Opportunities for better use of collective action theory in research and governance for invasive species management

Sònia Graham va finalitzar el seu treball quan treballava a l'ICTA, que ha col·laborat al seu finançament amb fons Maria de Maeztu.Unidad de excelencia María de Maeztu MdM-2015-0552Controlling invasive species presents a public-good dilemma. Although environmental, social, and economic benefits of control accrue to society, costs are borne by only a few individuals and organizations. For decades, policy makers have used incentives and sanctions to encourage or coerce individual actors to contribute to the public good, with limited success. Diverse, subnational efforts to collectively manage invasive plants, insects, and animals provide effective alternatives to traditional command-and-control approaches. Despite this work, there has been little systematic evaluation of collective efforts to determine whether there are consistent principles underpinning success. We reviewed 32 studies to identify the extent to which collectiveaction theories from related agricultural and environmental fields explain collaborative invasive species management approaches; describe and differentiate emergent invasive species collective-action efforts; and provide guidance on how to enable more collaborative approaches to invasive species management. We identified 4 types of collective action aimed at invasive species-externally led, community led, comanaged, and organizational coalitions-that provide blueprints for future invasive species management. Existing collective-action theories could explain the importance attributed to developing shared knowledge of the socialecological system and the need for social capital. Yet, collection action on invasive species requires different types of monitoring, sanctions, and boundary definitions. We argue that future government policies can benefit from establishing flexible boundaries that encourage social learning and enable colocated individuals and organizations to identify common goals, pool resources, and coordinate efforts

A phenomenological study of gardening practices and invasive plant management in the Sydney Basin

Invasive garden plants, also referred to as garden escapes, make up the bulk of environmental and agricultural weeds in Australia and gardening remains the most significant contributor to its spread. Gardening is also regarded as the most popular recreational activity in Australia, particularly among older adults who continue to seek new and exotic plants. As a result of this, and despite the notoriety of some of these plants which are considered to be noxious, garden escapes continue to be sold in nurseries and cultivated in domestic gardens. This research is, therefore, founded upon the prevalence of invasive plants on nursery shelves and in domestic gardens from where they spread into the wider environment. It explores the links between gardening and the spread of garden escapes so as to determine how current remediation efforts might be improved upon. Weed management strategies typically seek to provide gardeners with more information about the invasiveness of some garden plants, with the aim of fostering a change in their gardening behaviour. However, research has shown that there are factors other than an information deficit which lead to the presence of invasive species in gardens, hence the need for a shift in management outlook. Using social practice theory, this study reconceptualises gardening as a ‘practice’ that is made up of several constituting elements which work together to determine the way it is performed. These elements include the materials which aid the performance of the practice, the competences which practitioners need for a successful performance, and the meanings associated with the practice. All three have to be present in a particular configuration in order for gardening to be successfully performed and changing any one element results in a corresponding change in the practice itself. On the basis of this theoretical framework, this research explores gardening enactments to determine which elements are currently associated with it and how these relate to garden escapes. This will, in turn, highlight potential avenues through which management interventions might be better directed to ultimately foster the much needed change in enactments that lead to garden escapes. To achieve the objectives of this study, 15 weed managers were interviewed to elicit baseline knowledge about the extent to which garden escapes are a problem within the Sydney Basin. This information was then incorporated into subsequent semi-structured interviews with 27 gardeners who were asked to give detailed accounts of their gardening enactments. The recruitment of weed managers was done mostly through snowballing from existing contacts while the gardeners were recruited through garden clubs and using radio broadcasts. All participants involved were located within the Sydney Basin Bioregion, New South Wales, which was chosen as the study site for its rich abundance of plants and nurseries as well as its eclectic diversity of gardeners. The findings revealed that gardening is in fact shaped by underlying elements which determine its performance, and this was evident in four main ways. First, gardeners’ approach to gardening was shown to largely stem from a desire for the presence of animals in the garden space, and this led to a passive involvement in weed prevention and eradication. Secondly, experiential and social learning were shown to be the preferred way by which gardeners learn and this had to do with a perception that friends and family are the most reliable sources of gardening advice. Plant choices made by gardeners were not only driven by aesthetic ideals but also age and time constraints, which led to the cultivation of flamboyant and low maintenance plant species respectively. The fourth aspect of gardening enactments that holds some relevance for the spread of garden escapes relates to plant exchanges which the gardeners described as being a normal part of the practice. These exchanges were understood to be a physical demonstration of shared friendship ideals, and were also driven by gardeners’ need to obtain plants as cheaply as possible. So not only are plant choices determined by aesthetics and low maintenance needs but affordability was also important, especially considering that most participants are retired and on a pension. Plant swapping, however, is one obvious way by which gardeners aid the spread of potentially invasive plants from one location to another, thereby perpetuating the garden escapes problem. Conceptually, this research advances the utility of practice theory in the area of natural resource management where it has previously not been applied. The theory offers a more comprehensive way of apprehending gardening enactments, in contrast to other research approaches which focus exclusively on either the human gardeners or non-human actors. In this way, it opens up points of management intervention that may not have been previously considered. Recommendations have been made regarding potential intervention strategies that are based on the practice approach adopted here, and these offer a more targeted way of managing garden escapes. This research also contributes to ongoing debates surrounding the suitability of interviews as a methodological tool for eliciting accounts of routine practices. The merits of this data collection instrument are evident in the detailed and uninhibited responses given by the participants of this study, in relation to such a routine practice as gardening

Same but different: sources of natural resource management advice for lifestyle oriented rural landholders

Amenity migration to attractive and accessible non-metropolitan areas changes social and environmental relations with consequences for natural resource management and landscape composition and trajectories. Lifestyler oriented rural landholders are often cast as a problem for land management and extension. Managers and some researchers see them as a cause of landscape and social fragmentation and report difficulties in engaging such landowners on natural resource management issues and responsibilities. In contrast, limited existing research indicates that lifestylers do join and form networks of personal and other contacts for advice and support in land management. We contribute to this research with a survey of rural landholders in southeastern New South Wales (NSW). We explicitly compare the sources of advice for land management for lifestylers with those of farmers. We focus on the types of sources available to rural landholders in Australian regions and their relative importance to these two landholder groups. We find that lifestylers and farmers are different in their sources of advice but that both prefer personal sources rather than sources such as agencies. We reflect on the significance of the differences for engagement with lifestyle oriented rural landowners and for understanding landscape change

Teaching practices that improve performance, attainment and engagement: Results from a longitudinal study of high school students in NSW

This report builds on a body of evidence showing the positive effect of teaching and classroom practices on engagement, wellbeing and academic outcomes. Using two student cohorts in NSW government schools, Years 7 to 9 and Years 10 to 12, we have quantified the effects of quality instruction and other effective classroom practices as drivers of student outcomes (see Figure 1, p. 54). A common theme across both cohorts was the positive impact on key academic outcomes of teachers having high expectations and appropriately challenging all their students (as measured through the NAPLAN tests and Year 12 completion). Modelling also shows that the effects that teaching practices have on NAPLAN, specifically, are mediated by improved attendance, behaviour and intrinsic motivation to learn

Microbiological and biochemical spoilage of smoke-dried fishes sold in West African open markets

Proximate composition and microbiological characteristics of pre-dried Chrysichthys nigrodigitatus and Pseudotolithus typus were studied over a period of 4 weeks to determine the health risks associated with delayed consumption. All analyses were conducted using standard microbiological and chemical methods. Results showed a general decline in microbiological safety and nutritive characteristics of both fish species over time, with an observed increase in microbial loads over time. Aspergillus flavus was also present on both species which makes consumption of the fishes hazardous to the health of consumers due to its ability to produce carcinogenic aflatoxins. In order to minimise the health risks to consumers, it is recommended that smoke-dried fishes be consumed with minimal delay and cooked properly before consumption. The findings of this study will prove important in the development of more stringent regulations regarding food safety in Nigeria

Understanding the assistive technology needs of people over 55: The future of mobility aids

Objective: To understand mobility issues not adequately serviced by assistive technology (AT). Methods: A two-stage mixed-methods research project that forms the basis of future AT design and manufacture. Stage 1: a focus group comprising 46 participants (people aged 55 years or older with mobility issue/s) and their support networks. Stage 2: a sample of 413 people over 55 completed a purpose-designed survey informed by stage 1, regarding mobility issues and perceived desirability of suggested AT mobility aids. Results: Two core themes emerged: (a) functionality issues relating to existing AT designs and (b) identified mobility issues encountered during activities of daily living that could potentially be resolved by developing new AT. Importance was placed on certain features of AT mobility aids with cost, transportability and aesthetics being primary issues. Conclusion: Consulting end-users and their networks ensures valuable insight into how future AT can better address and target mobility needs

Challenge-led interdisciplinary research in practice: Program design, early career research, and a dialogic approach to building unlikely collaborations

Challenge-led interdisciplinary research is a relatively new way of bringing together disciplinary expertise in response to complex societal and environmental problems. Common difficulties include how to define \u27interdisciplinary research\u27; how to improve the participation and flourishing of early-career researchers; and how to manage projects with disparate teams of researchers while deepening external collaborations. This article reports from a major initiative of this type. It interrogates qualitative data generated from program evaluation among participating researchers, identifying insights on beneficial structural (program design) and \u27soft\u27 infrastructure (human capital) variables, as well as on-going barriers and tensions. Notwithstanding the difficulties of communicating and collaborating across epistemic domains, the program in question exceeded expectations in building interdisciplinary research and early research careers\u27though not necessarily in ways initially imagined. Staggered funding pools meant it was acceptable in early phases for low-cost projects to \u27fail safely\u27, while strict funding guidelines on distal interdisciplinarity compelled unlikely and novel researcher combinations and projects. Moreover, such program design features \u27granted permission\u27 to early-career researchers to approach more senior, crossfaculty researchers as potential collaborators, hence building leadership capacity. Human capital variables included a dialogic approach to project development (\u27curating\u27 projects as they evolve), inclusive program leadership, and promotion of the benefits of a collaborative rather than competitive research culture. Distal interdisciplinarity not only nourishes novel and unlikely research projects that respond to complex problems; with good program design and meaningful relationships it can, we argue, also build research careers differently from an early phase

Opportunities for better use of collective action theory in research and governance for invasive species management

Controlling invasive species presents a public-good dilemma. Although environmental, social, and economic benefits of control accrue to society, costs are borne by only a few individuals and organizations. For decades, policy makers have used incentives and sanctions to encourage or coerce individual actors to contribute to the public good, with limited success. Diverse, subnational efforts to collectively manage invasive plants, insects, and animals provide effective alternatives to traditional command-and-control approaches. Despite this work, there has been little systematic evaluation of collective efforts to determine whether there are consistent principles underpinning success. We reviewed 32 studies to identify the extent to which collective-action theories from related agricultural and environmental fields explain collaborative invasive species management approaches; describe and differentiate emergent invasive species collective-action efforts; and provide guidance on how to enable more collaborative approaches to invasive species management. We identified 4 types of collective action aimed at invasive species-externally led, community led, comanaged, and organizational coalitions-that provide blueprints for future invasive species management. Existing collective-action theories could explain the importance attributed to developing shared knowledge of the social-ecological system and the need for social capital. Yet, collection action on invasive species requires different types of monitoring, sanctions, and boundary definitions. We argue that future government policies can benefit from establishing flexible boundaries that encourage social learning and enable colocated individuals and organizations to identify common goals, pool resources, and coordinate efforts