Cross-scale value trade-offs in managing social-ecological systems: The politics of scale in Ruaha National Park, Tanzania

Authors

Asim Zia, University of Vermont
Paul Hirsch, SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry
Alexander Songorwa, Sokoine University of Agriculture
David R. Mutekanga, Ruaha National Park
Sheila O'Connor, Arizona State University
Thomas McShane, Arizona State University
Peter Brosius, University of Georgia
Bryan Norton, Georgia Institute of Technology

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

1-1-2011

Abstract

Management of social-ecological systems takes place amidst complex governance processes and cross-scale institutional arrangements that are mediated through politics of scale. Each management scenario generates distinct cross-scale trade-offs in the distribution of pluralistic values. This study explores the hypothesis that conservation-oriented management scenarios generate higher value for international and national scale social organizations, whereas mixed or more balanced management scenarios generate higher value for local scale social organizations. This hypothesis is explored in the management context of Ruaha National Park (RNP), Tanzania, especially the 2006 expansion of RNP that led to the eviction of many pastoralists and farmers. Five management scenarios for RNP, i.e., national park, game reserve, game control area, multiple use area, and open area, are evaluated in a multicriteria decision analytical framework on six valuation criteria: economic welfare; good governance; socio-cultural values; social equity; ecosystem services; and biodiversity protection; and at three spatial scales: local, national, and international. Based upon this evaluation, we discuss the politics of scale that ensue from the implementation of management alternatives with different mixes of conservation and development goals in social-ecological systems. Copyright © 2011 by the author(s).

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License

Rights Information

© 2011 the Authors

Recommended Citation

Zia A, Hirsch P, Songorwa A, Mutekanga DR, O’Connor S, McShane T, Brosius P, Norton B. Cross-scale value trade-offs in managing social-ecological systems: the politics of scale in Ruaha National Park, Tanzania. Ecology and Society. 2011 Dec 1;16(4).

DOI

10.5751/ES-04375-160407