The relative importance of subjective and structural factors for individual adaptation to climate change by forest owners in Sweden

A growing body of literature argues that subjective factors can more accurately explain individual adaptation to climate change than objective measurers of adaptive capacity. Recent studies have shown that personal belief in climate change and affect are much better in explaining climate awareness and action than income, education or gender. This study focuses on the process of individual adaptation to climate change. It assesses and compares the influence of cognitive, experiential and structural factors on individuals’ views and intentions regarding climate change adaptation. Data from this study comes from a survey with 836 forest owners in Sweden. Ordinal and binary logistic regression was used to test hypotheses about the different factors. Results show that cognitive factors—namely personal level of trust in climate science, belief in the salience of climate change and risk assessment—are the only statistically significant factors that can directly explain individuals’ intention to adapt to climate change and their sense of urgency. Findings also suggest that structural or socio-demographic factors do not have a statistically significant influence on adaptation decision-making among Swedish forest owners. The study also offers valuable insights for communication interventions to promote adaptation. Findings strongly suggest that communication interventions should focus more strongly on building trust and addressing stakeholders’ individual needs and experiences

Transitioning toward sustainable consumption at the Swedish local governance level

Municipalities have a prominent role to play in the transition to the sustainable society by governing changes at the local level. Based on a quantitative survey of Swedish municipalities, this study has given us a broad perspective on barriers and enablers in Swedish municipalities' efforts to plan, develop, and implement measures for governing the transition to sustainable consumption. By using a classification of municipalities belonging to certain groups, we find that municipalities characterized by having a city at their cores seem to have progressed further in their work to address sustainable consumption than municipalities characterized as more rural or as commuting municipalities near cities or towns. We also find that, though a large share of municipalities in Sweden report working systematically on sustainable consumption, their potential appears to not be fully realized, limited primarily by a lack of political support and key resources. We identify opportunities to establish more responsive governance structures as important for addressing these issues, where interactions at multiple levels are required to achieve successful governance of Sweden's work on sustainable consumption and address the barriers identified by this study. Higher levels of governance should offer greater support and guidance to municipalities in their work. We also advocate for more robust collaborations between municipalities to prevent them from working in isolation, build capacity, and foster greater knowledge exchange between municipality groups. This would strengthen municipalities' ability to catalyze transformational change, which is crucial if they are to meet their own high ambitions related to sustainable consumption and help institute the changes needed to enable the fulfillment of the long-term sustainability challenges we face, such as those articulated in the Paris Agreement and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development

Resilience in a Watershed Governance Context: A Primer

Watersheds are complex systems involving social, economic, and ecological dimensions that are constantly interacting and influencing each other, and governance of these systems involve a large and diverse cast of actors that add to the complexity and difficulty in deciding what is best for the watershed and people. Resilience thinking offers a way to understand and navigate the uncertainty, dynamics and complexity of watershed governance. This primer describes key ideas associated with resilience: more inclusive participation; building a shared understanding; inclusion of ecosystem services and functions in long-term planning; strong leadership; institutional and decision making flexibility; and, a decentralized system. This primer is an initial effort to translate the scholarly understanding of these key ideas and initiate a dialogue about their application in the context of watershed governance.Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada through the Water Economicsw, Policy and Governance Network Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council Insight Development Gran

Transforming Development and Disaster Risk

Abstract: This article focuses on the complex relationship between development and disaster risk. Development and disaster risk are closely linked as the people and assets exposed to risk, as well as their vulnerability and capacity, are largely determined by development processes. Transformation is key to moving from current development patterns that increase, create or unfairly distribute risks, to forms of development that are equitable, resilient and sustainable. Based on a review of existing literature, we present three opportunities that have the potential to lead to transformation in the development-disaster risk relationship: (i) exposing development-disaster risk trade-offs in development policy and decision-making; (ii) prioritizing equity and social justice in approaches to secure resilience; and (iii) enabling transformation through adaptive governance. This research aims to contribute to breaking down existing barriers in research, policy and practice between the disaster risk reduction, climate change adaptation, and development communities by providing cross-sectoral opportunities to operationalize theoretical knowledge on transformation. It also helps to clarify the connections between different global agendas by positioning transformation as a potential bridging concept to link disconnected policy processes. This paper argues for empirical research to test the opportunities presented here and further define transformative pathways at multiple scales

Towards democratisation of expertise for sustainability : a case study of five initiatives in Sweden and the UK

EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

Environmental governance in an increasingly complex world : An Interdisciplinary Exchange on Adaptation, Collaborative Learning and Knowledge Integration

The purpose of this event was to bring together scholars and practitioners in order to create opportunities for an exchange of ideas, methodologies and experience. Participants  with expertise in different areas i.e., adaptation research, resource management, policy studies, and adult learning, were invited to share latest research outcomes and engage in a collaborative reflection around the challenges of environmental governance in an increasingly complex world. Adaptation, collaborative learning and knowledge integration were the topics on which the event has focused. Joint symposium between Södertörn högskola and Stockholm Envirnment Institute held in Stockholm, Sweden, 27 - 28 May, 2015Environmental Governance in Contex

Stockholmsregionens anpassning till ett förändrat klimat : Sammanställning av delresultat från studier inom forskningsprogrammet Mistra-Swecia

　 Denna   rapport   redovisar   delar   av   resultat   och   analyser   från   Mistra-SWECIAs   arbete   i Stockholmsområdet.   Vår   förhoppning   är   att   den   är   av   intresse   för   de   som   arbetar   med anpassningsfrågor inför klimatförändringar på olika sätt i regionen och i andra delar av Sverige. SWECIA står för Swedish Research Programme on Climate, Impacts and Adaptation och finansieras av Stiftelsen  för  miljöstrategisk  forskning,  Mistra.  Forskningsprogrammet  studerar  klimat,  ekonomi, effekter och anpassning med gemensamma socio-ekonomiska förutsättningar, och med hänsyn till kopplingarna   som   finns   mellan   dessa   forskningsområden.   Forskarna   arbetar   vid   Stockholm Environment Institute  (SEI),  Linköpings  universitet, Lunds  universitet,  Stockholms  universitet  och SMHI.  I  Mistra-SWECIA  är  kommunikationen  mellan  forskare  och  avnämare  central  då  dialogen hjälper till att planera forskningen och bidrar dessutom till effektiv omsättning av resultaten. Första programfasen är fyra år (2008–2011). Denna rapport är en första sammanställning av delresultat från den fallstudie som påbörjades i Stockholms län 2008. Inledningsvis   diskuteras   delar   av   den   deltagandestudie   som   genomfördes   med   aktörer   i Stockholmsregionen under hösten 2008. Vi redogör översiktligt för hur deltagandeforskningen har genomförts och varför vi valt detta sätt att bedriva forskning; på vilket sätt socialt lärande bidrar till anpassningsarbetet;     vilka     intressenter     som     är     engagerade     direkt     eller     indirekt     i klimatanpassningsarbetet, och vilka faktorer vi har uppfattat som kritiska och viktiga för anpassning,. Rapporten  avslutas  med  att  presentera  resultat  från  Mistra-SWECIAs  forskning  inom  Lunds universitet  och  SMHI  angående  framtida  flöden  och  vattennivåer  i  Mälaren,  samt  beräknade klimatscenarier för Stockholmsregionen. Dessa har ockå använts som underlag för studien. Författarna är mycket tacksamma för deltagarnas kommentarer och engagemang i studien men eventuella felaktigheter eller missuppfattningar är helt och hållet författarnas egna. Delar av resultat som presenteras i denna rapport återfinns även i andra kommande publikationer som t ex Simonsson m fl. (kommande); André & Simonsson (2009); Simonsson & André (2009), och Nilsson & Gerger Swartling (2009). Information   om   resultat   och   aktiviteter   inom   Mistra-SWECIA   presenteras   fortlöpande   på www.mistra–swecia.se.Mistra-Sweci

Lärande i lokala naturvårdsprojekt (LONA)

Förord Denna studie har utförts på uppdrag av Naturvårdsverket, och bygger vidare på den enkätundersökning som genomfördes i ett tidigt skede när satsningen på Lokala naturvårdsprojekt (LONA) nyligen startat. Här ligger fokus på om, i så fall hur, de lokala naturvårdsprojekten bidragit till lärandeprocesser inom skola och naturvård. Som i tidigare undersökning har pol.mag. med miljö inriktning Katrin Dahlgren, numera verksam som konsult, svarat för enkät studien, medan Dr. Åsa Gerger Swartling från Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI) svarat för fallstudierna. Professor Katarina Eckerberg, statsvetenskapliga institutionen, Umeå universitet, som även är vice direktör vid SEI, har lett arbetet. Undersökningen faller även väl inom temat ’kunskapsförvaltning och lärande inom socio-ekologiska system’ vid det nyligen etablerade Stockholm Resilience Centre, där Katarina Eckerberg och Åsa Gerger Swartling också är verksamma. Vi vill dock betona att även om det empiriska arbetet delats upp rent praktiskt, är denna rapport i högsta grad ett lag arbete. Vi hoppas att studien kommer att utgöra en värdefull källa för att bedöma hur liknande program ska utformas i framtiden