Sustainability: through cross-cultural community garden activities

ABSTRACT

Indigenous people, international students, immigrants, and refugee families are particularly vulnerable populations that experience a lack of sustainability for various reasons, including lack of belonging and networks, low income, mental stress, and discrimination. Following a relational participatory action research (PAR) process, this study explores the concept of sustainability among First Nations, visible minorities, and non-visible minorities through cross-cultural activities, such as dance and music, children’s art activities, anti-racist workshops, traditional story-sharing, land-based learning, and cross-cultural food sharing in a community garden setting. This paper argues that cross-cultural activities among First Nations, visible and non-visible minorities in a community garden can create positive change in an urban environment by empowering communities through cross-cultural bridging. Throughout the last six years of my participation in various cross-cultural activities, I have learned that empowerment through cross-cultural activities adheres to particular forms of agency: interspecies communication, community building, and learning about decolonisation and reconciliation. This study provides valuable insights for educators whose goals include incorporating land-based learning as well as creating a sense of belonging among cross-cultural communities, ultimately leading to community sustainability.     

Sustainability and education for sustainability: An analysis of publications from the last decade

This study analyzes the characteristics of publications on sustainability topics and education for sustainability in the Web of Science (WOS) database during the period ranging from 2005 to 2014. We identified the topics that are being studied within those subjects and other relevant topics. We also analyzed a special edition of the Journal of Cleaner Production on “Higher Education for Sustainable Development: Emerging areas,” published in January, 2014. Our approach was both qualitative and quantitative and aimed at qualifying and quantifying certain variables related to the scientific literature on the broad subject of sustainability. The number of published pieces in the WOS focusing on sustainability issues during the period from 2005 to 2014 was 5,924. In our analysis of the special edition of the Journal of Cleaner Production, we found and analyzed 17 abstracts and full papers. The main results of our survey highlight the education, educational research, environmental sciences, ecology, and engineering areas as including the greatest number of publications. Articles, as opposed to conference proceedings or reviews, accounted for 63% of the published documents, and the year 2013 showed the largest number of publications. Huisingh, Suciu, Katane, and Barth are the most published authors on these topics. Furthermore, management, environmental studies, ecology, and environmental sciences are the “hot topics” with the best search results, meaning articles of impact and high quality. Finally, it should be emphasized that publications on the subject of sustainability appear most often in the sciences.     

Sustainability of forest management plans: a discrete goal programming approach

Let us consider i = 1, 2,...n alternative forest plans to be evaluated according to j = 1, 2,...m indicators of sustainability. An expert or panel of experts suggests a set of targets or desirable levels of achievement for the m indicators of sustainability considered. Within this context, an important problem is to determine the system with a higher level of achievement with respect to the targets attached by the expert to the m indicators. A natural extension of this problem involves determining a ranking of the n systems considered. A general procedure based on discrete goal programming is proposed to address these problems. The methodology is applied in a case study of a Spanish forest.     

The implications of ecosystem dynamics for fisheries management: a case study of selected fisheries in the Gulf of Paria, Trinidad

It is accepted that if fisheries resources are to remain renewable and able to sustain livelihoods, appropriate management practices must be implemented. Even while fisheries management grapples to resolve single-species issues, the biological and economic interactions among species mandate that to be effective, management techniques must be based on more interactive and aggregate-level analyses. In order to implement these techniques, the actual links, and the potential impact of these links, among the fisheries must be established. Vector autoregression (VAR) analysis has the potential to play an increasingly important role in ecosystem modelling for fisheries management. This study uses VAR analysis to demonstrate the quantitative impact of certain ecosystem changes on the productivity of the carite, honey shrimp and croaker fisheries of the Gulf of Paria, Trinidad, in the particular context of the ecosystem dynamics of trophic linkages, bycatch and multispecies fisheries. Four VAR models are constructed to investigate the extent to which these factors affect the production of the selected fisheries, and to evaluate the management implications of these linkages. The empirical analysis is further evidence that, if sustainable management of fishery resources is to be achieved, management practices based on more multi-species, ecosystem approaches must replace the traditional, single-species management techniques.     

Assessing the impact of fisheries co-management interventions in developing countries: a meta-analysis

Co-management is now established as a mainstream approach to small-scale fisheries management across the developing world. A comprehensive review of 204 potential cases reveals a lack of impact assessments of fisheries co-management. This study reports on a meta-analysis of the impact of fisheries co-management in developing countries in 90 sites across 29 case-studies. The top five most frequently measured process indicators are participation, influence, rule compliance, control over resources, and conflict. The top five most frequently measured outcome indicators are access to resources, resource well-being, fishery yield, household well-being, and household income. To deal with the diversity of the 52 indicators measured and the different ways these data are collected and analysed, we apply a coding system to capture change over time. The results of the meta-analysis suggest that, overall fisheries co-management delivers benefits to end-users through improvements in key process and outcome indicators. However, the dataset as a whole is constituted primarily of data from the Philippines. When we exclude this body of work, few generalisations can be made about the impact of fisheries co-management. The lack of comparative data suitable for impact assessment and the difficulties in comparing data and generalising across countries and regions reiterates calls in other fields for more systematic approaches to understanding and evaluating governance frameworks.     

Selecting small reserves in a human-dominated landscape: a case study of Hong Kong, China

In this case study of a degraded tropical landscape, we examine how the protected area system in Hong Kong, China, should be modified to improve its efficiency in protecting the surprisingly rich biota. The challenge lies in the fine scale of site selection, and the absence of a core area with high species richness and rarity. Site selection was first conducted in 1 km grid units by selecting hotspots and irreplaceable sites using field records for eight groups of species (amphibians, reptiles, mammals, breeding birds, ants, butterflies, dragonflies and rare vascular plants). The habitats of conservation value within the selected grid units were then delineated on the basis of expert knowledge. Recommendations for increasing the total existing protected area by 6% (i.e. an additional 2% of Hong Kong's total land area) were submitted to the Government in August 2000. To test the robustness of the results, site selection was repeated in 2001 using updated data and different selection methods. The numbers of squares selected by complementarity-based algorithms were similar to those by the hotspots and irreplaceable site method. Sites selected for rare species were very sensitive to data completeness, implying that the application of complementarity-based algorithms at fine scales might be limited.     

Fostering Sustainability in Headwaters Country: Using Bioregional and Social Capital Strategies in Support of Sustainability

Many of Canada's ex-urban and rural areas face a daunting array of sustainability challenges. In developing effective sustainability strategies, these areas must rely heavily upon local resources and capacities and existing social capital. Part of the solution for these areas may lie in multi-stakeholder collaborative approaches built on sustainability principles and strategies. These include the engagement and mobilization of civil society networks; the cultivation of strategic partnerships among key stakeholders in civil society, the private sector and government; and long-term local programmes of research, education and advocacy that are supportive of sustainability. This article describes and analyses a Canadian case study—Dufferin County, part of the Headwaters Country region in southern Ontario—in which a multi-stakeholder, civil society based approach to fostering sustainability is currently unfolding. The ideological and theoretical underpinnings of the initiative are explored, key process-oriented and substantive challenges to the approach are analysed and action research strategies are discussed.     

Fostering Sustainability in Headwaters Country: Using Bioregional and Social Capital Strategies in Support of Sustainability

Abstract

Many of Canada's ex-urban and rural areas face a daunting array of sustainability challenges. In developing effective sustainability strategies, these areas must rely heavily upon local resources and capacities and existing social capital. Part of the solution for these areas may lie in multi-stakeholder collaborative approaches built on sustainability principles and strategies. These include the engagement and mobilization of civil society networks; the cultivation of strategic partnerships among key stakeholders in civil society, the private sector and government; and long-term local programmes of research, education and advocacy that are supportive of sustainability. This article describes and analyses a Canadian case study—Dufferin County, part of the Headwaters Country region in southern Ontario—in which a multi-stakeholder, civil society based approach to fostering sustainability is currently unfolding. The ideological and theoretical underpinnings of the initiative are explored, key process-oriented and substantive challenges to the approach are analysed and action research strategies are discussed.     

Sustainability in medicine: a case for the prevention of chronic non-communicable diseases

Chronic non-communicable diseases have increased worldwide, threatening not only the health of individuals but also social stability. Global studies have identified behavioral, environmental, and stress-related factors that account for a substantial amount of variance in these diseases. Identification of these relatively easy modifiable lifestyle factors holds great potential for the development of global prevention strategies in order to improve health and thereby promote economic, ecologic, and social sustainability worldwide.     

Agricultural Sustainability from a Societal View: An Analysis of Southern Spanish Citizens

Sustainable agriculture refers to farming systems with economic, social, and environmental viability that must respond to citizens’ interests and concerns. However, European citizens are not satisfied with the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) due to misinterpretation of their preferences. Because of this, the European agricultural model’s long-term viability is being questioned, especially after the European Commission’s CAP proposals in 2011. This paper examines European agriculture’s potential sustainability with regard to citizens’ preferences. First, focus groups and the Analytic Hierarchy Process are used to identify and quantify southern Spanish citizens’ preferences for farming. Second, socio-demographic features and opinions that determine preferences towards agriculture are studied by a multinomial logit model and a cluster analysis. A comparison is made between citizens’ preferences and the CAP aims because the CAP aims address all European farming. The main results indicate that agricultural economic, environmental, and social functions are equally important to the respondents in our study, even though the CAP prioritizes the economic ones. However, some citizen groups agree with the agricultural model designed by the CAP.     

Mineral reserves: Projected lifetimes and security of supply

This article analyses the lifetimes of reserves of three dozen important minerals. Despite the high rate of their extraction in the past 30 years, the recorded reserves of these non-renewable materials were higher in 1981 than in 1950 and they seem to meet foreseeable demand for a long time to come, as indicated by the estimated static lifetime for each of the minerals covered. The dynamic nature of ‘reserves’ is emphasized: further exploration and scientific and technological advance will add to the present proven reserves, and at a higher price further resources will be ‘upgraded’ into commercially exploitable reserves. Apparent long-term security can be disturbed by natural disasters, political events or other factors, especially in the case of minerals whose reserves and production are highly concentrated in one country. However, any such interruption in the continuity of supply is likely to be short-lived.     

Numerical modeling of diazinon transport through inter-row vegetative filter strips

A numerical simulation model of pesticide runoff through vegetative filer strips (PRVFS) was developed as a tool for investigating the effects of pesticide transport mechanisms on VFS design in dormant-sprayed orchard. The PRVFS model was developed applying existing theories such as kinematic wave theory and mixing zone theory for pesticide transport in the bare soil area. For VFS area, the model performs flow routing by simple mass accounting in sequential segments and the pesticide mass balance by considering pesticide washoff and adsorption processes on the leaf, vegetative litter, root zone and soil. Model sensitivity analysis indicated that pesticide transfer from surface soil to overland flow and pesticide washoff from the VFS were important mechanisms affecting diazinon transport. The VFS cover ratio and rainfall intensity can be important design parameters for controlling diazinon runoff using inter-row VFS in orchard. The PRVFS model was validated using micro-ecosystem simulation of diazinon transport for 0, 50 and 100% VFS cover conditions. The PRVFS model is shown to be a beneficial tool for evaluating and analyzing possible best management practices for controlling offsite runoff of dormant-sprayed diazinon in orchards during the rainy season.     

Outsourcing sustainability: a game-theoretic modeling approach

As a response to stakeholders’ interest in sustainable products and services, an organization may change its approach to sustainability issues, from isolated social and environmental projects to corporate sustainability strategies and practices that are part of their core business. However, many of the efforts associated with these sustainability strategies cannot be directly exerted by focal organizations. We consider the situation in which a focal organization (sustainability buyer) outsources sustainability efforts to another organization (sustainability seller). While buyers cannot directly exert sustainability efforts, they can provide economic or technical support to their sellers in order to incentivize these efforts. We investigate how the effort and support decisions change according to characteristics of stakeholders, buyers, and sellers. Additionally, the presence of sustainability-minded stakeholders may lead to buyers’ competition on the sustainability effort exerted by their sellers. Therefore, we extend our analysis of sustainability efforts and incentives to the case of two competing buyers, and we determine conditions under which sharing a seller is preferred by the buyers to having a separate seller for each buyer.     

Building partnership capacity for the collaborative management of marine protected areas in the UK: a preliminary analysis

This paper reports the findings of a preliminary analysis of 15 case studies of inshore marine protected areas in the UK. It draws on the common-pool resource (CPR) literature and is premised on the thesis that building partnership capacity amongst relevant authorities and resource users provides a critical basis for overcoming collective action problems (CAPs), through the development of incentive structures and social capital, in order to achieve strategic objectives. Particular attention is paid to the influence of statutory marine biodiversity conservation obligations to the European Commission for marine special areas of conservation (MSACs), as these are an important external contextual factor. The risks of imposition and parochialism are outlined and the challenges of taking a balanced approach are discussed. The challenges posed by the attributes of the marine environment are considered, as are those posed by the policy framework for MSACs. The findings are discussed in relation to three questions: (i) which partnership models appear to have the potential to overcome the CAPs posed by inshore MSACs? (ii) what CAPs had to be addressed during the early phase of development of the MSAC co-management regimes? (iii) what are the likely future CAPs for the collaborative management of MSACs that each partnership will need to address? These preliminary findings will form the basis for future studies to analyse the outcomes of these 15 initiatives, in order to assess the strengths, in various contexts, of different approaches for building resilient and balanced, thereby effective, institutions for the co-management of MSACs in the UK.