Multi-Scale Analysis of Common-Pool Resources for Ecosystem Conservation in the Orinoco River Watershed
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University of Massachusetts Amherst ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst Doctoral Dissertations Dissertations and Theses July 2018 Multi-Scale Analysis of Common-Pool Resources for Ecosystem Conservation in the Orinoco River Watershed Luisa Galindo University of Massachusetts Amherst Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umass.edu/dissertations_2 Part of the Natural Resources and Conservation Commons, Natural Resources Management and Policy Commons, and the Water Resource Management Commons Recommended Citation Galindo, Luisa, "Multi-Scale Analysis of Common-Pool Resources for Ecosystem Conservation in the Orinoco River Watershed" (2018). Doctoral Dissertations. 1239. https://doi.org/10.7275/11945494.0 https://scholarworks.umass.edu/dissertations_2/1239 This Open Access Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Dissertations and Theses at ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. It has been accepted for inclusion in Doctoral Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. For more information, please contact [email protected]. MULTI-SCALE ANALYSIS OF COMMON-POOL RESOURCES FOR ECOSYSTEM CONSERVATION IN THE ORINOCO RIVER WATERSHED A Dissertation Presented By LUISA FERNANDA GALINDO PAEZ Submitted to the Graduate School of the University of Massachusetts Amherst in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY May 2018 Environmental Conservation Water, Wetlands, and Watersheds © COPYRIGHT BY LUISA FERNANDA GALINDO PAEZ 2018 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED MULTI-SCALE ANALYSIS OF COMMON-POOL RESOURCES FOR ECOSYSTEM CONSERVATION IN THE ORINOCO RIVER WATERSHED A Dissertation Presented By LUISA FERNANDA GALINDO PAEZ Approved as to style and content by: ___________________________________ Timothy O. Randhir, Chair ___________________________________ John T. Finn, Member ___________________________________ Stan Stevens, Member _________________________________ Timothy O. Randhir Graduate Program Director __________________________________ Curtice R. Griffin, Department Head Department of Environmental Conservation DEDICATION To my parents, Martha and Pedro ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This dissertation was possible thanks to the support and help that I found along these years. To my advisor, Timothy Randhir, who in first place gave me his support to start this Ph.D., and patiently assisted me in the process. I would also like to specially thank John Finn (Jack) and Stan Stevens for teaching me more than I could have hoped for. I have learned undeniably much and most of it from them. I also want to thank those who in one way or another advised my research: Pedro Galindo, Marcelo Somos Valenzuela, Ezra Markowitz, Anita Milman, and the consultants at ISSR. My colleagues also made possible the development of many ideas contained in this document. To Meagan Mazzarino, Lori Pelech, Javier Sabogal, and Michael Roberts. I also learned from my peers: Li Han, Amara Talib, Kaline de Mello, Seema Chouhan, and Javzansuren Norvanchig. Special thanks to Laura Dietz and Ben Gamari for helping me build the spatial model, their support was decisive in the development of the second chapter. During the field work, I had the good fortune of working with other researchers and environmental organizations. First, Simon Costanzo and Alexandra Fries, who involved me in the Orinoco River Report Card project from which I gain much knowledge and experience. Second, Clara Ines Cano from Unillanos, who introduced me v to the particular conditions of the Orinoco and help me connecting with others. Also, I want to thank Carolina Mora and Laura Miranda, from the NGOs La Palmita and Cunaguaro, and all the communities that provided immense support. Without the help of those who work at the national institutions in Colombia, it would not have been possible to access much of the biophysical information that I used in this research. Special thanks to Claudia Contreras, Diana Barbosa, and Nancy Aguirre. I also would like to thank Colciencias and Colfuturo for their economic support, as well as the Department of Environmental Conservation at UMass Amherst. I had a partial grant from UMass Amherst Grad School that allowed me to complete the field work. My new and old friends held my hand along this long process and helped me to keep myself together. To Cibele Freire, Carol Chandler, and Alexandre Passos who listened to me in the most desperate times and fed me with the greatest love. To Luz Angela Betancourt, Lori Pelech, and Kate Losey who have always been there for me. To Bridget Macdonald, Nereyda Falconi, Claudia Páez, and Evie Simkins, for being the best companions. To my many other friends who reached out to me and made sure I was still breathing: Bhavna Patel, Sasha Rivera, Corinne Andrews, Patty Townsend, Jeff Dalton, Carmen Mestizo, Olga Tsvetkova, Beatriz Dias, and Edgar Delgado. Finally, to my family Martha Páez, Pedro Galindo, Ana Becerra, Libia Benito, Nohora Paez, and Juan Gutierrez. Thank you for being so understanding, for your patience, and unconditional love. vi ABSTRACT MULTI-SCALE ANALYSIS OF COMMON-POOL RESOURCES FOR ECOSYSTEM CONSERVATION IN THE ORINOCO RIVER WATERSHED MAY 2018 LUISA FERNANDA GALINDO PAEZ, B.S., UNIVERSIDAD DE LOS ANDES, COLOMBIA M.S., UNIVERSIDAD DE LOS ANDES, COLOMBIA Ph. D., UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST Directed by: Professor Timothy O. Randhir Adaptive management strategies are mechanisms that help governments to overcome problems derived from the sudden change of ecosystems processes and dynamics and to maintain the provision of ecosystem services to the population. These strategies rely on multi-scale networks of governing institutions that work together for the protection of the environment and cooperate for the solution of pressing issues. Sometimes, however, two issues imperil the persistence of local institutions within these networks, (1) their rights to govern their territory and to self-organize are not recognized, and (2) the nested and polycentric systems that operate through the multi-scale network are weak or inexistent. This research studies the case of the Orinoco River Watershed to answer the questions about what are the causes and characteristics that impede the progress towards an ideal multi-scale and polycentric system in developing countries. Three scales are studied: watershed, in the interface between regional and local scales, and local scales. Findings from the analysis of the ecosystem services' spatial distribution at the watershed scale show that the Andean region is essential for the protection of vii strategic ecosystems throughout the watershed. Between regional and local scales, the results indicate major disparities between actors about the importance of protecting certain natural resources, also, it was also found that groups of local actors disagree about the main economic factors that drive the socio-ecological dynamics. Through the analysis of Indigenous peoples’ Life Plans, at a local scale, it was possible to identify the factors that undermine Indigenous peoples' social resilience. Loss of traditional knowledge is one of the most important aspects, followed by low coverage of basic services. The best-rated indicator was the internal organization, which helps them to maintain their traditions and cohesion among the members within their Indigenous reserve. Even though there is no single solution for addressing the issues derived from a lack of articulation and limited recognition of local institutions, the final chapter summarizes these key findings, to elaborate over what type of strategies could contribute to the improvement of multi-scale and polycentric governance of common-pool resources. viii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ...................................................................................... v ABSTRACT .......................................................................................................... vii LIST OF TABLES ................................................................................................ xv LIST OF FIGURES ............................................................................................ xvii CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................... 1 1.1 Loss of ecosystem services in watershed systems ................................... 2 1.2 Governance of common-pool resources ................................................... 3 1.3 Current state of strategic ecosystems within watersheds and their main challenges ............................................................................................... 9 1.3.1 Freshwater ecosystem services .................................................... 12 1.3.2 Forests ......................................................................................... 17 1.3.3 Biodiversity ................................................................................. 23 1.3.4 State of ecosystem service research ............................................ 28 1.4 Contributions of this research ................................................................ 33 1.5 Objectives, research questions, and hypotheses ..................................... 38 1.5.1 Questions and hypotheses for objective 1 ................................... 39 1.5.2 Questions and hypotheses for objective 2 ................................... 39 ix 1.5.3 Questions and hypotheses for objective 3 ................................... 40 1.5.4 Questions and hypotheses for objective