Learning through practice? Learning from the REDD+ demonstration project,Kalimantan Forests and Climate Partnership (KFCP) in Indonesia

Despite a growing recognition of the importance of social learning in governing and managing land use, the understanding and practice of learning has received limited attention from researchers. In global environmental programs and projects aimed at supporting sustainable land use in developing countries, learning is often promoted but without explicit learning goals. The focus may be on capacity building and community participation, and on testing policy tools, rather than on collaborative social learning. In this study, we looked behind the rhetoric of learning in the Kalimantan Forests and Climate Partnership (KFCP), a large demonstration project for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) in Indonesia. The novelty of such mechanisms, linked to international forest carbon outcomes, means that learning lessons provides a rationale for REDD+ pilot activities. We used a qualitative approach to examine the nature and type of learning that occurred in the KFCP. While the stated project aims were to support policy experimentation and apply learning, the project design was highly technical, and project decision-making did not explicitly encourage joint problem solving. Despite the project’s shortcomings, we identified that learning did occur by the end of the project in ways that were different to the initial goals. Our findings suggest that flexibility and openness in project design and implementation can enable different local actors to define shared learning agendas in ways that are meaningful for them. Designing and implementing environmental projects, and learning goals within them, should attend to the needs and aspirations of those who will have to live with their long-term consequences. Learning should be integrated into international environmental programs and projects at all levels, including for policy and funding bodies, rather than focusing on local capacity building and similar project ‘benefits’. Interviewees’ eagerness to learn suggests that building approaches to social learning into program design has the potential to yield opportunities for learning beyond REDD+ to other forms of policy experimentation and governance innovations.     

Integrating decentralised land administration systems with traditional land governance institutions in Ghana: Policy and praxis

The aim of the Land Administration Project (LAP) policy reform for supporting the establishment of the Customary Land Secretariats (CLSs) is to formalise and strengthen customary land administration and management within the context of decentralised land administration. With the prospects of the CLSs becoming the legal local land administrative units, the paper assessed how traditional land governance institutions may have contributed to the decentralisation of land administration in Ghana. The research used case study strategy within the qualitative research paradigm and un-structured questionnaires were used to collect data. The analyses show that, simple land registries exist with traditional local governance institutions through the CLSs. The maintenance and effectiveness of this however depends on continuous improvement of records keeping, quality of office personnel and suitable office accommodation. This should be devoid of local power struggles among current and successive chiefs. Also, collaboration with public land sector agencies especially in areas of sharing information on rights, uses, disputes and preparation of planning layouts is paramount. These registries are mere extension of the state land administration apparatus as service units under the deconcentration of land administration powers. The paper concludes that the current policy focus on strengthening decentralised land administration through the CLSs may fail if attention is not given to the maintenance of the local registries. Revenue generation capacities of the CLSs need to be enhanced in order for them to recruit and maintain quality office staff, and acquire technical logistics. Decentralising land administration to the CLSs under the deconcentration of powers should be maintained in the interim because of the teething problems identified with this current system.     

State corporatism and environmental harm: Tax farming and desertification in northwestern China

Research on environmental governance in China has shown that centre–local relations often influence the implementation and efficacy of environmental regulations. By examining changes in resource allocation and rural development between 1982 and 2005 in the region worst affected by desertification in China—the Minqin oasis in Gansu—we argue that changes in macro‐level fiscal and commodity grain policies contributed to severe regional disparity and a reduction in local state capacity in hinterland China. Intergovernmental competition over fiscal revenue encouraged cash cropping and land reclamation, and the continuous decline of the oasis ecology further reduced legitimacy in rural governance. These institutional and ecological constraints shaped the behaviour of grassroots cadres and formed the conflicting interests of the state in resource distribution and environmental conservation that continued to exist until the implementation of a centralized conservation program in 2006. The data came from 157 interviews and 628 policy documents from local archives in Gansu.     

Using scenario planning to assess governance reforms for enhancing biodiversity outcomes

Governance arrangements frame and direct how land managers respond to the multiple demands and challenges of conserving biodiversity. Biodiversity conservation requires attention to how social-ecological systems (SES) change and can be influenced over time. It is important that governance settings within these systems can support achievement of biodiversity outcomes. Two questions then arise. Will current arrangements lead to desirable biodiversity outcomes, and if not, are there other arrangements that plausibly might do better? However, methods for answering these questions in collaboration with critical stakeholders such as policy makers and land managers are not evident in the literature. The aim of this paper is to explore the use of a participatory scenario planning process to test the efficacy of proposed governance reforms for enhancing biodiversity outcomes in two contrasting landscapes in Australia. A workshop process was used to consider the effect of the reform options on key drivers of change, and thus how these affected drivers would in turn modify future scenarios, and the biodiversity outcomes of these scenarios. In both landscapes, there was a preference for reforms that retained governmental influence or control, in contrast to academic calls for adaptive governance that emphasises the importance of self-organisation and devolution of authority. The workshop process, although complex and cognitively challenging, was regarded by participants as suitable for testing the utility of alternative governance options for biodiversity conservation. Challenges for the future include designing and considering reforms based on what is possible rather than probable or preferable, and engaging participants over time to build knowledge, engagement and trust. The paper concludes with suggestions for addressing these challenges.     

Collaborative governance arrangements to deliver spatially coordinated agri-environmental management

Several studies show that agri-environment schemes (AES) are likely to be more effective if they are designed at the landscape scale. However, this requires spatial coordination of environmental management across multiple farm holdings and collaboration among governmental and other actors, including, possibly, groups of farmers. In this study we analyse alternative approaches to spatial coordination and collaboration. Through case studies from five EU member states in North West Europe we analysed collaborative governance arrangements, from the perspective of the distribution of governance tasks among collaborating actors and changes to these over time. Of these governance tasks, spatial coordination had our particular interest. The collaborative governance arrangements were shaped in various ways. In four out of five case studies a group of farmers had become involved in the performance of more governance tasks over time. In all cases a professional(ized) organisation (governmental organisation or a group of farmers) was responsible for spatial coordination, possibly due to the complexities inherent to a landscape approach. In relation to the change of schemes over time, we argue that adaptive collaborative governance, incorporating learning, monitoring and evaluation in the governance arrangements, is key to effective agri- environmental management.     

Assessing governance challenges of local biodiversity and ecosystem services: Barriers identified by the expert community

This paper assesses barriers to local biodiversity and ecosystem (BES) governance within cities, drawing on findings from an international expert survey encompassing 45 cities in 25 countries. BES is recognised as a key foundation for sustainable cities, yet current literature indicates that more clarity is needed on the factors which may undermine BES initiatives. Survey findings show broad agreement that officials in development sectors have inadequate BES knowledge, budgets for BES are insufficient, and planners in the locality lack knowledge about BES. Respondents not working for local governments were more likely to see policy change with administrations, budget limitations, and lack of expertise as barriers. Respondents for cities in less-developed countries agreed significantly more that there were harmful cultural activities, and were more concerned that inadequate consideration from governments at different scales and poor internal communication were barriers. Based on the findings, we suggest (a) a need to evaluate the effectiveness of collaboration both within government and between sectors; (b) the importance of building capacity within local government staff, both in techno-scientific knowledge and in engaging the policy landscape with this knowledge; and (c) the importance of further considering how BES conservation may relate to culturally meaningful practices.     

New institutional approach to collaborative forest planning on public land: Methods for analysis and lessons for policy

Collaborative planning has become an increasingly popular approach in environmental decision-making, particularly in situations where there are multiple actors with conflicting interests. In this paper, collaborative environmental planning is perceived as being embedded in an institutional environment that has an impact on the processes and outcomes of planning. Building on the theory of new institutionalism, the paper combines legal analysis of forest regulation with interviews and policy document data from two case studies on collaborative Natural Resource Planning in state-owned forests in Finland. These approaches will be used to analyse how formal regulations and informal norms are interpreted and implemented in the planning processes. The paper highlights the important role institutions can play in promoting or hindering successful collaborative planning, and makes recommendations for developing a forest governance system that is equipped to deal with the identified challenges.     

Agreement based land consolidation – In perspective of new modes of governance

A comparative study on the performance of new modes of governance in selected Central and Eastern European countries stated the problem that the emergence of new modes of governance in environmental policy is impaired by weak governance capacities in state and civil society and lack of mutual trust among stakeholders (Börzel, 2009a). The purpose of this article is to draw attention to agreement based land consolidation for implementation of area based environmental policies. The article contends that land consolidation exclusively based on agreements can cope with capacity constraints in state and civil society and at the same time apply the principles of new modes of governance. The research questions are: (i) how are principles of new modes of governance applied in agreement based land consolidation? (ii) what are the incentives and the technique in agreement based land consolidation? and (iii) what are the capacity building requirements for an agreement based land consolidation approach? The Danish land consolidation procedure is used as an example of an agreement based approach. Transaction technique, planning technique, and incentives are exposed with reference to transaction cost theory. The impact on trust is illuminated with reference to theory on social capital. The wetland projects serve as an example of area based environmental projects and is illustrated by a case. Data, however incomplete, indicate that agreement based land consolidation has been and is used as an important implementation tool in land related environmental policies in Denmark. The article concludes that the agreement based approach displays key features of new modes of governance. The principle of voluntary agreements grants the affected non-state actors a strong position to influence the final policy outcome and they contribute with local knowledge and mediation. The approach avoids conventional enforcement. Agreement based land consolidation is possible but relies on demanding preconditions. The investment in incentives and capacity building can be justified by a broad range of benefits.     

Using a Delphi approach to identify the most efficacious interventions to improve Indonesia’s forest and land governance

Improvements to forest and land governance are key to addressing deforestation and degradation of peatlands in Indonesia. While this is a priority area, the steps to achieving good forest and land governance have been under-researched. There is a need for better links between theoretically informed academic analysis and work in the field. This study drew together a panel of experts on forest and land governance using a Delphi method to discuss the underlying drivers of deforestation and peatland degradation, and correspondingly, to identify interventions to improve land and forest governance in Indonesia. Seventeen panelists with an average of more than 12 years’ experience reached agreement over four governance interventions: increasing the capacity of local communities to manage and monitor forests and natural resources (65% of panelist’s votes); identify strengths and weaknesses of community organisations and institutions, and develop strategies to improve their performance (65% of panelist’s votes); gazetting forests to clarify land boundaries and determine which areas should be village, community and state forest zone (59% of panelist’s votes); and, integrating participatory community maps into spatial plans to protect local communities and indigenous peoples’ development needs (53% of panelist’s votes). They also supported action research involving the government, private sector and communities, and political economy approaches to researching forest and land governance issues. Panelists indicated that community level approaches such as securing community forest tenure through clarifying land claims and integrating local land tenure into spatial planning had an important role in sustainable forest management.     

流域水污染的协作治理研究

根据流域污染现状和协作治理理论的内涵,进而分析二者的适应性、流域水污染的治理现状及存在的困境,针对治理的碎片化困境,从培育协作理念、公开治理信息、建立以流域为单元的综合管理体制、构建流域水污染治理多元化机制和完善制度供给、强化执行与监督等方面提出进一步加强流域水污染协作治理的路径选择,以期为我国流域污染问题的进一步改观提供参考。     

Cross-level information and influence in mandated participatory planning: Alternative pathways to sustainable water management in Germany's implementation of the EU Water Framework Directive

State and non-state actors increasingly work across scales to address complex environmental problems. Prior studies of stakeholder participation have not fully examined how collaborative processes play out in multi-level policymaking. At the same time, multi-level governance studies do not adequately investigate the impacts of stakeholder participation. This study examines the cross-level interactions of influence and information in the participatory implementation of the European Union's Water Framework Directive. This directive is an example of mandated participatory planning, a relatively new approach that engages grassroots collaboration through a top-down structure with nested policy cycles. A case analysis of three collaborative planning units in the Land of Lower Saxony, within the federal governance structure of Germany, finds limited influence and information transmission across levels via formal planning and implementation processes. However, the collaborative efforts did yield alternative pathways for achieving substantive progress toward the directive's aims via learning, coordination, and buy-in among participants.     

Uncertain monitoring and modeling in a watershed nonpoint pollution program

Performance-based programs governing land use rely on environmental measurement, prediction, and assessment. Yet complex, nonlinear social and environmental change can lead to uncertainties in quantification and forecasting and create challenges for operationalizing programs. This research examines the roles that environmental monitoring and modeling uncertainty play in experimental land and water governance through an analysis of a regulatory water quality program in Wisconsin, USA. The case demonstrates how uncertainties in measurement and prediction of pollution runoff shape program design and participant perceptions. We draw on interviews, a survey, participant observation, and policy document analysis to illustrate how regulators and participants (including municipalities, sewerage treatment plants, farmers and nonprofit organizations) perceive and react to uncertainty. Because current and future water quality data are based largely on model estimates, but regulatory compliance will likely be based on measured in-stream outcomes, participants must evaluate potential risks of involvement. Stakeholders have relied on partnership building and legal modifications such as extended compliance timelines to reduce the risks associated with uncertainty. Experimentation under uncertainty led to sustained stakeholder dialogue, and an iterative process of deciding how monitoring and modeling should be used to track and prove program progress.     

Contemporary Discourses and Contestations around Pro‐Poor Land Policies and Land Governance

The meaning of land and land policies is diverse and contested across and within local and (inter)national settings. The phrase ‘land policy’, used to refer to all policies that have anything to do with land, may be convenient, but it masks the actual complexity of issues. Meanwhile, concern for ‘pro‐poor’ land policy has coincided with the mainstream promotion of efficient administration of land policies, leading to the concept of ‘land governance’. Such concepts have enriched discussion on land issues, but they also complicate further an already complex terrain. In response, this paper offers possible analytical signposts, rather than an actual in‐depth and elaborated analytical exploration of this terrain. It hopes to be a modest step forward and towards a better understanding of contemporary policy discourses and political contestations around land and land governance.     

Five scale challenges in Ecuadorian forest and landscape restoration governance

The forest and landscape restoration (FLR) targets set as part of the Bonn Challenge draw attention to the governance arrangements required to translate national FLR targets into local action. To achieve the targets, actors at multiple levels of the governance scale aim to influence relevant processes on the ecological scale. In this article, we focus on the scale challenges relating to the implementation of Ecuador’s restoration targets, by analysing the implementation of the 2014–2017 National Forest Restoration Plan in the montane Chocó Andino and Bosque Seco landscapes. From 54 semi-structured interviews, a document review, and geographical data analysis, we identified two temporal (i, ii) and three spatial scale challenges (iii, iv, v): i) Political cycles mismatch with FLR timelines; ii) Planning horizons mismatch with FLR timelines; iii) National restoration objectives mismatch with decentralised land use planning realities; iv) The governance level of existing FLR efforts mismatches with the level receiving restoration funds; and v) Tensions exist between the spatial dimensions of biodiversity and water-related restoration efforts. The findings highlight that more attention must be given to scale-sensitive governance to make the process in which national FLR targets are translated into local action more effective.     

整体性治理视域下数字政府建设的协同困境与整合策略

数字政府不仅仅是数据的在线化,更涉及政府治理理念、治理机制、治理结构、治理模式的重大转变。文章对具有成熟经验的广东、浙江、贵州三省数字政府的建设现状进行分析,发现仍存在着重复建设、异构系统数据标准不同、信息孤岛、跨区域协同能力不足等协同困境。基于整体性治理与数字政府在价值理念、治理工具以及现实方面的密切联系,从整体性治理视角分析我国数字政府建设的协同困境成因,即条块分割造成碎片化问题、地方本位主义阻碍跨区域协同、商业化和公共性交织影响公私合作,据此提出跨层级、跨部门、跨区域、公私合作的整合协同策略,突破政府在信息化领域的组织边界,以形成整体推进的格局,助力政府治理变革。     

论土地善治

研究目的:探讨新时代背景下土地善治的概念、特征及体系。研究方法:归纳分析与演绎推理。研究结果:土地善治实质上是一种对管理理想状态的孜孜追求,其核心是由政府与非政府协同及多向网络化的管理模式,目标是以最小的政府和社会投入获取最大的土地管理效应;土地善治应遵循土地的基本属性、土地利用的价值准则和政策目标;现阶段实施土地善治重点需处理好土地行政管理权与国有土地所有权、政府与村民委员会及政府与农民等的关系。研究结论:土地善治是新时代土地管理的必然选择,土地资源的基本属性、土地利用的价值准则和政策目标是科学构建土地善治体系的基本逻辑依据。     

基于演化博弈的土地利用冲突缓解机制研究 ——以沈抚新区为例

研究目的：构建多元利益主体参与的土地利用冲突缓解机制,对于缓解区域用地矛盾和实现区域空间协同治理具有重要意义。研究方法：三方演化博弈模型、Matlab数值仿真。研究结果：（1）地方政府在土地利用冲突中的策略选择对营利性组织与农民的策略选择起决定作用;（2）治污处罚、政策补贴、土地租金、污染赔偿、额外补助是影响研究区土地利用冲突的关键因素;（3）通过调整影响研究区土地利用冲突关键因素,从实现绿色经济和条块化管理策略上,构建社会经济型和生态治理型的土地利用冲突缓解机制。研究结论：构建地方政府、营利性组织和农民之间的三方演化博弈关系,可实现社会经济发展和生态环境治理目标下的三方利益主体利益均衡,促进地方政府主导转向多方利益主体合作,有利于缓解区域用地矛盾和冲突。     

Smart governance based on multipurpose territorial cadastre and geographic information system: An analysis of geoinformation,transparency and collaborative participation for Brazilian capitals

In the information era, cities are connected by data networks and, therefore, solutions to urban problems have been supported by Information and Communication Technologies, which provide the interaction between government and citizens. Thus, information plays a crucial role in Smart Cities, enabling the smart governance, under the precepts of good governance, highlighting the participation and transparency. In addition, Geoinformation turns the Multipurpose Territorial Cadastre into a decision support informational source that is of great relevance in the context of Smart Governance. Based on this context, the present study investigates the geotechnology scenario applied by the governments of the Brazilian capitals, observing the availability of Multipurpose Territorial Cadastre on the Internet and considering the Geoinformation, Transparency and Collaborative participation aspects. In this sense, this paper proposes an exploratory research, with quantitative and qualitative analyzes. In the first stage, it was identified the cities that offer access to territorial information via the Internet, i.e., quantifying cities with active geoportals. Next, the second step qualifies the geoportals of cities according to their existence and access to certain information. The types of information selected for the survey, considered the evolution of the Cadastre, observing three aspects: (i) cadastral information; (ii) thematic information; and (iii) collaborative interface. The results showed that just over half of the capitals keep active geoportals and almost 1/3 of the capitals make available on the Internet a Multipurpose Territorial Cadastre. In terms of Transparency, it was noted that open access data is still lower than non-available or restricted access data. Moreover, the aspect of Collaborative participation is meaningless. Analyzing the results, it can be noted the need to improve both the availability of data and open access to information regarding the aspects of Multipurpose Territorial Cadastre in the geoportals, mainly the cadastral information. These actions could promote the transparency and collaborative participation that, consequently, will improve the effectiveness of smart governance in the Brazilian capitals.     

How involved are they really? A comparative network analysis of the institutional drivers of local actor inclusion

Different socio-economic and environmental drivers lead local communities in mountain regions to adapt land use practices and engage in protection policies. The political system also has to develop new approaches to adapt to those drivers. Local actors are the target group of those policy approaches, and the question arises of if and how much those actors are consulted or even integrated into the design of local land use and protection policies. This article addresses this question by comparing seven different case studies in Swiss mountain regions. Through a formal social network analysis, the inclusion of local actors in collaborative policy networks is investigated and compared to the involvement of other stakeholders representing the next higher sub-national or national decisional levels. Results show that there is a significant difference (1) in how local actors are embedded compared to other stakeholders; and (2) between top-down versus bottom-up designed policy processes.     

Land governance as a precondition for decreasing deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon

This paper’s aim is to show that improvements in land governance in Brazil, and particularly in the Amazon region, have been the main pre-condition enabling reductions in deforestation of the Amazon rainforest. Deforestation occurs primarily where property rights are not clearly established, and occurs mostly on land directly or indirectly under state responsibility. This paper also shows that land speculation plays an important role in deforestation. Based on these findings, it is evident that Brazil must improve its land governance in order to decrease rates of deforestation. The Brazilian government has adopted important new efforts to improve land administration, including improvements in the registration process and the Terra Legal program, which are addressing public land problems across large areas of the Amazon. The concluding section highlights how efforts to reduce deforestation will only be possible through more efficient land governance, especially in the Amazon region, and discusses the important role that participatory land governance may play in improving land use and land ownership through application of land taxes.