STAKEHOLDER MEANINGS AND ROBUSTNESS IN SOCIAL- ECOLOGICAL SYSTEMS: IMPLICATIONS FOR MANAGING CHANGE ERNITA VAN WYK Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the School of Agricultural, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) Pietermaritzburg 2015 ii Abstract Alignment of stakeholder behaviour with policies and rules is a key concern where natural resources are managed in the public interest. This thesis is based on the premise that behaviours are founded upon meanings as meanings direct stakeholder preferences for resource benefits. I developed a framework representing a social-ecological system and drew on the theories of symbolic interactionism and ecosystem services to illustrate the dynamic relationship between meaning, context, behaviour, perception of benefits and public infrastructure (policies). I propose that by incorporating meanings into the design of institutions, public infrastructure will continually reflect adjustments in meaning reordering in relation to the meanings of the collective to promote supportive stakeholder behaviour and enhancing system robustness during times of slow as well as rapid, disruptive change. The validity of the framework was tested using a case study from Tokai, South Africa. An interpretive and post-normal paradigm provided the foundation for the detection of stakeholder meanings brought to the fore by semi- structured narrative interviews. Computer aided software and a combination of inductive and deductive analysis were used to generate themes and expressions to illustrate the construction and evolution of meanings during two distinctive phases in the social-ecological history of Tokai. Using the framework to interpret results I was able to illustrate how meanings and meaning prioritisation influence the perception of benefits and how these aspects direct behaviours. The findings indicated the importance of procedural and distributive justice in the negotiated design of public infrastructure and I was able to illustrate the implications for sustaining system robustness. The framework was helpful as a model to interpret the dynamic relationship between meanings, behaviours and institutional design but additional frameworks were needed to facilitate the construction of scenarios that incorporate vulnerability of robustness as reflected by varying levels of relational connectedness and relational capital during cycles of change. I suggest incorporating relational connectedness together with attention to meanings as an approach to fostering relational capital that is likely to direct behaviours to align more constructively with the meanings of the collective, and the associated public infrastructure. My research exposes opportunities for further inquiry: (1) Deeper insights into the relationship between meanings, collective identity and behaviours; (2) Understanding the influence of organisational culture on the adaptive management of collective identity and (3) Greater understanding of how these theoretical aspects should be applied in the practice of adaptive management and governance. iii Declaration of Originality The work described in this thesis was carried out in the School of Agricultural, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN), Pietermaritzburg, from January 2007 to December 2014, under the supervision of Professor Charles Breen, and under the co-supervision of Professor Wayne Freimund, Department of Society and Conservation, The University of Montana. These studies represent original work by the author and have not otherwise been submitted in any form for any degree or diploma to any tertiary institution. Where use has been made of the work of others it is duly acknowledged in the text. I, Ernita van Wyk, declare that 1. The research reported in this thesis, except where otherwise indicated, is my original research. 2. This thesis has not been submitted for any degree or examination at any other university. 3. This thesis does not contain other persons’ data, pictures, graphs or other information, unless specifically acknowledged as being sourced from other persons. 4. This thesis does not contain other persons' writing, unless specifically acknowledged as being sourced from other researchers. Where other written sources have been quoted, then: a. Their words have been re-written but the general information attributed to them has been referenced b. Where their exact words have been used, then their writing has been placed in italics and inside quotation marks, and referenced. 5. This thesis does not contain text, graphics or tables copied and pasted from the Internet, unless specifically acknowledged, and the source being detailed in the thesis and in the References sections. Signed on this day the 16th of March 2015: Ernita van Wyk iv Declaration – Publications and manuscripts 1. van Wyk E, Breen C and Freimund W (2014) Meanings and robustness: propositions for enhancing benefit sharing in social-ecological systems. International Journal of the Commons 8(2):576-594. Signed v Acknowledgements I would like to express immense gratitude to my PhD supervisors Prof. Charles Breen (University of KwaZulu-Natal) and Prof. Wayne Freimund (The University of Montana). Thank you for your patience, inspiration and support to me over a long period, especially given that I was a remote and part-time PhD student. You have been abundantly generous with providing intellectual challenge, advice and support. To the Treehouse (2002 – 2009) and Insaka Programmes (2009 – ) I am so very grateful to have been a part of these initiatives. These communities of practice taught me that intellectual endeavour is a collaborative process with the added joy of growing wonderful and enduring friendships. The University of Montana hosted me for six months (September 2005 to March 2006) which gave me the opportunity, in an inspirational setting, to create a foundation for my PhD thesis. I am indebted to the University and also to Steve and Anne McCool and to Wayne and Tammy Freimund for their generous hospitality during that time. I am grateful to fellow UKZN students, Alfons Mosimane, Bimo Nhkata and Nelly Mwango, who have encouraged me and have been influential in my scholarly development. To Philippa McCosh (University of KwaZulu-Natal) thanks so much for your friendly and helpful assistance, always, with administrative matters. I am also extremely grateful to the thirty eight people whom I interviewed for this study. I am deeply thankful for your time and willingness to share ideas and feelings. I have been so touched by your heartfelt responses and your enthusiasm in expressing them. A special thanks to Alberta van Rooyen, Chris Botes, Piet van Zyl and Peter Good who helped me with archival material and historical information. I am especially grateful to Peter and Charlotte Good, for contributing images and other historical material from their private collection. The South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI), my employer, granted me ten days study leave annually from 2010 to 2013 and Philip Ivey, my line manager at SANBI, afforded me time during 2012 to conduct the study interviews. The South African National Parks (Cape Research Centre) is gratefully acknowledged for granting me a research permit for this study. For thesis editing my grateful thanks go to Cliff and Peggy Moran and Tamsyn Sherwill. Sincere thanks to Carin Favis, for assisting with interview transcriptions and to Francesca Favero who helped with formatting. Finally, a massive thank you to those who have been close to me during this process who have supported me through the exciting and the more difficult times. A big thanks goes to my sister Claudia van Wyk, for your ongoing interest and support and help with photographs. Philippa Louw and Victoria Goodall, you brought a huge amount of support, understanding and fun to my PhD journey. I am so grateful to you. Lastly to my husband Gary Flynn, for his rock-solid support, love, and good humour. vi Contents Abstract........................................................................................................................................ii Declaration of originality .......................................................................................................... iii Declaration – Publications and manuscripts........................................................................... iv Acknowledgements ..................................................................................................................... v List of figures ..............................................................................................................................ix List of plates.................................................................................................................................x List of tables............................................................................................................................... xii Abbreviations ............................................................................................................................ xii Chapter 1: Introduction ............................................................................................................. 1 Chapter 2: Meanings and robustness: propositions for enhancing benefit sharing in social- ecological systems…………………............................................................................................ 5 2.1 Introduction.....................................................................................................................