterpreted through the resilience lens as the health of social-ecological systems. In contemporary language, this involves the maintenance of biodiversity and ecosystem services, and the ability to exercise agency both for conservation and for environmental justice.

Brazil's Amazonian dams: Ecological and socioeconomic impacts

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Fearnside, P. M.

2016-12-01

Brazil's 2015-2024 Energy Expansion Plan calls for 11 hydroelectric dams with installed capacity ≥ 30 MW in the country's Amazon region. Dozens of other large dams are planned beyond this time horizon, and dams with environmental and socioeconomic impacts. Loss of forest to flooding is one, the Balbina and Tucuruí Dams being examples (each 3000 km2). If the Babaquara/Altamira Dam is built it will flood as much forest as both of these combined. Some planned dams imply loss of forest in protected areas, for example on the Tapajós River. Aquatic and riparian ecosystems are lost, including unique biodiversity. Endemic fish species in rapids on the Xingu and Tapajós Rivers are examples. Fish migrations are blocked, such as the commercially important "giant catfish" of the Madeira River. Dams emit greenhouse gases, including CO2 from the trees killed and CH4 from decay under anoxic conditions at the bottom of reservoirs. Emissions can exceed those from fossil-fuel generation, particularly over the 20-year period during which global emissions must be greatly reduced to meet 1.5-2°C limit agreed in Paris. Carbon credit for dams under the Climate Convention causes further net emission because the dams are not truly "additional." Anoxic environments in stratified reservoirs cause methylation of mercury present in Amazonian soils, which concentrates in fish, posing a health risk to human consumers. Population displacement is a major impact; for example, the Marabá Dam would displace 40,000 people, mostly traditional riverside dwellers (ribeirinhos). Various dams impact indigenous peoples, such as the Xingu River dams (beginning with Belo Monte) and the São Luiz do Tapajós and Chacorão Dams on the Tapajós River. Brazil has many energy options other than dams. Much energy use has little benefit for the country, such as exporting aluminum. Electric showerheads use 5% of the country's power. Losses in transmission lines (20%) are far above global averages and can be

Rural Development Policy in Brazil: the dilemma between productive inclusion and social

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ademir Antonio Cazella

2016-10-01

Full Text Available DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5007/2175-7984.2016v15nesp1p49 In the past two decades an evident dichotomy has been established between policies of a productive nature and those aimed at social assistance for family farms in Brazil. The purpose of this article is to analyze this duality in the main public policies for family farming, and presents a quantitative overview of the results. From a methodological perspective the analysis was based on the number of farmers who benefit from the agrarian reform policies, rural credit, institutional food markets, rural social security and income transfer. The main results of this study indicate that the economic support for the productive activities of Brazilian family farming have been concentrated among the intermediary and well-established farms that are inserted in markets. In parallel, most family farmers are relegated to social assistance programs and not integrated to the working agendas of the main professional organizations in agriculture.

Ecological aspects of the casque-headed frog Aparasphenodon brunoi (Anura, Hylidae in a Restinga habitat in southeastern Brazil

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Daniel Oliveira Mesquita

2004-09-01

Full Text Available We describe some aspects of the ecology of Aparasphenodon brunoi, a species associated with bromeliads. We comment on the relationships of this species with bromeliad size, microhabitat use, diet and sexual dimorphism. This study was conducted on a Restinga habitat near Presidente Kennedy, state of Espírito Santo, southeastern coast of Brazil. When the animals were found inside the bromeliads, we measure bromeliad and head size of frogs. We analyzed stomach contents and determined the sex and reproductive condition. We found 17 individuals (58.6% in bromeliad leafs, six (20.7% in Cactaceae, three (10.3% in liana and three (10.3% on trunks. The correlation between head measurements and bromeliad size were high, indicating that animals apparently use bromeliads based on their size, which could be related to the minimization of water loss. The most common prey items were beetles, ants, and insect larvae, suggesting that the species is relatively generalist in prey consumption. Aparasphenodon brunoi showed significant sexual size and shape dimorphism with females having larger bodies than males (size and females having tibia, eye diameter and SVL larger than males (shape, but larger sample size and more detailed ecological and life history data are needed to elucidate the factors that have led to sexual size dimorphism.

An Ecological Exploration of Young Children's Digital Play: Framing Children's Social Experiences with Technologies in Early Childhood

Science.gov (United States)

Arnott, Lorna

2016-01-01

This article outlines an ecological framework for describing children's social experiences during digital play. It presents evidence from a study that explored how 3- to 5-year-old children negotiated their social experiences as they used technologies in preschool. Utilising a systematic and iterative cycle of data collection and analysis,…

Associations between individual and environmental factors and habitual physical activity among older Chinese adults:A social-ecological perspective

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Xiangren Yi; Rui Wang; Zachary Pope; Zan Gao; Shumei Wang; Fang Pan; Jingpeng Yan; Meng Liu; Peipei Wu; Jingjing Xu

2016-01-01

Purpose: To examine, within a social–ecological framework, associations between multifaceted individual and environmental factors and habitual physical activity (HPA) among older Chinese adults. Methods: Through a mix of qualitative and quantitative methods, a survey instrument assessing various factors underlying 3 social–ecological dimensions of intrapersonal, interpersonal, and community and environmental resources was developed. Using a cross-sectional design, older adults (n=1580, aged 67 ± 7 years) recruited from 10 communities in Shandong province completed the social–ecological survey of HPA. Data were analyzed using Partial Least Squares Path Modeling. Results: Factors related to intrapersonal (medical knowledge, motivation, physical function, sport skills, socioeconomic status, and education), interpersonal (social support, social activity, and social norms), and community and physical environmental resources (safety, capacity, availability of and access to physical activity facilities) were found to be significantly associated with older adults’ participation in HPA. Conclusion: The findings provide an initial validation of a social–ecological approach to the study of HPA in China, suggesting that strategies aimed at promoting physical activity in older adults should address multiple levels of factors that may contribute to the likelihood of older Chinese adults being physically active. © 2016 Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of Shanghai University of Sport. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

A mixed-methods analysis of social-ecological feedbacks between urbanization and forest persistence

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Todd BenDor

2014-09-01

Full Text Available We examined how social-ecological factors in the land-change decision-making process influenced neighboring decisions and trajectories of alternative landscape ecologies. We decomposed individual landowner decisions to conserve or develop forests in the rapidly growing Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S. region, exposing and quantifying the effects of forest quality, and social and cultural dynamics. We tested the hypothesis that the intrinsic value of forest resources, e.g., cultural attachment to land, influence woodland owners' propensity to sell. Data were collected from a sample of urban, nonindustrial private forest (U-NIPF owners using an individualized survey design that spatially matched land-owner responses to the ecological and timber values of their forest stands. Cluster analysis (n = 126 revealed four woodland owner typologies with widely ranging views on the ecosystem, cultural, and historical values of their forests. Classification tree analysis revealed woodland owners' willingness to sell was characterized by nonlinear, interactive factors, including sense of place values regarding the retention of native vegetation, the size of forest holdings, their connectedness to nature, 'pressure' from surrounding development, and behavioral patterns, such as how often landowners visit their land. Several ecological values and economic factors were not found to figure in the decision to retain forests. Our study design is unique in that we address metropolitan forest persistence across urban-rural and population gradients using a unique individualized survey design that richly contextualizes survey responses. Understanding the interplay between policies and landowner behavior can also help resource managers to better manage and promote forest persistence. Given the region's paucity of policy tools to manage the type and amount of development, the mosaic of land cover the region currently enjoys is far from stable.

Energy and social and environmental consequences in Rondonia State, Brazil; Energia e reflexos socio-ambientais em Rondonia

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lascio, Vania L. di [Brasilia Univ., DF (Brazil). Dept. de Engenharia Agronomica; Paz, Luciana R.L. da [Brasilia Univ., DF (Brazil). Dept. de Sociologia

1996-12-31

The social and environmental consequences of the recent occupation of the State of Rondonia, Brazil, are presented.The lack of basic structure for settlement of the migrants brought many problems and in this context, the use of renewable energy could be the basis for developing the region 10 refs., 2 figs.

Mammal Ecology Social Behaviour in Mammals

African Journals Online (AJOL)

... used as a complimentary text to accompany university courses in ecology and mam- ... is useful to have a treatment organized along phylogenetic lines. One benefit of .... Courtship sequences of butterflies, fish, newts and birds are described. ..... a more ecological approach providing functional interpreta- tions in order to ...

Aspects of the ecology of Penelope superciliaris temminck, 1815 (Aves: Cracidae in the Araripe National Forest, Ceará, Brazil

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T. N. Thel

Full Text Available Abstract Guans are large frugivorous birds that inhabit Neotropical forests and play a fundamental role in seed dispersal and forest regeneration. Despite their ecological importance, the natural populations of these birds are increasingly threatened by deforestation and hunting pressure. The present study was conducted in the Araripe National Forest, Ceará (Brazil, with the objective of estimating population parameters (density and total population size in the Rusty-margined Guan (Penelope superciliaris and the White-browed Guan (Penelope jacucaca, as well as providing data on their feeding ecology, including seasonal variation and fruit morphology. The study was based on the monthly collection of data between November, 2011, and October, 2012. Population parameters were estimated using line transect surveys, while feeding ecology was studied by direct observation, and the collection of plant and fecal samples. The estimated population density of P. superciliaris was 19.17 individuals/km2 (CV=13.98%, with a mean of 0.13 sightings per 10 km walked. Penelope jacucaca was not encountered during the surveys. A total of 14 plant species were recorded in the diet of P. superciliaris, 12 by direct observation, and two from fecal samples. Fruit diameter varied from 6.3±1.35 mm (Miconia albicans to 29.9±1.7 mm (Psidium sp.. Yellow was the most frequent fruit color (41.6%, n=5, with two species each (16.6% providing black, green, and red fruits. Fleshy fruits of the baccate (50.0%, n=6 and drupe (33.3%, n=4 types were the most consumed. The data on population parameters and feeding ecology collected in the present study provide an important database for the development of effective management strategies by environmental agencies for the conservation of the populations of the two guan species.

[Ecological executive function characteristics and effects of executive function on social adaptive function in school-aged children with epilepsy].

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, X J; Wang, L L; Zhou, N

2016-02-23

To explore the characteristics of ecological executive function in school-aged children with idiopathic or probably symptomatic epilepsy and examine the effects of executive function on social adaptive function. A total of 51 school-aged children with idiopathic or probably symptomatic epilepsy aged 5-12 years at our hospital and 37 normal ones of the same gender, age and educational level were included. The differences in ecological executive function and social adaptive function were compared between the two groups with the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF) and Child Adaptive Behavior Scale, the Pearson's correlation test and multiple stepwise linear regression were used to explore the impact of executive function on social adaptive function. The scores of school-aged children with idiopathic or probably symptomatic epilepsy in global executive composite (GEC), behavioral regulation index (BRI) and metacognition index (MI) of BRIEF ((62±12), (58±13) and (63±12), respectively) were significantly higher than those of the control group ((47±7), (44±6) and (48±8), respectively))(Pchildren with idiopathic or probably symptomatic epilepsy in adaptive behavior quotient (ADQ), independence, cognition, self-control ((86±22), (32±17), (49±14), (41±16), respectively) were significantly lower than those of the control group ((120±12), (59±14), (59±7) and (68±10), respectively))(Pchildren with idiopathic or probably symptomatic epilepsy. School-aged children with idiopathic or probably symptomatic epilepsy may have significantly ecological executive function impairment and social adaptive function reduction. The aspects of BRI, inhibition and working memory in ecological executive function are significantly related with social adaptive function in school-aged children with epilepsy.

Feeding ecology of three juvenile mojarras (Gerreidae in a tropical estuary of northeastern Brazil

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Antônio Limeira Felinto de Araújo

Full Text Available ABSTRACT Distributions and feeding ecology of mojarra species from shallow water of a tropical estuary in Northeastern Brazil were observed aiming to investigate differences in distribution and resource partitioning among juveniles of three species of mojarras. Fishes were collected with a beach seine across four sites along a salinity gradient from January to December of 2011. Highest abundances were recorded during the rainy season in the upper and middle estuary. Microcrustaceans, mainly copepods, were the preferential prey items of all mojarras, irrespective of size or hydrological season, suggesting these areas may be important nursery habitats. Juveniles of mojarra used two important mechanisms for exploitation of resources: (1 spatial segregation along the salinity and temperature gradient, such as abundance of Eucinostomus melanopterus increased from downstream to upstream estuary, while Eugerres brasilianus displayed an opposite pattern; (2 differences related to the volumetric proportion of the main prey items, with indications that E. melanopterus and Diapterus rhombeus fed predominantly on Calanoida and Cyclopoida, while the diet of E. brasilianus was dominated by items of infauna. Such strategies were important for resource partitioning, favouring the coexistence of these three species in the estuary.

Social representation of Hansen's disease thirty years after the term 'leprosy' was replaced in Brazil

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Oliveira Maria Leide Wand-del-Rey de

2003-01-01

Full Text Available Based on the theories of social representation (SC and Central Core (CC, a structural study was undertaken regarding the neologism hanseníase (Hansen's disease, the term adopted by Brazil's Ministry of Health in the 1970s. Carried out during 2001, this study interviewed eight hundred housewives residing in the Rio de Janeiro and Duque de Caxias municipalities. It found that Hansen's disease is part of a process of modernization of common thinking, anchored in the traditional representation of leprosy. This finding is understandable from the perspective that the central structure of a social representation has a historical determination, so short- and middle-term changes are not to be expected. Furthermore, there has been no ongoing investment in social marketing to make the new terminology more widely known. The authors discuss the relation between social representation and the concept of the history of mentalities.

Making big communities small: using network science to understand the ecological and behavioral requirements for community social capital.

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Neal, Zachary

2015-06-01

The concept of social capital is becoming increasingly common in community psychology and elsewhere. However, the multiple conceptual and operational definitions of social capital challenge its utility as a theoretical tool. The goals of this paper are to clarify two forms of social capital (bridging and bonding), explicitly link them to the structural characteristics of small world networks, and explore the behavioral and ecological prerequisites of its formation. First, I use the tools of network science and specifically the concept of small-world networks to clarify what patterns of social relationships are likely to facilitate social capital formation. Second, I use an agent-based model to explore how different ecological characteristics (diversity and segregation) and behavioral tendencies (homophily and proximity) impact communities' potential for developing social capital. The results suggest diverse communities have the greatest potential to develop community social capital, and that segregation moderates the effects that the behavioral tendencies of homophily and proximity have on community social capital. The discussion highlights how these findings provide community-based researchers with both a deeper understanding of the contextual constraints with which they must contend, and a useful tool for targeting their efforts in communities with the greatest need or greatest potential.

Social capital and political culture in Brazil: prospectives and constrains Capital social y cultura política en brasil: posibilidades y límites

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Cesar Marcelo BAQUERO JACOME

2010-10-01

Full Text Available This article examines the relationship between political culture and social capital in Brazil. It emphasizes the importance of constructing a political system founded in the interpersonal or reciprocal trust, as well as the confidence in the political institutions. After examining the main controversies about the definition of social capital, this article defends the idea of reterritorializing this concept, giving a strategic value insofar as the instrumental dimension is concerned, which is, the empowerment of the citizens so as to help to construct and institutionalize a participant political culture. After examining surveys carried out in Porto Alegre, Brazil, the main conclusion is that the levels of social capital in this city, and probably extensive to the country, are very low compromising, in the short run, the possibility of gerating a critical and participative citizenship.El presente artículo examina la relación entre cultura política y capital social en Brasil. Se enfatiza la importancia de construir un sistema político fundamentado en la confianza recíproca o interpersonal así como la confianza con relación a las instituciones políticas. Después de examinar las controversias sobre la conceptualización de capital social, este trabajo defiende la idea de la reterritorialización de ese concepto, valorizando su dimensión instrumental, es decir, el empoderamiento de los ciudadanos objetivando el desarrollo e institucionalización de una cultura política participativa. Tras desarrollar un análisis de encuestas llevadas a cabo en Porto Alegre, Brasil, se llega a la conclusión de que los niveles de capital social en el país son muy bajos comprometiendo, a corto plazo la posibilidad de generar una ciudadanía crítica y participativa.

A social-ecological framework: A model for addressing ethical practice in nursing.

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Davidson, Patricia; Rushton, Cynda Hylton; Kurtz, Melissa; Wise, Brian; Jackson, Debra; Beaman, Adam; Broome, Marion

2018-03-01

To develop a framework to enable discussion, debate and the formulation of interventions to address ethical issues in nursing practice. Social, cultural, political and economic drivers are rapidly changing the landscape of health care in our local environments but also in a global context. Increasingly, nurses are faced with a range of ethical dilemmas in their work. This requires investigation into the culture of healthcare systems and organisations to identify the root causes and address the barriers and enablers of ethical practice. The increased medicalisation of health care; pressures for systemisation; efficiency and cost reduction; and an ageing population contribute to this complexity. Often, ethical issues in nursing are considered within the abstract and philosophical realm until a dilemma is encountered. Such an approach limits the capacity to tangibly embrace ethical values and frameworks as pathways to equitable, accessible, safe and quality health care and as a foundation for strengthening a supportive and enabling workplace for nurses and other healthcare workers. Conceptual framework development. A comprehensive literature review was undertaken using the social-ecological framework as an organising construct. This framework views ethical practice as the outcome of interaction among a range of factors at eight levels: individual factors (patients and families); individual factors (nurses); relationships between healthcare professionals; relationships between patients and nurses; organisational healthcare context; professional and education regulation and standards; community; and social, political and economic. Considering these elements as discrete, yet interactive and intertwined forces can be useful in developing interventions to promote ethical practice. We consider this framework to have utility in policy, practice, education and research. Nurses face ethical challenges on a daily basis, considering these within a social-ecological framework can

Civic Ecology: A Postmodern Approach to Ecological Sustainability

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Lopes, V. L.

2013-12-01

Human agency is transforming the planetary processes at unprecedented rates risking damaging essential life-support systems. Climate change, massive species extinction, land degradation, resources depletion, overpopulation, poverty and social injustice are all the result of human choices and non-sustainable ways of life. The survival of our modern economic systems depends upon insatiable consumption - a simple way of life no longer satisfies most people. Detached, instrumental rationality has created an ideal of liberalism based on individual pursuit of self-interest, leading the way into unprecedented material progress but bringing with it human alienation, social injustice, and ecological degradation. The purpose of this presentation is to introduce a community-based systems response to a growing sense that the interlocked social-ecological crisis is as much a problem of human thought and behavior as it is about identifying carrying capacities and CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere. This approach, referred to here as civic ecology, presents a new and important paradigm shift in sustainability practice that attempts to bring together and integrate ecological ideas and postmodern thinking. As such, it is as much a holistic, dynamic, and synergistic approach to ecological sustainability, as it is a philosophy of life and ethical perspective born of ecological understanding and insight. Civic ecology starts with the proposition that the key factor determining the health of the ecosphere is the behavior of human beings, and therefore many of the most important issues related to sustainability lie in the areas of human thought and culture. Thus, the quest for sustainability must include as a central concern the transformation of psychological and behavioral patterns that have become an imminent danger to planetary health. At the core of this understanding is a fundamental paradigm shift from the basic commitments of modern Western culture to its model of mechanism

Can partnerships and community-based conservation reverse the decline of coral reef social-ecological systems?

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James Barclay Frey

2014-03-01

Full Text Available The marine aquarium trade has played an important role in shaping the ecological state of coral reefs in Indonesia and much of the Asia-Pacific. The use of cyanide by ornamental fishers in Buleleng District, Bali, in the 1980s and 1990s has resulted in a precipitous decline in the ecological health of reefs. Cyanide-free harvesting techniques were introduced after 2000, along with reef restoration measures. This paper examines social and ecological processes in the fishing village of Les, Bali, in ending the use of cyanide and the resulting ecological restoration. An emphasis on conservation-development (with livelihood objectives was important in securing interest and cooperation across stakeholder groups. Adaptive approaches to governance and knowledge co-production were also important. The strategy used at Les is now being exported to other communities across Indonesia, and provides a promising example of a marine resources-based conservation-development initiative that may be implemented at other, similar communities.

Translating the Social-Ecological Perspective into Multilevel Interventions for Family Planning: How Far Are We?

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Schölmerich, Vera L. N.; Kawachi, Ichiro

2016-01-01

Scholars and practitioners frequently make recommendations to develop family planning interventions that are "multilevel." Such interventions take explicit account of the role of environments by incorporating multilevel or social-ecological frameworks into their design and implementation. However, research on how interventions have…

Program on ecosystem change and society: An international research strategy for integrated social-ecological systems

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Carpenter, S.R.; Folke, C.; Norström, A.V.; Olsson, O.; Schultz, L.; Agarwal, B.; Balvanera, P.; Campbell, B.; Castilla, J.C.; Cramer, W.; DeFries, R.; Eyzaguirre, P.; Hughes, T.P.; Polasky, S.; Sanusi, Z.A.; Scholes, R.J.; Spierenburg, M.J.

2012-01-01

The Program on Ecosystem Change and Society (PECS), a new initiative within the ICSU global change programs, aims to integrate research on the stewardship of social-ecological systems, the services they generate, and the relationships among natural capital, human wellbeing, livelihoods, inequality

The Public Value of Urban Vacant Land: Social Responses and Ecological Value

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Gunwoo Kim

2016-05-01

Full Text Available This study reviews scholarly papers and case studies on urban vacant land to gain a stronger understanding of its public value in terms of the ecological and social benefits it can bring. This literature review offers a conceptual overview of the potential benefits of vacant land with the goal of addressing gaps in knowledge about vacant land and to provide suggestions to planners and designers on how vacant properties can be integrated with other green infrastructure in cities. There are many opportunities to redevelop vacant land to enhance its ecological and social value, and many design professionals and scholars are becoming interested in finding new ways to exploit this potential, especially with regard to planning and design. A better appreciation of the public value of urban vacant land is vital for any effort to identify alternative strategies to optimize the way these spaces are utilized for both short-term and long-term uses to support urban regeneration and renewal. This study will help planners and designers to understand and plan for urban vacant land, leading to better utilization of these spaces and opening up alternative creative approaches to envisioning space and landscape design in our urban environments.

SOCIAL-ECONOMICAL AND AGRO-ECOLOGICAL ISSUES OF RURAL POVERTY

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ANDRIY POPOVYCH

2017-11-01

Full Text Available The article presents the results of the study on the causes and consequences of rural poverty in connection with the main influencing factors. The paper suggests a conceptual framework for the investigation of complex relationship among economic growth, environmental degradation, climate change and rural poverty. The study highlights theoretical and empirical approaches to examination of potential relations among the well-being of rural population, the social-economic development of the agrarian sector of the economy and the state of ecology of countryside. The author introduces the practical instruments of filling the gap in current knowledge on links among economy, ecosystems, climate, and poverty, which provides implications for policy application and further research.

Towards a Social-Ecological Urbanism: Co-Producing Knowledge through Design in the Albano Resilient Campus Project in Stockholm

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Hanna Erixon Aalto

2018-03-01

Full Text Available If we are to promote urban sustainability and resilience, social-ecological knowledge must be better integrated in urban planning and design projects. Due to gaps in the two cultures of thinking that are associated with the disciplines of ecology and design, such integration has, however, proven to be challenging. In mainstream practice, ecologists often act as sub-consultants; they are seldom engaged in the creative and conceptual phases of the process. Conversely, research aiming to bridge the gap between design and ecology has tended to be dominated by a relatively static and linear outlook on what the design process is, and what it could be. Further, few concrete examples of the co-production of ecological and design knowledge exist. In this paper, we give an account of a transdisciplinary design proposal for Albano Resilient Campus in Stockholm, discussing how design—seen as a process and an assemblage of artifacts—can act as a framework for co-producing knowledge and operationalizing concepts of resilience and ecosystem services. Through a design-based and action-oriented approach, we discuss how such a collaborative design process may integrate ecological knowledge into urban design through three concrete practices: (a iterative prototyping; (b generative matrix models; and, (c legible, open-ended, comprehensive narratives. In the conclusion, we sketch the contours of a social-ecological urbanism, speculating on possible broader and changed roles for ecologists, designers, and the associated actors within this framework.

Energy policy, social exclusion and sustainable development: The biofuels and oil and gas cases in Brazil

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hall, Jeremy; Matos, Stelvia; Silvestre, Bruno

2010-09-15

Recent Brazilian policies have encouraged impoverished communities to participate in the country's growing energy industry. This paper explores the country's attempts to encourage such participation within the oil and gas and biofuels sectors. Our research is based on interviews with industry executives, policymakers, non-governmental organizations and farmers conducted between 2005-2009 in Brazil, an emerging energy leader, yet a country grappling with social exclusion. We propose that some sectors have a propensity to be exclusive due to technological complexity, whereas other sectors, although less complex, tend to economize at the expense of social programs. We conclude with managerial and policy implications.

Media coverage of the Zika crisis in Brazil: The construction of a 'war' frame that masked social and gender inequalities.

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Ribeiro, Barbara; Hartley, Sarah; Nerlich, Brigitte; Jaspal, Rusi

2018-03-01

Between 2015 and 2016, Zika became an epidemic of global concern and the focus of intense media coverage. Using a hybrid model of frame and social representations theory, we examine how the Zika outbreak was reported in two major newspapers in Brazil: O Globo and Folha de São Paulo. The analysis of 186 articles published between December 2015 and May 2016 reveals a dominant 'war' frame supported by two sub-frames: one focused on eradicating the vector (mosquito) and another on controlling microcephaly, placing the burden of prevention on women. Scientific uncertainties about the virus and its relationship to microcephaly coupled with political uncertainties in Brazil increased the power of the war frame. This frame gave prominence and legitimacy to certain representations of disease management during the crisis, masking social and gender inequalities. We show how the cartography of the disease overlaps with that of poverty and regional inequality in Brazil to argue that addressing socio-economic aspects is essential, but normally neglected, in media communications during disease outbreaks like Zika. Copyright © 2018 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Social roles and performance of social-ecological systems: evidence from behavioral lab experiments

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Irene Perez

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Social roles are thought to play an important role in determining the capacity for collective action in a community regarding the use of shared resources. Here we report on the results of a study using a behavioral experimental approach regarding the relationship between social roles and the performance of social-ecological systems. The computer-based irrigation experiment that was the basis of this study mimics the decisions faced by farmers in small-scale irrigation systems. In each of 20 rounds, which are analogous to growing seasons, participants face a two-stage commons dilemma. First they must decide how much to invest in the public infrastructure, e.g., canals and water diversion structures. Second, they must decide how much to extract from the water made available by that public infrastructure. Each round begins with a 60-second communication period before the players make their investment and extraction decisions. By analyzing the chat messages exchanged among participants during the communication stage of the experiment, we coded up to three roles per participant using the scheme of seven roles known to be important in the literature: leader, knowledge generator, connector, follower, moralist, enforcer, and observer. Our study supports the importance of certain social roles (e.g., connector previously highlighted by several case study analyses. However, using qualitative comparative analysis we found that none of the individual roles was sufficient for groups to succeed, i.e., to reach a certain level of group production. Instead, we found that a combination of at least five roles was necessary for success. In addition, in the context of upstream-downstream asymmetry, we observed a pattern in which social roles assumed by participants tended to differ by their positions. Although our work generated some interesting insights, further research is needed to determine how robust our findings are to different action situations, such as

Rural settlements: social and ecological factors influencing on internal dose formation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Visenberg, Yu.V; Vlasova, N.G.

2008-01-01

Full text: The aim of the present study is to reveal the reasons of difference in average internal doses in rural population living in the rural settlements situated on territories with equal levels of soil contamination; to show by clear examples that forming of internal dose is not only influenced directly by the contamination of the territory but also by number of factors of non-radiation origin. There were used data on internal doses as a result of WBC-measurements in rural inhabitants. Method of the study: there was applied the statistical analysis of the internal dose in rural population depending on the number of factors: radio-ecological represented by the transfer factor of radionuclides from soil to milk; environmental - closeness to the forest which, in its turn, determines intake of its resources by rural population; social - the number of population. There were selected settlements for the investigation whose residents had been WBC-measured for the period of 1990-2005's and their doses were evaluated. Thus, the conducted analysis shows that each of indirect (non-radiation) factors contributes in different way into formation of internal dose. The most significant of them is the social factor as follows from the results of the conducted analysis, represented by the number of inhabitants in a settlement. The internal dose depends not only on the level of contamination of the territory but also on the number of other factors: environmental, social, and radio-ecological. The influence of these factors on the process of dose formation in settlements should be considered simultaneously since neither of them is the leading one. Probably, there are other factors influencing on dose formation. Their investigation must be continued. (author)

Assessing the Relative Ecological Importance and Deforestation Risks of Unprotected Areas in Western Brazil Using Landsat, CBERS and Quantum GIS

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Smith, A.; Sevilla, C.; Lanclos, A.; Carson, C.; Larson, J.; Sankaran, M.; Saad, M.

2012-12-01

In addition to understanding Brazilian policies and currently utilized methodologies, the measurement of the impacts of deforestation is essential for enhancing techniques to reduce deforestation in the future. Adverse impacts of deforestation include biodiversity loss, increased carbon dioxide emissions, and a reduced rate of evapotranspiration, all of which contribute directly or indirectly to global warming. With the continual growth in population in developing countries such as Brazil, increased demands are placed on infrastructural development and food production. As a result, forested areas are cleared for agricultural production. Recently, exploration for hydrocarbons in Western Brazil has also intensified as a means to stimulate the economy, as abundant oil and gas is believed to be found in these regions. Unfortunately, hydrocarbon-rich regions of Western Brazil are also home to thousands of species. Many of these regions are as of yet untapped but are at risk of ecological disruption as a result of impending human activity. This project utilized Landsat 5 TM to monitor deforestation in a subsection of the Brazilian states of Rondônia and Amazonas. A risk map identifying areas susceptible to future deforestation, based on factors such as proximity to roads, bodies of water, cities, and proposed hydrocarbon activities such as pipeline construction, was created. Areas at higher risk of clearance were recommended to be a target for enhanced monitoring and law enforcement. In addition, an importance map was created based on biodiversity and location of endangered species. This map was used to identify potential areas for future protection. A Chinese-Brazilian satellite, CBERS 2B CCD was also utilized for comparison. The NDVI model was additionally replicated in Quantum GIS, an open source software, so that local communities and policymakers could benefit without having to pay for expensive ArcGIS software. The capabilities of VIIRS were also investigated to

Scientometrical review of Dinoflagellate studies in Brazil

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Pietro Martins Barbosa Noga

2018-06-01

Full Text Available ABSTRACT Scientific production in developing countries is currently increasing, but there is still an unbalanced distribution of scientific production between developed and developing countries. With the need to elucidate disparities in scientific production, this paper aims to review publications on dinoflagellates in Brazil by discussing spatial and temporal trends. A search for papers referring to dinoflagellates was performed in the Scopus database up to the year of 2016. A total of 125 papers were found, but only 106 were selected according to established criteria. A linear regression was used to evaluate the increasing temporal trend in production and non-parametric ANOVA for comparisons among study categories. Dinoflagellate and toxic taxa-based publications have increased from 1990 to 2016 for Brazil, yet a discrepancy in performance with other countries is evident. There is a constant increase in the number of functional ecology studies focusing on toxin-producing species related to blooms. The spatial distribution of production in Brazil revealed that the Southeast and South regions are the most productive, where there more graduate programs and advanced research centers. Investments in this ecological subject are fundamental to the management of biodiversity, and a call for more equal resource distribution in developing countries is imperative.

Impact of ecological and social factors on ranging in western gorillas.

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Doran-Sheehy, Diane M; Greer, David; Mongo, Patrice; Schwindt, Dylan

2004-10-01

We examined the influence of ecological (diet, swamp use, and rainfall) and social (intergroup interaction rate) factors on ranging behavior in one group of western gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) during a 16-month study. Relative to mountain gorillas, western gorillas live in habitats with reduced herb densities, more readily available fruit (from seasonal and rare fruit trees), and, at some sites, localized large open clearings (swamps and "bais"). Ranging behavior reflects these ecological differences. The daily path length (DPL) of western gorillas was longer (mean=2,014 m) than that of mountain gorillas, and was largely related to fruit acquisition. Swamp use occurred frequently (27% of days) and incurred a 50% increase in DPL, and 77% of the variation in monthly frequency of swamp use was explained by ripe fruit availability within the swamp, and not by the absence of resources outside the swamp. The annual home-range size was 15.4 km2. The western gorilla group foraged in larger areas each month, and reused them more frequently and consistently through time compared to mountain gorillas. In contrast to mountain gorillas, intergroup encounters occurred at least four times more frequently, were usually calm rather than aggressive, and had no consistent effect on DPL or monthly range size for one group of western gorillas. High genetic relatedness among at least some neighboring males [Bradley et al., Current Biology, in press] may help to explain these results, and raises intriguing questions about western gorilla social relationships.

[Economic development axis and socioenvironmental conflicts generation in Brazil: challenges to sustainability and environmental justice].

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Porto, Marcelo Firpo; Milanez, Bruno

2009-01-01

The 1st National Environmental Health Conference, in December 2009, presents countless challenges to the field of Public Health. It debates key concepts as development, sustainability, production and consumption processes, democracy and public policies; advocating for innovative, interdisciplinary and intersectorial aspects of Environmental Health. The Conference recovers and articulates important themes for the Public Health, and also indicates the need of reflecting the socio-environmental determinants of health at the present time, in order to provide progresses in the construction of guidelines and actions to health surveillance and promotion. This article discusses the characteristics of the Brazilian model of development, its impacts and conflicts within social, environmental and health fields. We use theoretical and empirical contributions from the fields of Ecological Economy and Political Ecology, as well as, experiences of cooperation with the Brazilian Network on Environmental Justice and several social movements. Two cases are discussed in more detail: the first related to agribusiness and the use of pesticides, and the other about the expansion of the iron and steel industry in Brazil. We conclude proposing some elements that could be incorporated by a research agenda committed to the debate about the 'socioenvironmental crisis'.

A resilience framework for chronic exposures: water quality and ecosystem services in coastal social-ecological systems

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We outline a tailored resilience framework that applies ecosystem service concepts to coastal social-ecological systems (SES) affected by water quality degradation. Unlike acute coastal disturbances such as hurricanes or oil spills, water quality issues, particularly those relate...

Social-ecological drivers of multiple ecosystem services: what variables explain patterns of ecosystem services across the Norrström drainage basin?

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Megan Meacham

2016-03-01

Full Text Available In human dominated landscapes many diverse, and often antagonistic, human activities are intentionally and inadvertently determining the supply of various ecosystem services. Understanding how different social and ecological factors shape the availability of ecosystem services is essential for fair and effective policy and management. In this paper, we evaluate how well alternative social-ecological models of human impact on ecosystems explain patterns of 16 ecosystem services (ES across the 62 municipalities of the Norrström drainage basin in Sweden. We test four models of human impact on ecosystems, land use, ecological modernization, ecological footprint, and location theory, and test their ability to predict both individual ES and bundles of ES. We find that different models do best to predict different types of individual ES. Land use is the best model for predicting provisioning services, standing water quality, biodiversity appreciation, and cross-country skiing, while other models work better for the remaining services. However, this range of models is not able to predict some of the cultural ES. ES bundles are predicted worse than individual ES by these models, but provide a clear picture of variation in multiple ecosystem services based on limited information. Based on our results, we offer suggestions on how social-ecological modeling and assessments of ecosystems can be further developed.

Social-Ecological, Motivational and Volitional Factors for Initiating and Maintaining Physical Activity in the Context of HIV.

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Ley, Clemens; Barrio, María Rato; Leach, Lloyd

2015-01-01

Sport and exercise can have several health benefits for people living with HIV. These benefits can be achieved through different types of physical activity, adapting to disease progression, motivation and social-ecological options. However, physical activity levels and adherence to exercise are generally low in people living with HIV. At the same time, high drop-out rates in intervention studies are prevalent; even though they often entail more favourable conditions than interventions in the natural settings. Thus, in the framework of an intervention study, the present study aims to explore social-ecological, motivational and volitional correlates of South African women living with HIV with regard to physical activity and participation in a sport and exercise health promotion programme. The qualitative data was produced in the framework of a non-randomised pre-post intervention study that evaluated structure, processes and outcomes of a 10-week sport and exercise programme. All 25 participants of the programme were included in this analysis, independent of compliance. Data was produced through questionnaires, participatory group discussions, body image pictures, research diaries and individual semi-structured interviews. All participants lived in a low socioeconomic, disadvantaged setting. Hence, the psychological correlates are contextualised and social-ecological influences on perception and behaviour are discussed. The results show the importance of considering social-cultural and environmental influences on individual motives, perceptions and expectancies, the fear of disclosure and stigmatisation, sport and exercise-specific group dynamics and self-supporting processes. Opportunities and strategies to augment physical activity and participation in sport and exercise programmes in the context of HIV are discussed.

The social adjustment of patients with schizophrenia: implications to the mental health policy in Brazil

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Menezes Paulo R.

1993-01-01

Full Text Available A sample (n=124 of schizophrenic patients from a defined catchment area of the city os S.Paulo, Brazil, who had been consecutively admitted to hospital, was assessed for psychopathological status and social adjustment levels. Sociodemographic, socio-economic and occupational characteristics were recorded: almost 30% of the subjects had no occupation and received no social benefit, more than two-thirds had a monthly per capita income of US$ 100.00 or less. Sixty-five percent presented with Schneiderian firstrank symptoms. Nearly half the sample showed poor or very poor social adjustment in the month prior to admission. The most affected areas of social functioning were participation in the household activities, work and social withdrawal. The current mental health policy of promoting extra-mural care as an alternative to the previous hospital-based model will then mean the investment in a network of new community-based services, that give effective treatment and support to patients and their families. The need of further research into the current picture of mental disorders in the country is stressed.

The social adjustment of patients with schizophrenia: implications to the mental health policy in Brazil

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Paulo R. Menezes

1993-10-01

Full Text Available A sample (n=124 of schizophrenic patients from a defined catchment area of the city os S.Paulo, Brazil, who had been consecutively admitted to hospital, was assessed for psychopathological status and social adjustment levels. Sociodemographic, socio-economic and occupational characteristics were recorded: almost 30% of the subjects had no occupation and received no social benefit, more than two-thirds had a monthly per capita income of US$ 100.00 or less. Sixty-five percent presented with Schneiderian firstrank symptoms. Nearly half the sample showed poor or very poor social adjustment in the month prior to admission. The most affected areas of social functioning were participation in the household activities, work and social withdrawal. The current mental health policy of promoting extra-mural care as an alternative to the previous hospital-based model will then mean the investment in a network of new community-based services, that give effective treatment and support to patients and their families. The need of further research into the current picture of mental disorders in the country is stressed.

The Growing Trend of Moderate Preterm Births: An Ecological Study in One Region of Brazil.

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Rosana Rosseto de Oliveira

Full Text Available Preterm birth is a serious public health problem, as it is linked to high rates of neonatal and child morbidity and mortality, with Brazil listed among the countries with the ten highest numbers of premature births. Nonetheless, knowledge is scarce regarding prematurity and associated factors in mid-sized cities. The objective of this study was to analyze the trend of preterm births and associated factors in a municipality located in the state of Paraná, Brazil.This was an ecological time series study of births recorded into the Live Birth Information System for residents of Maringá, Paraná, Brazil, between 2000 and 2013. The polynomial regression model was used for trend analysis of preterm birth, characteristics of the mother, gestation and delivery, and newborn. The association with preterm birth was analyzed using odds ratio (OR.A total of 61,634 live births were analyzed, of which 5,632 were preterm births. Prematurity increased from 7.9% in 2000 to 11.2% in 2013 -an average increase of 0.54% per year (r2 = 0.93-with a growing share of moderate preterm births (32 to <37 weeks, which rose from 7.0% in 2000 to 9.7% in 2013. Between 2011 and 2013, multiple pregnancy (OR = 16.64; CI = 13.24-20.92, inadequate number of prenatal visits (OR = 2.81; CI = 2.51-3.15, Apgar score below 7 at 1 (OR = 4.07; CI = 3.55-4.67 and 5 minutes (OR = 10.88; CI = 7.71-15.36, low birth weight (OR = 38.75; CI = 33.72-44.55 and congenital malformations (OR = 3.18; CI = 2.14-4.74 were associated with preterm birth. A growing trend was observed for multiple pregnancies, with an average annual increase of 0.32% (r2 = 0.90, as well as for C-section birth (2.38% yearly increase. Of all newborn characteristics, Apgar score below 7 at 5 minutes (-0.19% per year and low birth weight (-1.43% decreased, whereas congenital malformations rose (0.20% per year.Efforts are required to prevent premature delivery, particularly during the moderate period, as well as greater care

The Growing Trend of Moderate Preterm Births: An Ecological Study in One Region of Brazil.

Science.gov (United States)

Oliveira, Rosana Rosseto de; Melo, Emiliana Cristina; Falavina, Larissa Pereira; Mathias, Thais Aidar de Freitas

2015-01-01

Preterm birth is a serious public health problem, as it is linked to high rates of neonatal and child morbidity and mortality, with Brazil listed among the countries with the ten highest numbers of premature births. Nonetheless, knowledge is scarce regarding prematurity and associated factors in mid-sized cities. The objective of this study was to analyze the trend of preterm births and associated factors in a municipality located in the state of Paraná, Brazil. This was an ecological time series study of births recorded into the Live Birth Information System for residents of Maringá, Paraná, Brazil, between 2000 and 2013. The polynomial regression model was used for trend analysis of preterm birth, characteristics of the mother, gestation and delivery, and newborn. The association with preterm birth was analyzed using odds ratio (OR). A total of 61,634 live births were analyzed, of which 5,632 were preterm births. Prematurity increased from 7.9% in 2000 to 11.2% in 2013 -an average increase of 0.54% per year (r2 = 0.93)-with a growing share of moderate preterm births (32 to 2000 to 9.7% in 2013. Between 2011 and 2013, multiple pregnancy (OR = 16.64; CI = 13.24-20.92), inadequate number of prenatal visits (OR = 2.81; CI = 2.51-3.15), Apgar score below 7 at 1 (OR = 4.07; CI = 3.55-4.67) and 5 minutes (OR = 10.88; CI = 7.71-15.36), low birth weight (OR = 38.75; CI = 33.72-44.55) and congenital malformations (OR = 3.18; CI = 2.14-4.74) were associated with preterm birth. A growing trend was observed for multiple pregnancies, with an average annual increase of 0.32% (r2 = 0.90), as well as for C-section birth (2.38% yearly increase). Of all newborn characteristics, Apgar score below 7 at 5 minutes (-0.19% per year) and low birth weight (-1.43%) decreased, whereas congenital malformations rose (0.20% per year). Efforts are required to prevent premature delivery, particularly during the moderate period, as well as greater care during the prenatal period towards

[Urban ecological risk assessment: a review].

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Wang, Mei-E; Chen, Wei-Ping; Peng, Chi

2014-03-01

With the development of urbanization and the degradation of urban living environment, urban ecological risks caused by urbanization have attracted more and more attentions. Based on urban ecology principles and ecological risk assessment frameworks, contents of urban ecological risk assessment were reviewed in terms of driven forces, risk resources, risk receptors, endpoints and integrated approaches for risk assessment. It was suggested that types and degrees of urban economical and social activities were the driven forces for urban ecological risks. Ecological functional components at different levels in urban ecosystems as well as the urban system as a whole were the risk receptors. Assessment endpoints involved in changes of urban ecological structures, processes, functional components and the integrity of characteristic and function. Social-ecological models should be the major approaches for urban ecological risk assessment. Trends for urban ecological risk assessment study should focus on setting a definite protection target and criteria corresponding to assessment endpoints, establishing a multiple-parameter assessment system and integrative assessment approaches.

Ecological alarm system for Itaipu

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Faehser, L.

1984-05-01

At Itaipu, on the Rio Parana, Brazil and Paraguay are constructing the world's largest hydro-electric power plant with a capacity seven times as high as that of Assuan. An information system is intended to give fair warning in case of threatening ecological conditions. The computer-supported alarm system had four objectives: 1. presentation of the present ecological situation; 2. evaluation of the ecological risks; 3. warning about ecological deficits; 4. suggestions for establishing ecological stability. In a first step the available inventory data concerning soil, topography, vegetation and water were evaluated by expert groups according to their risk grade (0-4) and ecological weight (1-10). The product of these evaluations indicates the ecological deficit (0-40). At a threshold value of 30, the information system automatically signals ecological alarm and locates the centre of danger via computer-plotted maps and tables. The necessary data are supplied periodically by selected measurement stations. Quantification of ecological facts enables the persons who are responsible for decisions at Itaipu to recognize, avoid, or diminish elements of danger even if they have little or no ecological knowledge. The file of data that has been compiled so far should be extended parallel with the development in the Itaipu area. With the help of factor analysis connections of cause and effect can be detected in this extremely complex reservoir system which has hardly been explored yet.

Emerging synthesis themes from the study of social-ecological systems of a tropical city

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Tischa A. Munoz; A.E. Lugo; B. Quintero

2014-01-01

The synthesis of the contributions in this special issue about the tropical city of San Juan has resulted in five themes. First, the city is subject to multiple vulnerabilities, but socioeconomic factors and education level affect the perception of citizens to those vulnerabilities, even in the face of imminent threat. Second, in light of the social-ecological...

Social contextual factors contributing to child and adolescent labor: an ecological analysis

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Vilma Sousa Santana

2011-08-01

Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: To examine the relationship between social contextual factors and child and adolescent labor. METHODS: Population-based cohort study carried out with 2,512 families living in 23 subareas of a large urban city in Brazil from 2000 to 2002. A random one-stage cluster sampling was used to select families. Data were obtained through individual household interviews using questionnaires. The annual cumulative incidence of child and adolescent labor was estimated for each district. New child and adolescent labor cases were those who had their first job over the two-year follow-up. The annual cumulative incidence of child and adolescent labor was the response variable and predictors were contextual factors such as lack of social support, social deprivation, unstructured family, perceived violence, poor school quality, poor environment conditions, and poor public services. Pearson's correlation and multiple linear regression were used to assess the associations. RESULTS: There were selected 943 families corresponding to 1,326 non-working children and adolescents aged 8 to 17 years. Lack of social support, social deprivation, perceived violence were all positively and individually associated with the annual cumulative incidence of child and adolescent labor. In the multiple linear regression model, however, only lack of social support and perceived violence in the neighborhood were positively associated to child and adolescent labor. No effect was found for poor school quality, poor environment conditions, poor public services or unstructured family. CONCLUSIONS: Poverty reduction programs can reduce the contextual factors associated with child and adolescent labor. Violence reduction programs and strengthening social support at the community level may contribute to reduce CAL.

The dual impact of ecology and management on social incentives in marine common-pool resource systems.

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Klein, E S; Barbier, M R; Watson, J R

2017-08-01

Understanding how and when cooperative human behaviour forms in common-pool resource systems is critical to illuminating social-ecological systems and designing governance institutions that promote sustainable resource use. Before assessing the full complexity of social dynamics, it is essential to understand, concretely and mechanistically, how resource dynamics and human actions interact to create incentives and pay-offs for social behaviours. Here, we investigated how such incentives for information sharing are affected by spatial dynamics and management in a common-pool resource system. Using interviews with fishermen to inform an agent-based model, we reveal generic mechanisms through which, for a given ecological setting characterized by the spatial dynamics of the resource, the two 'human factors' of information sharing and management may heterogeneously impact various members of a group for whom theory would otherwise predict the same strategy. When users can deplete the resource, these interactions are further affected by the management approach. Finally, we discuss the implications of alternative motivations, such as equity among fishermen and consistency of the fleet's output. Our results indicate that resource spatial dynamics, form of management and level of depletion can interact to alter the sociality of people in common-pool resource systems, providing necessary insight for future study of strategic decision processes.

The Social ecology of Madrid: Stratification in comparative perspective.

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Abrahamson, M; Johnson, P

1974-08-01

This paper examines the characteristics of residential zones in Madrid, Spain. The primary difference between zones is found to lie in a new bourgeoisie life-style dimension. Working women are found to be the best indicator of this dimension, which also involves servants, natives of Madrid and high degrees of literacy. Fertility-related considerations, however, are unrelated to working women, and this is explained as due to the availability of domestic help and "women-oriented" working arrangements. Fertility and socioeconomic status are found to be interrelated and constitute a second dimension of residential segregation. In conclusion, Madrid is examined in relation to both more and less industrialized cities, leading to a further modification of social area theory contentions concerning the ecology of stratification in developing cities.

Social-environmental factors and protective sexual behavior among sex workers: the Encontros intervention in Brazil.

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Lippman, Sheri A; Donini, Angela; Díaz, Juan; Chinaglia, Magda; Reingold, Arthur; Kerrigan, Deanna

2010-04-01

We sought to determine the association of social-environmental factors with condom use and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among 420 sex workers participating in an STI/HIV prevention study in Corumbá, Brazil, to inform future intervention efforts. Participants provided urine samples for polymerase chain reaction testing of chlamydia and gonorrhea and responded to multi-item scales addressing perceived social cohesion, participation in networks, and access to and management of resources. We conducted multivariate log-linear and negative binomial regression analyses of these data. Increased social cohesion was inversely associated with number of unprotected sex acts in the preceding week among women (adjusted incidence rate ratio [IRR] = 0.80; P < .01), and there was a marginal association among men (adjusted IRR = 0.41; P = .08). Women's increased participation in social networks was associated with a decrease in frequency of unprotected sex acts (adjusted IRR = 0.83; P = .04), as was men's access to and management of social and material resources (IRR = 0.15; P = .01). Social-environmental factors were not associated with STIs. The social context within which populations negotiate sexual behaviors is associated with condom use. Future efforts to prevent STI/HIV should incorporate strategies to modify the social environment.

Building social-ecological resilience through adaptive comanagement in the Cache River Watershed of southern Illinois

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Kofi. Akamani

2014-01-01

There is growing recognition that the sustainable governance of water resources requires building social-ecological resilience against future surprises. Adaptive comanagement, a distinct institutional mechanism that combines the learning focus of adaptive management with the multilevel linkages of comanagement, has recently emerged as a promising mechanism for building...

A Social-ecological framework for urban stewardship network research to promote sustainable and resilient cities

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Michele Romolini; R. Patrick Bixler; Morgan Grove

2016-01-01

To realize more sustainable and resilient urban social-ecological systems, there is great need for active engagement from diverse public agencies, non-profit organizations, businesses, natural resource managers, scientists, and other actors. Cities present unique challenges and opportunities for sustainability and resilience, as issues and organizations are frequently...

Feeding ecology of Hypostomus punctatus Valenciennes, 1840 (Osteichthyes, Loricariidae in a costal stream from Southeast Brazil

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R. Mazzoni

Full Text Available In the present study we aimed to compare the feeding ecology of Hypostomus punctatus from a coastal stream from Southeast Brazil with data previously published for the same study site before environmental changes. Feeding preferences were assessed through a sample of 138 specimens (67 from the dry and 71 from the rainy season using the Index of Alimentary Importance (IAi. We registered five different food items (detritus, plant fragments, Diatoms, Chloroficeae and Cianobacteries composing the species diet. Detritus was the most abundant one both during the rainy and dry seasons (IAirainny = 90.34 and IAidry = 96.30. No significant differences were registered for the volume of food items consumed during the rainy and dry seasons. The Frequency of Occurrence analysis showed that four (detritus, plant fragments, Diatoms and Chloroficeae among the five all other consumed ones, were always frequent. Comparing our own results with those available for the study site, we suggest that the feeding habit of H. punctatus has changed according to environmental changes and that the species diet is strongly dependent upon environmental conditions.

Fostering Complexity Thinking in Action Research for Change in Social-Ecological Systems

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Kevin H. Rogers

2013-06-01

Full Text Available Complexity thinking is increasingly being embraced by a wide range of academics and professionals as imperative for dealing with today's pressing social-ecological challenges. In this context, action researchers partner directly with stakeholders (communities, governance institutions, and work resource managers, etc. to embed a complexity frame of reference for decision making. In doing so, both researchers and stakeholders must strive to internalize not only "intellectual complexity" (knowing but also "lived complexity" (being and practicing. Four common conceptualizations of learning (explicit/tacit knowledge framework; unlearning selective exposure; conscious/competence learning matrix; and model of learning loops are integrated to provide a new framework that describes how learning takes place in complex systems. Deep reflection leading to transformational learning is required to foster the changes in mindset and behaviors needed to adopt a complexity frame of reference. We then present three broad frames of mind (openness, situational awareness, and a healthy respect for the restraint/action paradox, which each encompass a set of habits of mind, to create a useful framework that allows one to unlearn reductionist habits while adopting and embedding those more conducive to working in complex systems. Habits of mind provide useful heuristic tools to guide researchers and stakeholders through processes of participative planning and adaptive decision making in complex social-ecological systems.

Energy policy, social exclusion and sustainable development: The biofuels and oil and gas cases in Brazil

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Hall, Jeremy; Matos, Stelvia; Silvestre, Bruno

2010-09-15

Recent Brazilian policies have encouraged impoverished communities to participate in the country's growing energy industry. This paper explores the country's attempts to encourage such participation within the oil and gas and biofuels sectors. Our research is based on interviews with industry executives, policymakers, non-governmental organizations and farmers conducted between 2005-2009 in Brazil, an emerging energy leader, yet a country grappling with social exclusion. We propose that some sectors have a propensity to be exclusive due to technological complexity, whereas other sectors, although less complex, tend to economize at the expense of social programs. We conclude with managerial and policy implications.

The Samarco Disaster in Brazil: challenges for biodiversity conservation

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Haruf Salmen Espindola

2016-12-01

Full Text Available On November 5, 2015, Brazil and the world noticed the environmental disaster caused by the disruption of Fundão dam (Samarco / Vale / BHP Billiton in Mariana, Minas Gerais. The disaster's impact was not restricted to dam’s immediately downstream areas, where caused destruction of human settlements, but also impacted waterways, farmland, economic activities, drinking water supply to cities and biodiversity. The State Park of Rio Doce (PERD, the main remnant of the Atlantic Forest from Minas Gerais state faced a threat not predicted in his management plan. So, this article is dedicated to the history and importance of the PERD, to the Samarco/Vale/BHP disaster and to impacts on this Conservation Unit. Therefore, it discusses disaster impacts to human life and biodiversity, because ecological conditions even imply on opportunities and obstacles to Social Processes.

Brazil's worst mining disaster: Corporations must be compelled to pay the actual environmental costs.

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Garcia, Letícia Couto; Ribeiro, Danilo Bandini; de Oliveira Roque, Fabio; Ochoa-Quintero, Jose Manuel; Laurance, William F

2017-01-01

In November 2015, a large mine-tailing dam owned by Samarco Corporation collapsed in Brazil, generating a massive wave of toxic mud that spread down the Doce River, killing 20 people and affecting biodiversity across hundreds of kilometers of river, riparian lands, and Atlantic coast. Besides the disaster's serious human and socioeconomic tolls, we estimate the regional loss of environmental services to be ~US$521 million per year. Although our estimate is conservative, it is still six times higher than the fine imposed on Samarco by Brazilian environmental authorities. To reduce such disparities between estimated damages and levied fines, we advocate for an environmental bond policy that considers potential risks and environmental services that could possibly be impacted by irresponsible mining activity. Environmental bonds and insurance are commonly used policy instruments in many countries, but there are no clear environmental bond policies in Brazil. Environmental bonds are likely to be more effective at securing environmental restitution than post-disaster fines, which generally are inadequate and often unpaid. We estimate that at least 126 mining dams in Brazil are vulnerable to failure in the forthcoming years. Any such event could have severe social-environmental consequences, underscoring the need for effective disaster-management strategies for large-scale mining operations. © 2016 by the Ecological Society of America.

Smart social adaptation prevents catastrophic ecological regime shifts in networks of myopic harvesters

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Donges, Jonathan; Lucht, Wolfgang; Wiedermann, Marc; Heitzig, Jobst; Kurths, Jürgen

2015-04-01

In the anthropocene, the rise of global social and economic networks with ever increasing connectivity and speed of interactions, e.g., the internet or global financial markets, is a key challenge for sustainable development. The spread of opinions, values or technologies on these networks, in conjunction with the coevolution of the network structures themselves, underlies nexuses of current concern such as anthropogenic climate change, biodiversity loss or global land use change. To isolate and quantitatively study the effects and implications of network dynamics for sustainable development, we propose an agent-based model of information flow on adaptive networks between myopic harvesters that exploit private renewable resources. In this conceptual model of a network of socio-ecological systems, information on management practices flows between agents via boundedly rational imitation depending on the state of the resource stocks involved in an interaction. Agents can also adapt the structure of their social network locally by preferentially connecting to culturally similar agents with identical management practices and, at the same time, disconnecting from culturally dissimilar agents. Investigating in detail the statistical mechanics of this model, we find that an increasing rate of information flow through faster imitation dynamics or growing density of network connectivity leads to a marked increase in the likelihood of environmental resource collapse. However, we show that an optimal rate of social network adaptation can mitigate this negative effect without loss of social cohesion through network fragmentation. Our results highlight that seemingly immaterial network dynamics of spreading opinions or values can be of large relevance for the sustainable management of socio-ecological systems and suggest smartly conservative network adaptation as a strategy for mitigating environmental collapse. Hence, facing the great acceleration, these network dynamics should

Social ecology of child soldiers: child, family, and community determinants of mental health, psychosocial well-being, and reintegration in Nepal.

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Kohrt, Brandon A; Jordans, Mark J D; Tol, Wietse A; Perera, Em; Karki, Rohit; Koirala, Suraj; Upadhaya, Nawaraj

2010-11-01

This study employed a social ecology framework to evaluate psychosocial well-being in a cross-sectional sample of 142 former child soldiers in Nepal. Outcome measures included the Depression Self Rating Scale (DSRS), Child Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Symptom Scale (CPSS), and locally developed measures of functional impairment and reintegration. Hierarchical linear modeling was used to examine the contribution of factors at multiple levels. At the child level, traumatic exposures, especially torture, predicted poor outcomes, while education improved outcomes. At the family level, conflict-related death of a relative, physical abuse in the household, and loss of wealth during the conflict predicted poor outcomes. At the community level, living in high caste Hindu communities predicted lack of reintegration supports. Ultimately, social ecology is well suited to identify intervention foci across ecological levels based on community differences in vulnerability and protective factors.

Social network models predict movement and connectivity in ecological landscapes

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Fletcher, Robert J.; Acevedo, M.A.; Reichert, Brian E.; Pias, Kyle E.; Kitchens, Wiley M.

2011-01-01

Network analysis is on the rise across scientific disciplines because of its ability to reveal complex, and often emergent, patterns and dynamics. Nonetheless, a growing concern in network analysis is the use of limited data for constructing networks. This concern is strikingly relevant to ecology and conservation biology, where network analysis is used to infer connectivity across landscapes. In this context, movement among patches is the crucial parameter for interpreting connectivity but because of the difficulty of collecting reliable movement data, most network analysis proceeds with only indirect information on movement across landscapes rather than using observed movement to construct networks. Statistical models developed for social networks provide promising alternatives for landscape network construction because they can leverage limited movement information to predict linkages. Using two mark-recapture datasets on individual movement and connectivity across landscapes, we test whether commonly used network constructions for interpreting connectivity can predict actual linkages and network structure, and we contrast these approaches to social network models. We find that currently applied network constructions for assessing connectivity consistently, and substantially, overpredict actual connectivity, resulting in considerable overestimation of metapopulation lifetime. Furthermore, social network models provide accurate predictions of network structure, and can do so with remarkably limited data on movement. Social network models offer a flexible and powerful way for not only understanding the factors influencing connectivity but also for providing more reliable estimates of connectivity and metapopulation persistence in the face of limited data.

Social network models predict movement and connectivity in ecological landscapes.

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Fletcher, Robert J; Acevedo, Miguel A; Reichert, Brian E; Pias, Kyle E; Kitchens, Wiley M

2011-11-29

Network analysis is on the rise across scientific disciplines because of its ability to reveal complex, and often emergent, patterns and dynamics. Nonetheless, a growing concern in network analysis is the use of limited data for constructing networks. This concern is strikingly relevant to ecology and conservation biology, where network analysis is used to infer connectivity across landscapes. In this context, movement among patches is the crucial parameter for interpreting connectivity but because of the difficulty of collecting reliable movement data, most network analysis proceeds with only indirect information on movement across landscapes rather than using observed movement to construct networks. Statistical models developed for social networks provide promising alternatives for landscape network construction because they can leverage limited movement information to predict linkages. Using two mark-recapture datasets on individual movement and connectivity across landscapes, we test whether commonly used network constructions for interpreting connectivity can predict actual linkages and network structure, and we contrast these approaches to social network models. We find that currently applied network constructions for assessing connectivity consistently, and substantially, overpredict actual connectivity, resulting in considerable overestimation of metapopulation lifetime. Furthermore, social network models provide accurate predictions of network structure, and can do so with remarkably limited data on movement. Social network models offer a flexible and powerful way for not only understanding the factors influencing connectivity but also for providing more reliable estimates of connectivity and metapopulation persistence in the face of limited data.

Hotspots of human-induced biomass productivity decline and their social-ecological types toward supporting national policy and local studies on combating land degradation

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Vu, Quyet Manh; Le, Quang Bao; Vlek, Paul L. G.

2014-10-01

Identification and social-ecological characterization of areas that experience high levels of persistent productivity decline are essential for planning appropriate management measures. Although land degradation is mainly induced by human actions, the phenomenon is concurrently influenced by global climate changes that need to be taken into account in land degradation assessments. This study aims to delineate the geographic hotspots of human-induced land degradation in the country and classify the social-ecological characterizations of each specific degradation hotspot type. The research entailed a long-term time-series (1982-2006) of Normalized Difference Vegetation Index to specify the extents of areas with significant biomass decline or increase in Vietnam. Annual rainfall and temperature time-series were then used to separate areas of human-induced biomass productivity decline from those driven by climate dynamics. Next, spatial cluster analyses identified social-ecological types of degradation for guiding further investigations at regional and local scales. The results show that about 19% of the national land mass experienced persistent declines in biomass productivity over the last 25 years. Most of the degraded areas are found in the Southeast and Mekong River Delta (17,984 km2), Northwest Mountains (14,336 km2), and Central Highlands (13,504 km2). We identified six and five social-ecological types of degradation hotspots in agricultural and forested zones, respectively. Constraints in soil nutrient availability and nutrient retention capability are widely spreading in all degradation hotspot types. These hotspot types are different from each other in social and ecological conditions, suggesting that region-specific strategies are needed for the formulation of land degradation combating policy.

Wicked Social-Ecological Problems Forcing Unprecedented Change on the Latitudinal Margins of Coral Reefs: the Case of Southwest Madagascar

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J. Henrich. Bruggemann

2012-12-01

Full Text Available High-latitude coral reefs may be a refuge and area of reef expansion under climate change. As these locations are expected to become dryer and as livestock and agricultural yields decline, coastal populations may become increasingly dependent on marine resources. To evaluate this social-ecological conundrum, we examined the Grand Récif of Toliara (GRT, southwest Madagascar, which was intensively studied in the 1960s and has been highly degraded since the 1980s. We analyzed the social and ecological published and unpublished literature on this region and provide new data to assess the magnitude of the changes and evaluate the causes of reef degradation. Top-down controls were identified as the major drivers: human population growth and migrations, overfishing, and climate change, specifically decreased rainfall and rising temperature. Water quality has not changed since originally studied, and bottom-up control was ruled out. The identified network of social-ecological processes acting at different scales implies that decision makers will face complex problems that are linked to broader social, economic, and policy issues. This characterizes wicked problems, which are often dealt with by partial solutions that are exploratory and include inputs from various stakeholders along with information sharing, knowledge synthesis, and trust building. A hybrid approach based on classical fishery management options and preferences, along with monitoring, feedback and forums for searching solutions, could move the process of adaptation forward once an adaptive and appropriately scaled governance system is functioning. This approach has broad implications for resources management given the emerging climate change and multiple social and environmental stresses.

Ecological relationships between feather mites (Acari and wild birds of Emberizidae (Aves in a fragment of Atlantic Forest in northeastern Brazil

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Lyra-Neves Rachel M. de

2003-01-01

Full Text Available The objective of this study was to investigate feather mites on birds of the Family Emberizidae, to collect data on the ecological ectoparasite-host relationship and infestation level. A sum of 94 birds of 9 species was captured at the Refúgio Ecológico Charles Darwin, Igarassú, Pernambuco, Brazil, from August 1996 to July 1997. Five genera of mites from the superfamily Analgoidea were identified: Analges Nitzsch, 1818; Mesalgoides Gaud & Atyeo, 1967; Pterodectes Robin, 1877; Proctophyllodes Robin, 1877 and Trouessartia Canestrini, 1899. Among the 94 birds examined, 92 (97,87% were infested. Regarding the prevalence, it was observed that the genera with higher percentage were, respectively, Pterodectes (88,04%, Proctophyllodes (56,52% and Trouessartia (45,65%.

Defining tipping points for social-ecological systems scholarship—an interdisciplinary literature review

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Milkoreit, Manjana; Hodbod, Jennifer; Baggio, Jacopo; Benessaiah, Karina; Calderón-Contreras, Rafael; Donges, Jonathan F.; Mathias, Jean-Denis; Rocha, Juan Carlos; Schoon, Michael; Werners, Saskia E.

2018-03-01

The term tipping point has experienced explosive popularity across multiple disciplines over the last decade. Research on social-ecological systems (SES) has contributed to the growth and diversity of the term’s use. The diverse uses of the term obscure potential differences between tipping behavior in natural and social systems, and issues of causality across natural and social system components in SES. This paper aims to create the foundation for a discussion within the SES research community about the appropriate use of the term tipping point, especially the relatively novel term ‘social tipping point.’ We review existing literature on tipping points and similar concepts (e.g. regime shifts, critical transitions) across all spheres of science published between 1960 and 2016 with a special focus on a recent and still small body of work on social tipping points. We combine quantitative and qualitative analyses in a bibliometric approach, rooted in an expert elicitation process. We find that the term tipping point became popular after the year 2000—long after the terms regime shift and critical transition—across all spheres of science. We identify 23 distinct features of tipping point definitions and their prevalence across disciplines, but find no clear taxonomy of discipline-specific definitions. Building on the most frequently used features, we propose definitions for tipping points in general and social tipping points in SES in particular.

Alcohol drinking patterns by gender, ethnicity, and social class in Bahia, Brazil

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Naomar Almeida-Filho

2004-02-01

Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: To study patterns of alcohol consumption and prevalence of high-risk drinking. METHODS: A household survey was carried out in a sample of 2,302 adults in Salvador, Brazil. Cases of High-Risk Drinking (HRD were defined as those subjects who referred daily or weekly binge drinking plus episodes of drunkenness and those who reported any use of alcoholic beverages but with frequent drunkenness (at least once a week. RESULTS: Fifty-six per cent of the sample acknowledged drinking alcoholic beverages. Overall consumption was significantly related with gender (male, marital status (single, migration (non-migrant, better educated (college level, and social class (upper. No significant differences were found regarding ethnicity, except for cachaça (Brazilian sugarcane liquor and other distilled beverages. Overall 12-month prevalence of high-risk drinking was 7%, six times more prevalent among males than females (almost 13% compared to 2.4%. A positive association of HRD prevalence with education and social class was found. No overall relationship was found between ethnicity and HRD. Male gender and higher socioeconomic status were associated with increased odds of HRD. Two-way stratified analyses yielded consistent gender effects throughout all strata of independent variables. CONCLUSIONS: The findings suggest that social and cultural elements determine local patterns of alcohol-drinking behavior. Additional research on long-term and differential effects of gender, ethnicity, and social class on alcohol use and misuse is needed in order to explain their role as sources of social health inequities.

Alcohol drinking patterns by gender, ethnicity, and social class in Bahia, Brazil

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Almeida-Filho Naomar

2004-01-01

Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: To study patterns of alcohol consumption and prevalence of high-risk drinking. METHODS: A household survey was carried out in a sample of 2,302 adults in Salvador, Brazil. Cases of High-Risk Drinking (HRD were defined as those subjects who referred daily or weekly binge drinking plus episodes of drunkenness and those who reported any use of alcoholic beverages but with frequent drunkenness (at least once a week. RESULTS: Fifty-six per cent of the sample acknowledged drinking alcoholic beverages. Overall consumption was significantly related with gender (male, marital status (single, migration (non-migrant, better educated (college level, and social class (upper. No significant differences were found regarding ethnicity, except for cachaça (Brazilian sugarcane liquor and other distilled beverages. Overall 12-month prevalence of high-risk drinking was 7%, six times more prevalent among males than females (almost 13% compared to 2.4%. A positive association of HRD prevalence with education and social class was found. No overall relationship was found between ethnicity and HRD. Male gender and higher socioeconomic status were associated with increased odds of HRD. Two-way stratified analyses yielded consistent gender effects throughout all strata of independent variables. CONCLUSIONS: The findings suggest that social and cultural elements determine local patterns of alcohol-drinking behavior. Additional research on long-term and differential effects of gender, ethnicity, and social class on alcohol use and misuse is needed in order to explain their role as sources of social health inequities.

Prevalence of temporary social security benefits due to respiratory disease in Brazil.

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Ildefonso, Simone de Andrade Goulart; Barbosa-Branco, Anadergh; Albuquerque-Oliveira, Paulo Rogério

2009-01-01

To determine the prevalence of temporary social security benefits due to respiratory disease granted to employees, as well as the number of lost workdays and costs resulting from those in Brazil between 2003 and 2004. Cross-sectional study using data obtained from the Unified System of Benefits of the Brazilian Institute of Social Security (INSS, Instituto Nacional de Seguro Social) and the Brazilian Social Registry Database. Data regarding gender, age, diagnosis and type of economic activity, as well as type, duration and cost of benefits, were compiled. Respiratory diseases accounted for 1.3% of the total number of temporary social security benefits granted by INSS, with a prevalence rate of 9.92 (per 10,000 employment contracts). Females and individuals older than 50 years of age were the most affected. Non-work-related benefits were more common than were work-related benefits. The most prevalent diseases were pneumonia, asthma and COPD, followed by laryngeal and vocal cord diseases. The most prevalent types of economic activity were auxiliary transportation equipment manufacturing, tobacco product manufacturing and computer-related activities. The mean duration of benefits was 209.68 days, with a mean cost of R$ 4,495.30 per occurrence. Respiratory diseases caused by exogenous agents demanded longer sick leave (mean, 296.72 days) and greater cost (mean, R$ 7,105.74). The most prevalent diseases were airway diseases and pneumonia. Workers from auxiliary transportation equipment manufacturing, tobacco product manufacturing and computer-related activities were the most affected. Diseases caused by exogenous agents demanded longer sick leaves and resulted in greater costs.

Transient Social-Ecological Stability: the Effects of Invasive Species and Ecosystem Restoration on Nutrient Management Compromise in Lake Erie

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Eric D. Roy

2010-03-01

Full Text Available Together, lake ecosystems and local human activity form complex social-ecological systems (SESs characterized by feedback loops and discontinuous change. Researchers in diverse fields have suggested that complex systems do not have single stable equilibria in the long term because of inevitable perturbation. During this study, we sought to address the general question of whether or not stable social-ecological equilibria exist in highly stressed and managed lacustrine systems. Using an integrated human-biophysical model, we investigated the impacts of a species invasion and ecosystem restoration on SES equilibrium, defined here as a compromise in phosphorus management among opposing stakeholders, in western Lake Erie. Our integrated model is composed of a calibrated ecological submodel representing Sandusky Bay, and a phosphorus management submodel that reflects the societal benefits and costs of phosphorus regulation. These two submodels together form a dynamic feedback loop that includes freshwater ecology, ecosystem services, and phosphorus management. We found that the invasion of dreissenid mussels decreased ecosystem resistance to eutrophication, necessitating increased phosphorus management to preserve ecosystem services and thus creating the potential for a shift in social-ecological equilibrium. Additionally, our results suggest that net benefits in the region following the invasion of dreissenids may never again reach the pre-invasion level if on-site phosphorus control is the sole management lever. Further demonstrating transient system stability, large-scale wetland restoration shifted points of management compromise to states characterized by less on-site phosphorus management and higher environmental quality, resulting in a significant increase in net benefits in the region. We conclude that lacustrine SESs are open and dynamic, and we recommend that future models of these systems emphasize site-specific perturbation over

Conflict between constitutional norms: monopoly of nuclear ore and the social function of property in Brazil

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Costa-de-Moura, Jorge

2014-01-01

This monograph broaches about the conflict existing between the social Constitution of 1988, in relation to what is disposed in the Article 5, XXIII and XXIV, entrenchment clause of immediate application that determines the social function of property in Brazil, and articles 21, XXIII, and 177, V, that stipulate the monopoly of ores containing nuclear elements, i.e., those containing the chemical elements uranium, thorium, and plutonium in economically exploitable amounts. Initially, the work deals with legal definitions for nuclear ore, nuclear policy of some countries, the economical concepts of the social function of property and the negative aspects related to the maintenance of the nuclear ore in the state monopole regime in confrontation with the economic and social interest also expressed in the Constitutional Valance of 1988. Finally, it is presented an actualized compilation of nuclear laws related to the Brazilian nuclear policy and a glossary of terms used in the nuclear policy conducted by the Brazilian Nuclear Regulatory Agency (CNEN). (author)

Exploring the Social Ecological Model Based on National Student Achievements: Extracting Educational Leaders' Role

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Shapira-Lishchinsky, Orly; Ben-Amram, Miri

2018-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to reexamine the effect of internal school factors such as school violence and class size, and external school factors such as family socio-economic resources on student math achievements, based on the social ecological model, eliciting an integrative approach. Data were collected from an Israeli national database,…

Social-Ecological Transformation for Ecosystem Management: the Development of Adaptive Co-management of a Wetland Landscape in Southern Sweden

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Per Olsson

2004-12-01

Full Text Available We analyze the emergence of an adaptive co-management system for wetland landscape governance in southern Sweden, a process where unconnected management by several actors in the landscape was mobilized, renewed, and reconfigured into ecosystem management within about a decade. Our analysis highlights the social mechanisms behind the transformation toward ecosystem management. The self-organizing process was triggered by perceived threats among members of various local stewardship associations and local government to the area's cultural and ecological values. These threats challenged the development of ecosystem services in the area. We show how one individual, a key leader, played an instrumental role in directing change and transforming governance. The transformation involved three phases: 1 preparing the system for change, 2 seizing a window of opportunity, and 3 building social-ecological resilience of the new desired state. This local policy entrepreneur initiated trust-building dialogue, mobilized social networks with actors across scales, and started processes for coordinating people, information flows and ongoing activities, and for compiling and generating knowledge, understanding, and management practices of ecosystem dynamics. Understanding, collaborative learning, and creating public awareness were part of the process. A comprehensive framework was developed with a shared vision and goals that presented conservation as development, turned problems into possibilities, and contributed to a shift in perception among key actors regarding the values of the wetland landscape. A window of opportunity at the political level opened, which made it possible to transform the governance system toward a trajectory of ecosystem management. The transformation involved establishing a new municipal organization, the Ecomuseum Kristianstads Vattenrike (EKV. This flexible organization serves as a bridge between local actors and governmental bodies and is

Four hurdles for conservation on private land: the case of the golden lion tamarin, Atlantic Forest, Brazil.

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Ralf Christopher Buckley

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Many threatened species worldwide rely on patches of remnant vegetation in private landholdings. To establish private reserves that contribute effectively to conservation involves a wide range of complex and interacting ecological, legal, social and financial factors. These can be seen as a series of successive hurdles, each with multiple bars, which must all be surmounted. The golden lion tamarin, Leontopithecus rosalia, is restricted to the Atlantic Forest biome in the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. This forest is largely cleared. There are many small remnant patches on private lands, able to support tamarins. Local NGO’s have successfully used limited funds to contribute to tamarin conservation in a highly cost effective way. We examined the mechanisms by analysing documents and interviewing landholders and other stakeholders. We found that the local NGOs successfully identified landholdings where ecological, legal, social and some financial hurdles had already been crossed, and helped landholders over the final financial hurdle by funding critical cost components. This cost <5% of the price of outright land purchase. This approach is scaleable for golden lion tamarin elsewhere within the Atlantic Forest biome, and applicable for other species and ecosystems worldwide.

Distribution of rare earths, thorium and uranium in bryophytes and soils in Tripui Ecological Station, Minas Gerais, Brazil

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Palmieri, Helena E.L.; Nalini Junior, Herminio A.; Friese, Kurt

2007-01-01

The concentrations of rare earth elements (REEs), thorium and uranium were determined in liverworts (Noteroclada confluens (Tayl.) and Dumortirea hirsute (Sw.) Nees), in mosses (Leucobryum martianum (Hornsh.) Hampe, Vesicularia vesicularis (Schwaegr.) Broth., Pyrrhobruym spiniforme (Hedw.) Mitt. and Sematophyllum subsimplex (Hedw.) Mitt.) and in the soil upon which they were growing. The samples were collected on the margins of the main streams of the Tripui Ecological Station, located in the valley of the Tripui stream near the town of Ouro Preto, Minas Gerais State, Brazil. For decades, this Station has been the object of interest of many studies due to its historical, ecological and environmental importance. Analyses in bryophytes (mosses and liverworts) were determined by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and in the soil samples by using neutron activation analysis (NAA), specifically the k 0 -standardization method and the energy dispersive spectrometry technique (EDS). Lanthanum (La), cerium (Ce) and neodymium (Nd) were present in higher concentrations in soils and bryophytes than other REEs. It was observed that in all the collected bryophytes species the elements Th, U, Y, La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er and Yb were transferred from the soil water to these plants. These bryophytes presented different capacities of accumulating these elements with the liverworts (Noteroclada confluens and Dumortirea hirsute) and the moss Leucobryum martianum showing a more efficient accumulation capacity than the other bryophyte species. (author)

Managing the three-rivers headwater region, china: from ecological engineering to social engineering.

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Fang, Yiping

2013-09-01

The three-rivers headwater region (THRHR) of Qinghai province, China plays a key role as source of fresh water and ecosystem services for central and eastern China. Global warming and human activities in the THRHR have threatened the ecosystem since the 1980s. Therefore, the Chinese government has included managing of the THRHR in the national strategy since 2003. The State Integrated Test and Demonstration Region of the THRHR highlights the connection with social engineering (focus on improving people's livelihood and well-being) in managing nature reserves. Based on this program, this perspective attempts a holistic analysis of the strategic role of the THRHR, requirements for change, indices of change, and approaches to change. Long-term success of managing nature reserves requires effective combination of ecological conservation, economic development, and social progress. Thus, the philosophy of social engineering should be employed as a strategy to manage the THRHR.

Trends in social security benefits for oral and oropharyngeal cancer from 2006 to 2013 in Brazil.

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Bomfim, Rafael Aiello; Cascaes, Andreia Morales

2018-01-01

to analyze the trends in the concession of social security sick pay for oral and oropharyngeal cancer, from 2006 to 2013, in Brazil. time series study using data of workers insured by the Brazilian National Institute of Social Security (INSS); Prais-Winsten generalized linear regressions were used to calculate the annual percentage change (APC). social security benefits for oral and oropharyngeal cancer presented significant increase (APC=9.0%; 95%CI 1.4; 17.4); benefits for other parts of the mouth, nasopharynx, oropharynx, floor of mouth and palate have also shown significant increase; the areas of trade (5.5%) and manufacturing (5.2%) were the most prevalent activities; there was a high proportion of fields in blank in the information systems (average of 72.9%). trends in occupational benefits for oral and oropharyngeal cancer showed significant increase.

Cross-Scale Value Trade-Offs in Managing Social-Ecological Systems: The Politics of Scale in Ruaha National Park, Tanzania

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Asim Zia

2011-12-01

Full Text Available Management of social-ecological systems takes place amidst complex governance processes and cross-scale institutional arrangements that are mediated through politics of scale. Each management scenario generates distinct cross-scale trade-offs in the distribution of pluralistic values. This study explores the hypothesis that conservation-oriented management scenarios generate higher value for international and national scale social organizations, whereas mixed or more balanced management scenarios generate higher value for local scale social organizations. This hypothesis is explored in the management context of Ruaha National Park (RNP, Tanzania, especially the 2006 expansion of RNP that led to the eviction of many pastoralists and farmers. Five management scenarios for RNP, i.e., national park, game reserve, game control area, multiple use area, and open area, are evaluated in a multicriteria decision analytical framework on six valuation criteria: economic welfare; good governance; socio-cultural values; social equity; ecosystem services; and biodiversity protection; and at three spatial scales: local, national, and international. Based upon this evaluation, we discuss the politics of scale that ensue from the implementation of management alternatives with different mixes of conservation and development goals in social-ecological systems.

Social Media Monitoring of Discrimination and HIV Testing in Brazil, 2014-2015.

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Nielsen, René Clausen; Luengo-Oroz, Miguel; Mello, Maeve B; Paz, Josi; Pantin, Colin; Erkkola, Taavi

2017-07-01

Big data can be used to assess perceptions about public health issues. This study assessed social media data from Twitter to inform communication campaigns to promote HIV testing and reduce discrimination related to HIV/AIDS or towards key populations to the HIV epidemic, and its potential utility to evaluate such campaigns through HIV testing uptake. Tweets from Brazil were collected from January 2014 to March 2015 and filtered by four categories of keywords including discrimination, HIV prevention, HIV testing, and HIV campaigns. In total over 100,000 geo-located tweets were extracted and analyzed. A dynamic online dashboard updated daily allowed mapping trends, anomalies and influencers, and enabled its use for feedback to campaigns, including correcting misconceptions. These results encourage the use of social networking data for improved messaging in campaigns. Clinical HIV test data was collected monthly from the city of Curitiba and compared to the number of tweets mapped to the city showing a moderate positive correlation (r = 0.39). Results are limited due to the availability of the HIV testing data. The potential of social media as a proxy for HIV testing uptake needs further validation, which can only be done with higher frequency and higher spatial granularity of service delivery data, enabling comparisons with the social media data. Such timely information could empower early response immediate media messaging to support programmatic efforts, such as HIV prevention, testing, and treatment scale up.

Brazilian social management modalities

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Maria Tereza Gonçalves

2015-12-01

Full Text Available In Brazil the social management is configured in a complex process. This is due to its asymmetry with respect to economic policy, environmental policy and. Social management is a major challenge that involves the articulation of warranty rights, expanding the notion of social development, the role of the state and the search for a management paradigm that respects the new status given to the social area . The analysis focuses on the methods of social management in Brazil. Among the findings it is noted that the management models adopted in Brazil has proved insufficient. It is also noted that the ideas produced around a democratic-participative management creates tensions in the hegemony of the managerial organization in the country, so that tension may represent a potentiation between efficiency and democracy.

Meanings and robustness: Propositions for enhancing benefit sharing in social-ecological systems

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Ernita van Wyk

2014-08-01

Full Text Available Given increased pressure on natural resources to deliver benefits, complex trade-offs and the regulation of behaviours in relation to benefits is of key concern. Behaviours that signify resistance to the rules according to which benefits are allocated prompt us to consider causal links and feedbacks between benefits, perceptions of benefits, meanings attached to the benefits, and the regulatory instruments that mediate the distribution of benefits. An understanding of how meanings influence the perception of benefits exposes the complexity inherent in how people perceive and allocate value to natural resource benefits. Meanings are personal, sometimes overlapping, context dependent and variable across space and time. A challenge in directing resource user behaviour in common pool resources is that the relationship between the resource and resource use is typically not interpreted to include the manner in which users associate resource benefits with meanings. We propose that collective ordering of meanings and associated rules help to direct behaviours and in doing so they contribute to the purposeful maintenance of desirable elements of a social-ecological system (i.e. robustness. Using an example, we illustrate how tensions around benefit sharing are rooted in the emergence and changing prioritisation of contexts and meanings over time. The importance of eliciting, ordering and sanctioning of meanings is emphasised. We conclude by discussing the implications for robustness and benefit sharing in social-ecological systems and we comment on the usefulness and limitations of the framework.

Assessing the relevance of indicators in tracking social determinants and progress toward equitable population health in Brazil

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Davide Rasella

2016-02-01

Full Text Available Background: The importance of the social determinants of health (SDH and barriers to the access and utilization of healthcare have been widely recognized but not previously studied in the context of universal healthcare coverage (UHC in Brazil and other developing countries. Objective: To evaluate a set of proposed indicators of SDH and barriers to the access and utilization of healthcare – proposed by the SDH unit of the World Health Organization – with respect to their relevance in tracking progress in moving toward equitable population health and UHC in Brazil. Design: This study had a mixed methodology, combining a quantitative analysis of secondary data from governmental sources with a qualitative study comprising two focus group discussions and six key informant interviews. The set of indicators tested covered a broad range of dimensions classified by three different domains: environment quality; accountability and inclusion; and livelihood and skills. Indicators were stratified according to income quintiles, urbanization, race, and geographical region. Results: Overall, the indicators were adequate for tracking progress in terms of the SDH, equity, gender, and human rights in Brazil. Stratifications showed inequalities. The qualitative analysis revealed that many of the indicators were well known and already used by policymakers and health sector managers, whereas others were considered less useful in the Brazilian context. Conclusions: Monitoring and evaluation practices have been developed in Brazil, and the set of indicators assessed in this study could further improve these practices, especially from a health equity perspective. Socioeconomic inequalities have been reduced in Brazil in the last decade, but there is still much work to be done in relation to addressing the SDH.

Learning communities and overcoming poverty in Brazil

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Tatiana Santos Pitanga

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Object: Brazil has implemented social programs to meet the Millennium Development Goals of reducing poverty and inequality. Despite the good results still there are ghettos and educational and social inequalities. Moreover Learning Communities are responding to these needs by promoting education based on successful actions scientifically proven of which promote educational change and social inclusion. The aim of this article is to highlight the characteristics of Learning Communities that allow overcoming poverty, and in this perspective, explain the implementation of the Learning Communities in Brazil and how, in this way, it is creating the conditions for effective overcoming give poverty and inequality in this country.Design / methodology: This article is based on documentary analysis of reports of the INCLUD-ED - the project on school education more scientific resources has been funded by the European Union, United Nations / ECLAC, Brazilian public agencies and websites of official institutions that promote Learning Communities in Brazil. Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics are also collected.Contributions and results: It highlights successful actions that contribute to overcoming poverty and social exclusion. Such actions are based on dialogic learning, democratic management and the formation of heterogeneous groups. It is observed that in Brazil are carrying out such actions and the ongoing expansion of the project in the country is creating the conditions for effective poverty reduction.Added value: This article reveals specific elements of overcoming poverty through education.

Applying the social-ecological system framework to the diagnosis of urban lake commons in Bangalore, India

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Harini Nagendra

2014-06-01

Full Text Available The south Indian city of Bangalore provides a challenging yet representative context within which to examine issues of governance of urban social-ecological commons. The city was once famous for its numerous large water bodies, which have witnessed tremendous encroachment and pollution in recent years. These water bodies, called tanks or lakes, were typically managed by adjacent village communities but are now administered by a number of government departments involved with aspects of lake management, with multiple overlapping jurisdictions. The public's perceptions of lakes has also changed with urbanization, transitioning from community spaces valued for water and cultural services to urban recreational spaces used largely by joggers and walkers. We focus on a set of seven lakes located in the urbanizing peripheral areas of southeast Bangalore. Some water bodies have been restored and managed effectively by newly forged collaborations between citizens and local government. Others are extremely polluted, and some have completely dried up and have been encroached. We use a social-ecological system (SES framework to investigate why some locations have been successful in negotiating changes in governance from community-based systems to state management following urbanization, whereas other lakes have deteriorated. We use seven second-tier SES variables that were associated with self-organization in previous research: size of resource system, number of actors, leadership, social capital, importance of resource, existence of operational-choice rules, and existence of informal mechanisms for monitoring. We also include three third-tier variables previously identified as important in urban lake commons in Bangalore: scale and type of pre-existing pollution, exclusion of socioeconomic groups from the planning process, and networking with government organizations. We use this subset of 10 variables to examine social outcomes of the lakes, which we

Building resilience to social-ecological change through farmers' learning practices in semi-arid Makueni County Kenya

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Ifejika Speranza, Chinwe; Kiteme, Boniface; Kimathi Mbae, John; Schmude, Miron

2015-04-01

Social-ecological change is resulting in various risks and opportunities to farmers, which they address through complex multi-strategies to sustain their agricultural-based livelihoods and agricultural landscapes. This paper examines how various stakeholders such as research and government organisations, local and international non-governmental organisations, private companies, farmer groups, individual actors and farmers draw on scientific, external and localised knowledge to address the needs of farmers in sustainable land management and food production. What is the structure of collaboration between the various actors and how does this influence the potential for learning, not only for the farmers but also for other stakeholders? How does the supplied knowledge meet farmers' knowledge needs and demands for sustainable land management and food production? To what extent and how is knowledge co-produced among the various stakeholders? What different types of learning can be identified and what are their influences on farmers' sustainable land management practices? How does farmer learning foster the resilience of agricultural landscapes? Answers to these questions are sought through a case study in the semi-arid areas of Makueni County, Kenya. Particular environmental risks in the study area relate to recurrent droughts and flooding, soil erosion and general land degradation. Opportunities in the study area arise short-term due to more conducive rainfall conditions for crop and vegetation growth, institutional arrangements that foster sustainable land management such as agroforestry programmes and conservation agriculture projects. While farmers observe changes in their environment, they weigh the various risks and opportunities that arise from their social-ecological context and their own capacity to respond leading to the prioritization of certain adaptations relative to others. This can mean that while certain farmers may have knowledge on sustainable land

Theorizing benefits and constraints in collaborative environmental governance: a transdisciplinary social-ecological network approach for empirical investigations

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Örjan Bodin

2016-03-01

Full Text Available When environmental processes cut across socioeconomic boundaries, traditional top-down government approaches struggle to effectively manage and conserve ecosystems. In such cases, governance arrangements that foster multiactor collaboration are needed. The effectiveness of such arrangements, however, depends on how well any ecological interdependencies across governed ecosystems are aligned with patterns of collaboration. This inherent interdisciplinary and complex problem has impeded progress in developing a better understanding of how to govern ecosystems for conservation in an increasingly interconnected world. We argue for the development of empirically informed theories, which are not only able to transcend disciplinary boundaries, but are also explicit in taking these complex social-ecological interdependences into account. We show how this emerging research frontier can be significantly improved by incorporating recent advances in stochastic modeling of multilevel social networks. An empirical case study from an agricultural landscape in Madagascar is reanalyzed to demonstrate these improvements.

Age differences in adults' daily social interactions: An ecological momentary assessment study.

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Zhaoyang, Ruixue; Sliwinski, Martin J; Martire, Lynn M; Smyth, Joshua M

2018-04-30

Prevailing research has suggested that social relationships get better with age, but this evidence has been largely based on studies with lengthy reporting intervals. Using an ecological momentary assessment approach, the present study examined age differences in several characteristics of social interactions as reported in near-real time: the frequency, quality, and partner type. Participants (N = 173) ages 20-79 years reported their social interactions at 5 random times throughout the day for 1 week. Results revealed that age was associated with higher frequency of interacting with family and lower frequency of interacting with peripheral partners. These age effects, however, became nonsignificant after accounting for contextual factors such as race, gender, education, employment status, family structure, and living arrangement. In contrast, a curvilinear relationship best characterized age differences in both positive and negative ratings of daily social interaction quality, with middle-aged adults reporting the lowest positive ratings and older adults reporting the lowest negative ratings among all ages. Contextual factors did not account for these patterns of age differences in interaction quality. Furthermore, the intraindividual variability of interaction frequency with peripheral partners, partner diversity, and interaction quality (positivity and negativity) was lower among older adults than among younger adults. Findings from the present study portray a nuanced picture of social interactions in daily life and advance the understanding of social interactions across the life span. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

Developing Sustainable Urban Water-Energy Infrastructures: Applying a Multi-Sectoral Social-Ecological-Infrastructural Systems (SEIS) Framework

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Ramaswami, A.

2016-12-01

Urban infrastructure - broadly defined to include the systems that provide water, energy, food, shelter, transportation-communication, sanitation and green/public spaces in cities - have tremendous impact on the environment and on human well-being (Ramaswami et al., 2016; Ramaswami et al., 2012). Aggregated globally, these sectors contribute 90% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and 96% of global water withdrawals. Urban infrastructure contributions to such impacts are beginning to dominate. Cities are therefore becoming the action arena for infrastructure transformations that can achieve high levels of service delivery while reducing environmental impacts and enhancing human well-being. Achieving sustainable urban infrastructure transitions requires: information about the engineered infrastructure, and its interaction with the natural (ecological-environmental) and the social sub-systems In this paper, we apply a multi-sector, multi-scalar Social-Ecological-Infrastructural Systems framework that describes the interactions among biophysical engineered infrastructures, the natural environment and the social system in a systems-approach to inform urban infrastructure transformations. We apply the SEIS framework to inform water and energy sector transformations in cities to achieve environmental and human health benefits realized at multiple scales - local, regional and global. Local scales address pollution, health, wellbeing and inequity within the city; regional scales address regional pollution, scarcity, as well as supply risks in the water-energy sectors; global impacts include greenhouse gas emissions and climate impacts. Different actors shape infrastructure transitions including households, businesses, and policy actors. We describe the development of novel cross-sectoral strategies at the water-energy nexus in cities, focusing on water, waste and energy sectors, in a case study of Delhi, India. Ramaswami, A.; Russell, A.G.; Culligan, P.J.; Sharma, K

Exposure to violence across the social ecosystem and the development of aggression: a test of ecological theory in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

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Boxer, Paul; Rowell Huesmann, L; Dubow, Eric F; Landau, Simha F; Gvirsman, Shira Dvir; Shikaki, Khalil; Ginges, Jeremy

2013-01-01

Bronfenbrenner's (1979) ecological model proposes that events in higher order social ecosystems should influence human development through their impact on events in lower order social ecosystems. This proposition was tested with respect to ecological violence and the development of children's aggression via analyses of 3 waves of data (1 wave yearly for 3 years) from 3 age cohorts (starting ages: 8, 11, and 14) representing three populations in the Middle East: Palestinians (N = 600), Israeli Jews (N = 451), and Israeli Arabs (N = 450). Results supported a hypothesized model in which ethnopolitical violence increases community, family, and school violence and children's aggression. Findings are discussed with respect to ecological and observational learning perspectives on the development of aggressive behavior. © 2012 The Authors. Child Development © 2012 Society for Research in Child Development, Inc.

Hollow Ecology: Ecological Modernization Theory and the Death of Nature

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Jeffrey A. Ewing

2017-02-01

Full Text Available The last few decades have seen the rise of ‘ecological modernization theory’ (EMT as a “green capitalist” tradition extending modernization theory into environmental sociology. This article uses a synthesis of political economy, world-systems theory, and political, economic, and environmental sociology to demonstrate that the EMT presumption of growth and profit as economic priorities (alongside its neglect of core-periphery relations produces many feedback loops which fatally undermine the viability of EMT’s own political, technological, and social prescriptions, alongside creating problems for the fundamental EMT concept of ‘ecological rationality.’ Furthermore, this article attempts to explain why “green capitalist” approaches to environmental analysis have influence within policy and social science circles despite their inadequacies within environmental sociology. Finally, this article argues that in order to address the ecological challenges of our era, environmental sociology needs to reject “green capitalist” traditions like ‘ecological modernization theory’ which presuppose the desirability and maintenance of profit and growth as economic priorities (and predominantly fail to critique power imbalances between core and non-core nations, and instead return to the development of traditions willing to critique the fundamental traits of the capitalist world-system.

Social stigma, legal and public health barriers faced by the third gender phenomena in Brazil, India and Mexico: Travestis, hijras and muxes.

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Diehl, Alessandra; Vieira, Denise Leite; Zaneti, Marina Milograna; Fanganiello, Ana; Sharan, Pratap; Robles, Rebecca; de Jesus Mari, Jair

2017-08-01

The aim of this article is to provide a narrative literature review of the 'third gender' phenomenon in Brazil ( Travestis), India ( Hijras) and Mexico ( Muxes), considering the social stigma, the legal and health aspects of these identities. These three groups share similar experiences of stigmatisation, marginalisation, sexual abuse, HIV infection, infringement of civil rights and harassment accessing health services. Brazil, India and Mexico public services for the third gender conditions are still very scarce and inadequate for the heavy demand from potential users. Although all three countries have used legislation to promote provision of comprehensive healthcare services for third gender, there is still strong resistance to implementation of such laws and policies. Brazil, India and Mexico face a huge challenge to become countries where all human rights are respected.

Proteção social no Brasil: o que mudou na assistência social após a Constituição de 1988 Social protection in Brazil: what has changed in social assistance after the 1988 Constitution

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Jeni Vaitsman

2009-06-01

Full Text Available O trabalho discute as mudanças do componente assistencial da proteção social nas duas décadas que se seguiram à Constituição de 1988. Discute as transformações da proteção e assistência social nas últimas décadas e os processos que, na década de 1990, fizeram avançar os processos de reforma da política assistencial social no Brasil, sem no entanto produzir grandes mudanças no modelo de oferta de serviços. A partir dos anos 2000, há uma significativa expansão de recursos e de cobertura de benefícios e serviços na área assistencial. Argumenta que os programas de transferência de renda, embora surgidos e difundidos em um contexto internacional de políticas restritivas, no Brasil, ao se integrarem a um sistema público e universal de assistência social, alargaram substantivamente o escopo da proteção social. Alguns efeitos da expansão do sistema de proteção social no Brasil são apontados: diminuição da desigualdade de renda; construção da capacidade institucional na área da assistência social; o significado social, político e simbólico da inclusão de um amplo segmento populacional a um sistema público de assistência social por meio de uma estrutura de provisão fora dos tradicionais mecanismos de filantropia e clientelismo.This paper discusses the changes in the social assistance component of social protection in the two decades that followed the 1988 Constitution. It discusses the transformations of social protection and social assistance in the past decades and the processes that in the 1990s advanced the reform of social assistance policies in Brazil without, however, producing great changes in how services were delievered. By 2000 there had been a great expansion of resources as well as benefits and services coverage in social assistance. This paper argues that conditional cash transfer programs, though created and spread in an international context of restrictive policies, when integrated into Brazil

The services-oriented architecture: ecosystem services as a framework for diagnosing change in social ecological systems

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Philip A. Loring; F. Stuart Chapin; S. Craig Gerlach

2008-01-01

Computational thinking (CT) is a way to solve problems and understand complex systems that draws on concepts fundamental to computer science and is well suited to the challenges that face researchers of complex, linked social-ecological systems. This paper explores CT's usefulness to sustainability science through the application of the services-oriented...

Ecology-driven stereotypes override race stereotypes

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Williams, Keelah E. G.; Sng, Oliver; Neuberg, Steven L.

2015-01-01

Ecological features shape people’s goals, strategies, and behaviors. Our research suggests that social perceivers possess a lay understanding of ecology’s influence on behavior, resulting in ecology-driven stereotypes. Moreover, because race is confounded with ecology in the United States, Americans’ stereotypes about racial groups may actually reflect their stereotypes about these groups’ presumed home ecologies. In a series of studies, we demonstrate that (i) individuals possess ecology-dri...

Social rank and inhalant drug use: the case of lança perfume use in São Paulo, Brazil.

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Sanchez, Zila M; Noto, Ana R; Anthony, James C

2013-07-01

Lanca perfume (chloroform/ether) is an inhalant used mainly by higher social class students in Brazil. In light of the social and epidemiological features of lanca use, supply, and distribution, this investigation tests hypotheses about the degree to which use of inhalant lanca might be occurring in clusters, consistent with social sharing and diffusion, and might show a direct association with social rank even within the relatively privileged social context of private schools in a large mega-city of Latin America. Epidemiologic self-report survey data were from a large representative sample of urban post-primary private school students in São Paulo city, Brazil, in 2008. Newly incident lanca use was studied, first with estimates of clustering from the alternating logistic regressions (ALR) and then with conditional logistic regressions to probe into the hypothesized direct social rank association. ALR disclosed a clustering of newly incident lanca users within private school classrooms (pairwise odds ratio (PWOR)=2.1; 95% CI=1.3, 3.3; p=0.002) as well as clusters of recently active lanca use (PWOR=1.9; 95% CI=1.1, 3.3; p=0.02). Occurrence of lanca use within private school classrooms was directly associated with social rank (odds ratio (OR)=0.2; 95% CI=0.1, 0.8; p=0.03 in the contrast of lowest socio-economic status (SES) versus highest SES strata within classrooms). Thereafter, study of other drugs disclosed similar patterns. The clustering estimates are consistent with concepts of person-to-person sharing of lanca within private school classrooms as well as other dynamic processes that might promote lanca clusters in this context. An observed direct association with social rank is not specific to lanca use. Direct SES estimates across a broad profile of drug compounds suggests causal processes over and above the more specific initially hypothesized social rank gradients in the lanca diffusion process. A novel facet of the evidence is greater occurrence of drug

Social Rank and Inhalant Drug Use: The Case of Lança Perfume Use in São Paulo, Brazil*

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Sanchez, Zila M.; Noto, Ana R.; Anthony, James C.

2016-01-01

Background Lanca perfume (chloroform/ether) is an inhalant used mainly by higher social class students in Brazil. In light of the social and epidemiological features of lanca use, supply, and distribution, this investigation tests hypotheses about the degree to which use of inhalant lanca might be occurring in clusters, consistent with social sharing and diffusion, and might show a direct association with social rank even within the relatively privileged social context of private schools in a large mega-city of Latin America. Methods Epidemiologic self-report survey data were from a large representative sample of urban post-primary private school students in São Paulo city, Brazil, in 2008. Newly incident lanca use was studied, first with estimates of clustering from the alternating logistic regressions (ALR) and then with conditional logistic regressions to probe into the hypothesized direct social rank association. Results ALR disclosed a clustering of newly incident lanca users within private school classrooms (pairwise odds ratio (PWOR) = 2.1; 95% CI = 1.3, 3.3; p = 0.002) as well as clusters of recently active lanca use (PWOR = 1.9; 95% CI = 1.1, 3.3; p = 0.02). Occurrence of lanca use within private school classrooms was directly associated with social rank (odds ratio (OR) = 0.2; 95% CI=0.1, 0.8; p=0.03 in the contrast of lowest socio-economic status (SES) versus highest SES strata within classrooms). Thereafter, study of other drugs disclosed similar patterns. Conclusions The clustering estimates are consistent with concepts of person-to-person sharing of lanca within private school classrooms as well as other dynamic processes that might promote lanca clusters in this context. An observed direct association with social rank is not specific to lanca use. Direct SES estimates across a broad profile of drug compounds suggests causal processes over and above the more specific initially hypothesized social rank gradients in the lanca diffusion process. A novel

The politics of social policy: welfare expansion in Brazil, China, India and South Africa in comparative perspective

OpenAIRE

Tillin, Louise; Duckett, Jane

2017-01-01

This introductory essay reviews the scholarship on the politics of social policy, and shows the contribution of the special issue to explaining expanded welfare commitments in Brazil, China, India and South Africa in the twenty first century. Much literature on welfare expansion in lower- and middle income contexts views it primarily as a policy corrective to the economic dislocations produced by global economic integration. This special issue focuses on the political factors that are critica...

Coevolutionary ecological economics

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kallis, Giorgos [ICREA Researcher, ICTA, Universidad Autonoma de Barcelona, ETSE, QC/3095, 08193 Bellatera, Barcelona (Spain); Norgaard, Richard B. [Energy and Resources Group, University of California at Berkeley, 310 Barrows Hall, Berkeley, CA, 94720-3050 (United States)

2010-02-15

This paper maps a coevolutionary research agenda for ecological economics. At an epistemological level coevolution offers a powerful logic for transcending environmental and social determinisms and developing a cross-disciplinary approach in the study of socio-ecological systems. We identify four consistent stories emerging out of coevolutionary studies in ecological economics, concerning: environmental degradation and development failure in peripheral regions; the lock-in of unsustainable production-consumption patterns; the vicious cycle between human efforts to control undesirable micro-organisms and the evolution of these organisms; and the adaptive advantages of other-regarding, cooperative behaviors and institutions. We identify challenges in the conceptualization of coevolutionary relationships in relation to: the interaction between different hierarchical levels of evolution; the role of space and social power; uneven rates of change and crises. We conclude with the political implications of a coevolutionary perspective based on the premises of pragmatism. (author)

Illicit economies and social order: the border area of Peru, Brazil and Colombia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Noam López

2015-12-01

Full Text Available In recent years, the border shared by Peru, Colombia and Brazil has become an enclave of drug production and trafficking for the international markets. It is a territory whose control is disputed by non-state actors and where state security forces suffer from severe material and transport limitations. This paper takes an ethnographic approach to explain the limitations of border security and the institutional challenges of controlling drug and wood trafficking in this context. It places the ideas of reproduction and social change at the centre of the discussion on drugs and borders, as key ways of thinking about the dynamics of growing and processing coca-derived drugs in the global South.

Ecological and Social Evaluation of Coastal Tourism Destination Development: A Case Study of Balekambang, East Java

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Luchman Hakim

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Tourism is an important sector in developing countries to support economic growth, and coastal areas are famous destinations in tourism. The plan and design for Balekambang coastal area as a tourism destination in East Java, Indonesia has been formulated and published. However, it seems lack ecological and social perspectives. This study examines coral reefs structure as one of the ecological parameter and tourist perspectives as social parameter for destination development evaluation. Twenty belt-transects were established along Balekambang coastline, and then divided into three sections, the east, the centre and the west sections. Every belt-transect was 200m in length and consists of 15 plots 1 x 2m. The tourist perspectives to Balekambang were determined using questionnaire among 234 respondents. Based on the Morisita similarity index, the coral reef of east section consists of 2 zones, the centre consists of 5 zones and west section consists of 4 zones. The Shannon diversity index (H’ among zones at every location was ranged. The diversity index of the east section ranged from 2.07 to 2.72, the central section ranged from 1.32 to 4.20, and the west section ranged from 3.13 to 4.20. Zones that were close to the coastline had lowest diversity indices than zones that located far from the coastline. Mostly, tourists stated that Balekambang was interesting, but the object of tourism should be added. Respondent knew there were forest surrounding Balekambang, and it has the possibility to develop as tourism destination. These findings argue that the forest conversion to cottage area that planned by the local government in the west section should be reviewed. It seems forest in the west section should be developed as a forest park to meet tourist needs and redistribute tourist concentration in the coastline. Keywords: Ecological and social evaluation, coastal, tourism, sustainable development, East Java.

Reflexions on the expansion of nuclear generation in Brazil

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Freitas, Juliana de Moraes Marreco de

2006-01-01

This article analyses the pros and cons of the nuclear generation in Brazil, involving in a large discussion the technological perspectives both economic, social and environmental. The objective is to rise the main questions about the polemical nuclear expansion in Brazil

Ecosystem Services as a Boundary Concept: Arguments from Social Ecology

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Christian Schleyer

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Ecosystem services (ES are defined as the interdependencies between society and nature. Despite several years of conceptual discussions, some challenges of the ES concept are far from being resolved. In particular, the usefulness of the concept for nature protection is questioned, and a strong critique is expressed concerning its contribution towards the neoliberal commodification of nature. This paper argues that these challenges can be addressed by dealing more carefully with ES as a boundary concept between different disciplines and between science and society. ES are neither about nature nor about human wellbeing, but about the mutual dependencies between nature and human wellbeing. These mutual interdependencies, however, create tensions and contradictions that manifest themselves in the boundary negotiations between different scientific disciplines and between science and society. This paper shows that approaches from Social Ecology can address these boundary negotiations and the power relations involved more explicitly. Finally, this implies the urgent need for more inter- and transdisciplinary collaboration in ES research. We conclude (1 that the social–ecological nature of ES must be elaborated more carefully while explicitly focussing on the interdependencies between nature and society; (2 to better implement inter- and transdisciplinary methods into ES research; and (3 that such ES research can—and to some extent already does—substantially enhance international research programmes such as Future Earth.

Land use diversification and intensification on elk winter range in Greater Yellowstone: A framework and agenda for social-ecological research

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Haggerty, Julia Hobson; Epstein, Kathleen; Stone, Michael; Cross, Paul

2018-01-01

Amenity migration describes the movement of peoples to rural landscapes and the transition toward tourism and recreation and away from production-oriented land uses (ranching, timber harvesting). The resulting mosaic of land uses and community structures has important consequences for wildlife and their management. This research note examines amenity-driven changes to social-ecological systems in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, specifically in lower elevations that serve as winter habitat for elk. We present a research agenda informed by a preliminary and exploratory mixed-methods investigation: the creation of a “social-impact” index of land use change on elk winter range and a focus group with wildlife management experts. Our findings suggest that elk are encountering an increasingly diverse landscape with respect to land use, while new ownership patterns increase the complexity of social and community dynamics. These factors, in turn, contribute to increasing difficulty meeting wildlife management objectives. To deal with rising complexity across social and ecological landscapes of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, future research will focus on property life cycle dynamics, as well as systems approaches.

Soil and water related forest ecosystem services and resilience of social ecological system in the Central Highlands of Ethiopia

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Tekalign, Meron; Muys, Bart; Nyssen, Jan; Poesen, Jean

2014-05-01

In the central highlands of Ethiopia, deforestation and forest degradation are occurring and accelerating during the last century. The high population pressure is the most repeatedly mentioned reason. However, in the past 30 years researchers agreed that the absence of institutions, which could define the access rights to particular forest resources, is another underlying cause of forest depletion and loss. Changing forest areas into different land use types is affecting the biodiversity, which is manifested through not proper functioning of ecosystem services. Menagesha Suba forest, the focus of this study has been explored from various perspectives. However the social dimension and its interaction with the ecology have been addressed rarely. This research uses a combined theoretical framework of Ecosystem Services and that of Resilience thinking for understanding the complex social-ecological interactions in the forest and its influence on ecosystem services. For understanding the history and extent of land use land cover changes, in-depth literature review and a GIS and remote sensing analysis will be made. The effect of forest conversion into plantation and agricultural lands on soil and above ground carbon sequestration, fuel wood and timber products delivery will be analyzed with the accounting of the services on five land use types. The four ecosystem services to be considered are Supporting, Provisioning, Regulating, and Cultural services as set by the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment. A resilience based participatory framework approach will be used to analyze how the social and ecological systems responded towards the drivers of change that occurred in the past. The framework also will be applied to predict future uncertainties. Finally this study will focus on the possible interventions that could contribute to the sustainable management and conservation of the forest. An ecosystem services trade-off analysis and an environmental valuation of the water

Virtual Reality for Enhanced Ecological Validity and Experimental Control in the Clinical, Affective and Social Neurosciences

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Parsons, Thomas D.

2015-01-01

An essential tension can be found between researchers interested in ecological validity and those concerned with maintaining experimental control. Research in the human neurosciences often involves the use of simple and static stimuli lacking many of the potentially important aspects of real world activities and interactions. While this research is valuable, there is a growing interest in the human neurosciences to use cues about target states in the real world via multimodal scenarios that involve visual, semantic, and prosodic information. These scenarios should include dynamic stimuli presented concurrently or serially in a manner that allows researchers to assess the integrative processes carried out by perceivers over time. Furthermore, there is growing interest in contextually embedded stimuli that can constrain participant interpretations of cues about a target’s internal states. Virtual reality environments proffer assessment paradigms that combine the experimental control of laboratory measures with emotionally engaging background narratives to enhance affective experience and social interactions. The present review highlights the potential of virtual reality environments for enhanced ecological validity in the clinical, affective, and social neurosciences. PMID:26696869

Towards More Effective Water Quality Governance : A Review of Social-Economic, Legal and Ecological Perspectives and Their Interactions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Rijswick, H.F.M.W.|info:eu-repo/dai/nl/099909189; Wuijts, S.; Driessen, P.P.J.|info:eu-repo/dai/nl/069081417

2018-01-01

In this article, social-economic, legal and ecological perspectives on effectiveness of water quality governance and their interactions have been studied. Worldwide, authorities are facing the challenge of restoring and preserving aquatic ecosystems in accordance with the United Nations Sustainable

Actualizing panarchy within environmental policy: mechanisms for tweaking institutional hierarchies to mimic the social-ecological systems they manage

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Environmental law plays a key role in shaping approaches to sustainability. In particular, the role of legal instruments, institutions, and the relationship of law to the inherent variability in social-ecological systems is critical. Sustainability likely must occur via the insti...

Children and political violence from a social ecological perspective: implications from research on children and families in Northern Ireland.

Science.gov (United States)

Cummings, E Mark; Goeke-Morey, Marcie C; Schermerhorn, Alice C; Merrilees, Christine E; Cairns, Ed

2009-03-01

The effects on children of political violence are matters of international concern, with many negative effects well-documented. At the same time, relations between war, terrorism, or other forms of political violence and child development do not occur in a vacuum. The impact can be understood as related to changes in the communities, families and other social contexts in which children live, and in the psychological processes engaged by these social ecologies. To advance this process-oriented perspective, a social ecological model for the effects of political violence on children is advanced. This approach is illustrated by findings and methods from an ongoing research project on political violence and children in Northern Ireland. Aims of this project include both greater insight into this particular context for political violence and the provision of a template for study of the impact of children's exposure to violence in other regions of the world. Accordingly, the applicability of this approach is considered for other social contexts, including (a) another area in the world with histories of political violence and (b) a context of community violence in the US.

Parasitic arthropods of some wild rodents from Juréia-Itatins Ecological Station, State of São Paulo, Brazil

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Bossi David Eduardo Paolinetti

2002-01-01

Full Text Available A study of the associations between three species of rodents in the Atlantic forest and their parasitic arthropods was undertaken at the Juréia-Itatins Ecological Station, located in the State of São Paulo, Southeastern Brazil, from March 1989 to February 1990. Individuals of three species, Oryzomys russatus, Proechimys iheringi and Nectomys squamipes were captured and examined for ectoparasites. Eleven species of parasitic arthropods were found, including four species of insects and seven of Acari. Parasitism intensity, phenology, and rainfall were positively correlated with the abundance of the ectoparasites and their hosts. The most abundant host was O. russatus (Muridae: Sigmodontinae, and the most common parasite on it was the laelapid mite Gigantolaelaps oudemansi. The cuterebrid Metacuterebra apicalis caused myiasis in O. russatus. A mutualistic association between the staphylinid beetle Amblyopinus sp. and its host P. iheringi (Echimyidae was observed. The few N. squamipes captured had small numbers of ectoparasites.

Motivation and Social Capital among prospective blood donors in three large blood centers in Brazil

Science.gov (United States)

Gonçalez, Thelma T.; Di Lorenzo Oliveira, Claudia; Carneiro-Proietti, Anna Barbara F.; Moreno, Elizabeth C.; Miranda, Carolina; Larsen, Nina; Wright, David; Leão, Silvana; Loureiro, Paula; de Almeida-Neto, Cesar; Lopes, Maria-Inês; Proietti, Fernando A.; Custer, Brian; Sabino, Ester

2012-01-01

Background Studies analyzing motivation factors that lead to blood donation have found altruism to be the primary motivation factor; however social capital has not been analyzed in this context. Our study examines the association between motivation factors (altruism, self-interest and response to direct appeal) and social capital (cognitive and structural) across three large blood centers in Brazil. Study Design and Methods We conducted a cross-sectional survey of 7,635 donor candidates from October 15 through November 20, 2009. Participants completed self-administered questionnaires on demographics, previous blood donation, HIV testing and knowledge, social capital and donor motivations. Enrollment was determined prior to the donor screening process. Results Among participants, 43.5% and 41.7% expressed high levels of altruism and response to direct appeal respectively, while only 26.9% expressed high levels of self-interest. More high self-interest was observed at Hemope-Recife (41.7%). Of participants, 37.4% expressed high levels of cognitive social capital while 19.2% expressed high levels of structural social capital. More high cognitive and structural social capital was observed at Hemope-Recife (47.3% and 21.3%, respectively). High cognitive social capital was associated with high levels of altruism, self-interest and response to direct appeal. Philanthropic and high social altruism was associated with high levels of altruism and response to direct appeal. Conclusion Cognitive and structural social capital and social altruism are associated with altruism and response to direct appeal, while only cognitive social capital is associated with self-interest. Designing marketing campaigns with these aspects in mind may help blood banks attract potential blood donors more efficiently. PMID:22998740

Motivation and social capital among prospective blood donors in three large blood centers in Brazil.

Science.gov (United States)

Gonçalez, Thelma T; Di Lorenzo Oliveira, Claudia; Carneiro-Proietti, Anna Barbara F; Moreno, Elizabeth C; Miranda, Carolina; Larsen, Nina; Wright, David; Leão, Silvana; Loureiro, Paula; de Almeida-Neto, Cesar; Lopes, Maria-Inês; Proietti, Fernando A; Custer, Brian; Sabino, Ester

2013-06-01

Studies analyzing motivation factors that lead to blood donation have found altruism to be the primary motivation factor; however, social capital has not been analyzed in this context. Our study examines the association between motivation factors (altruism, self-interest, and response to direct appeal) and social capital (cognitive and structural) across three large blood centers in Brazil. We conducted a cross-sectional survey of 7635 donor candidates from October 15 through November 20, 2009. Participants completed self-administered questionnaires on demographics, previous blood donation, human immunodeficiency virus testing and knowledge, social capital, and donor motivations. Enrollment was determined before the donor screening process. Among participants, 43.5 and 41.7% expressed high levels of altruism and response to direct appeal, respectively, while only 26.9% expressed high levels of self-interest. More high self-interest was observed at Hemope-Recife (41.7%). Of participants, 37.4% expressed high levels of cognitive social capital while 19.2% expressed high levels of structural social capital. More high cognitive and structural social capital was observed at Hemope-Recife (47.3 and 21.3%, respectively). High cognitive social capital was associated with high levels of altruism, self-interest, and response to direct appeal. Philanthropic and high social altruism were associated with high levels of altruism and response to direct appeal. Cognitive and structural social capital and social altruism are associated with altruism and response to direct appeal, while only cognitive social capital is associated with self-interest. Designing marketing campaigns with these aspects in mind may help blood banks attract potential blood donors more efficiently. © 2012 American Association of Blood Banks.

Political Violence and Child Adjustment in Northern Ireland: Testing Pathways in a Social-Ecological Model Including Single- and Two-Parent Families

Science.gov (United States)

Cummings, E. Mark; Schermerhorn, Alice C.; Merrilees, Christine E.; Goeke-Morey, Marcie C.; Shirlow, Peter; Cairns, Ed

2010-01-01

Moving beyond simply documenting that political violence negatively impacts children, we tested a social-ecological hypothesis for relations between political violence and child outcomes. Participants were 700 mother-child (M = 12.1 years, SD = 1.8) dyads from 18 working-class, socially deprived areas in Belfast, Northern Ireland, including…

Are there co-occurrence patterns that structure snake communities in Central Brazil?

Science.gov (United States)

França, F G R; Araújo, A F B

2007-02-01

The main factors that structure Neotropical animal communities have been the subject of discussion in ecology communities. We used a set of null models to investigate the existence of structure in snake communities from the Cerrado in Central Brazil in relation to the co-occurrence of species and guilds concerning specific resources. We used fragments (conservation units) inside the Distrito Federal and neighbor municipalities. In spite of recent human colonization in the region from the end of the 1950s, intense habitat modification and fragmentation has taken place. Sixty three snake species are present in the Distrito Federal. Co-occurrence analysis of species and guilds associated to snake diets and habitats suggested a lack of organization. The homogeneity of habitats in Central Brazil and the minor importance of ecological effects can lead to random arrangement.

Global Health, Medical Anthropology, and Social Marketing: Steps to the Ecology of Collaboration.

Science.gov (United States)

Whiteford, Linda

2015-06-01

Anthropology and global health have long been a focus of research for both biological and medical anthropologists. Research has looked at physiological adaptations to high altitudes, community responses to water-borne diseases, the integration of traditional and biomedical approaches to health, global responses to HIV/AIDS, and more recently, to the application of cultural approaches to the control of the Ebola epidemic. Academic anthropology has employed theory and methods to extend knowledge, but less often to apply that knowledge. However, anthropologists outside of the academy have tackled global health issues such as family planning and breast-feeding by bringing together applied medical anthropology and social marketing. In 2014, that potent and provocative combination resulted in the University of South Florida in Tampa, Florida being made the home of an innovative center designed to combine academic and applied anthropology with social marketing in order to facilitate social change. This article discusses how inter- and intra-disciplinary research/application has led to the development of Florida's first World Health Organization Collaborating Center (WHO CC), and the first such center to focus on social marketing, social change and non-communicable diseases. This article explains the genesis of the Center and presents readers with a brief overview, basic principles and applications of social marketing by reviewing a case study of a water conservation project. The article concludes with thoughts on the ecology of collaboration among global health, medical anthropology and social marketing practitioners.