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Asia-Pacific Fishing Livelihoods
This chapter examines the role that governance plays in shaping fishing livelihoods. This include... more This chapter examines the role that governance plays in shaping fishing livelihoods. This includes formal government regulation as well as other factors that shape fishing, such as markets, buyer requirements and social norms. Institutional arrangements serve as a key component of fishing livelihoods, by prescribing the conditions under which fishing livelihoods operate. In this chapter we sketch out some of the trends in fisheries governance across parts of the Asia-Pacific, before discussing examples in Australia and Indonesia.
The Journal of Environment & Development
The blue economy is a globally emerging concept for ocean governance that seeks to tap the econom... more The blue economy is a globally emerging concept for ocean governance that seeks to tap the economic potential of the oceans in environmentally sustainable ways. Yet, understanding and implementation of particular visions of the blue economy in specific regions diverge according to national and other contexts. Drawing on a discourse analysis of Chinese language documents, this article assesses how the blue economy has been conceptualised in Chinese state policy and discourse. Part of a state ideology and practice of modernisation that is defined in terms of rejuvenation under a strong state, the blue economy in China is seen as an opportunity to promote modernisation from overlapping economic, geopolitical and ecological perspectives and actions. China’s distinctive model for the blue economy presents emerging challenges for global ocean governance.
The Japanese, and other Asians, are increasingly taking over some of the roles previously played ... more The Japanese, and other Asians, are increasingly taking over some of the roles previously played by Europeans in the Pacific islands, which is giving rise to interesting new economic relationships, and interesting new interactions between nationalities. This book considers the role of the Japanese in the Solomon Islands, focusing in particular on a joint venture between the Japanese multinational Maruha Corporation and the Solomon Islands government, which managed a tuna fishing and processing enterprise which was a mainstay of the Solomon Islands economy from the 1970s to 2000. It considers a range of important themes including the changing nature of colonialism, the degree to which people's ethnic sense of self, and therefore their relationship with others, is affected by how modern (or primitive) their nation is perceived to be, and how all this relates to the development of capitalism, nationalism, and modernity
Neoliberalism is a political economy term that refers to a public policy mix that is market orien... more Neoliberalism is a political economy term that refers to a public policy mix that is market oriented, pro trade liberalization and advocates minimal state intervention in the economy. Japanese governance has arguably not been based on neoliberal principles, and some see this as contributing to Japan's long running recession. Japan's distant water tuna longline fleet has been in economic difficulties since the early years of the recession. In 2001 Prime Minister Koizumi came to power promising neoliberal style reform. This paper presents a history of government involvement in the distant water tuna longline industry and looks for evidence that recent reforms have changed this involvement; both in terms of observable changes to governance structures, and of key stakeholders' receptiveness to neoliberalism as visible in their representations of issues facing tuna fisheries. We find that very few neoliberal reforms have been implemented in this sector. Furthermore key stakeholders show little sympathy with neoliberal policy prescriptions, meaning they are unlikely to champion such reforms. This conclusion may be specific to fisheries since in Japan the political importance of food production and the iconic status of fish cuisine make the sector particularly susceptible to economic nationalism. In examining relations between industry and government the paper also highlights problems in Japan's co-management of fisheries.
Australas Psychiatry, 1998
METHODOLOGICAL PROBLEMS WITH CONSUMER SATISFL4CTION MEASURES Methodologicaal pn)blems with the co... more METHODOLOGICAL PROBLEMS WITH CONSUMER SATISFL4CTION MEASURES Methodologicaal pn)blems with the concept of consunier satisfaction lie in the fact that many factors other than the care patients receive affects their response to surveys. Some examples are: severity ...
This article proposes that contemporary ethnic subjectivities are shaped by modernist discourses.... more This article proposes that contemporary ethnic subjectivities are shaped by modernist discourses. Ethnographic material about a group of Okinawan fishermen who worked with Solomon Islanders from 1971 to 2000 is used to explore the effect on national identities of being perceived as modern, or primitive. Okinawa is an island group to the south of Japan that became part of the Japanese Empire in the 1870s. Since then Okinawa has been defined as primitive against modern Japan. Modernist discourse was one of the range of influences on relations between Okinawan fishermen and Solomon Islanders. Symbolically violent identifications of Okinawans as more modern than Solomon Islanders stymied efforts at grassroots cosmopolitanism. Insofar as perceptions of relative levels of modernness of ethnic groups act to rank them, modernism is therefore one of the factors at stake in competition between nationalisms and friction between ethnic groups.
Research on a joint venture tuna fishing and processing enterprise based in the Solomon Islands f... more Research on a joint venture tuna fishing and processing enterprise based in the Solomon Islands from 1971 to 2000, Solomon Taiyo Ltd., provides a means to investigate clashing conceptions of identity and modernity. The analysis is based on interviews, news media and ...
Resource conflict is a common feature of coastal management. This conflict is often managed by us... more Resource conflict is a common feature of coastal management. This conflict is often managed by using spatial planning tools to segregate uses, with access decisions made through a comparison of the economic costs and benefits of the competing sectors. These comparisons rarely include an in-depth analysis of the extent or nature of the conflict. One commonly experienced form of resource conflict in coastal communities involves professional fishing, recreational fishing and broader coastal tourism. In New South Wales, Australia the professional fishing industry is often seen as being in conflict with recreational fishing and tourism, and there are frequent calls to close areas to professional fishing, arguing that this will provide improved economic benefits to local communities. This research examined the relationships between the three sectors using economic valuations, qualitative interviews and a large-scale representative questionnaire of the general public. The results revealed highly interconnected and mutually supportive relationships, with professional fishing providing a range of services that benefit both tourism and recreational fishing. These results suggest that spatial management exercises that seek to segregate or remove one sector from an area, may be counter-productive to the interests of all these groups. Relying on economic valuations of each sector as if they stand alone is insufficient to adequately understand their roles in local communities. Resource allocation decisions should be based on evaluations that consider the interconnections between sectors, and consider whether negotiated sharing of resources may provide greater community benefits than excluding certain groups of users.
The principles of Ecologically Sustainable Development and Ecosystem Based Fisheries Management r... more The principles of Ecologically Sustainable Development and Ecosystem Based Fisheries Management require that fisheries be managed for social as well as environmental and economic objectives. Comprehensive assessments of the success of fisheries in achieving all three objectives are, however, rare. There are three main barriers to achieving integrated assessments of fisheries. Firstly, disciplinary divides can be considered " too hard " to bridge with inherent conflicts between the predominately empirical and deductive traditions of economics and biophysical sciences and the inductive and interpretative approach of much of the social sciences. Secondly, understanding of the social pillar of sustainability is less well developed. And finally, in-depth analysis of the social aspects of sustainability often involves qualitative analysis and there are practical difficulties in integrating this with largely quantitative economic and ecological assessments. This article explores the social well-being approach as a framework for an integrated evaluation of the social and economic benefits that communities in New South Wales, Australia, receive from professional fish harvesting. Using a review of existing literature and qualitative interviews with more than 160 people associated with the fishing industry the project was able to identify seven key domains of community well-being to which the industry contributes. Identification of these domains provided a framework through which industry contributions could be further explored, through quantitative surveys and economic analysis. This framework enabled successful integration of social and economic, and both qualitative and quantitative information in a manner that enabled a comprehensive assessment of the value of the fishery.
Over recent decades it has become widely accepted that managing fisheries resources means managin... more Over recent decades it has become widely accepted that managing fisheries resources means managing human behaviour, and so understanding social and economic dynamics is just as important as understanding species biology and ecology. Until recently, fisheries managers and researchers have struggled to develop effective methods and data for social and economic analysis that can integrate with the predominantly biological approaches to fisheries management. The field is now growing fast, however, and globally, researchers are developing and testing new methods. This paper uses three divergent case studies to demonstrate the value of using qualitative social science approaches to complement more conventional quantitative methods to improve the knowledge base for fisheries management. In all three cases, qualitative interview and document review methods enabled broad surveying to explore the research questions in particular contexts and identified where quantitative tools could be most usefully applied. In the first case (the contribution of commercial fisheries to coastal communities in eastern Australia), a wellbeing analysis identified the social benefits from particular fisheries, which can be used to identify the social impacts of different fisheries management policies. In the second case (a gender analysis of fisheries of small islands in the Pacific), analysis outlined opportunities and constraints along fisheries supply chains, illuminated factors inhibiting community development and identified ecological factors that are typically overlooked in conventional fisheries management. In the third case (sea cucumber fisheries in Papua New Guinea), an interactive governance analysis assessed how well fisheries management tools fit the ecological, social and economic reality of the fishery and the trade in its products, including market influences and stakeholder values. The qualitative approach adopted in these three case studies adds a new dimension to understanding fisheries that is not possible with a focus solely on quantitative data. With the development of new policies on release programs (stock enhancement, restocking) and artificial reefs, and the momentum to use these interventions from recreational fishing groups, the qualitative approach will provide an important contribution to understanding their wider costs and benefits.
The purpose of this paper is to raise awareness and stimulate discussion and research into matern... more The purpose of this paper is to raise awareness and stimulate discussion and research into maternity care options for Aboriginal women living in remote areas of Australia and Canada. These two countries have similar situations in that some communities are so remote that emergency medical care requires the use of aircraft. In addition, both countries have, since the 1970s, adopted policies for the transfer of mothers in late pregnancy to hospitals in urban centres. For many Aboriginal families this policy has been far from ideal. As a result, some Aboriginal women fail to seek early health care when pregnant. In order to counteract this, it is necessary to offer culturally sensitive maternity care that Aboriginal women will accept. The results of an evaluation of a birthing centre in the Canadian Arctic will be presented along with a range of birthing choices for remote area Aboriginal women and their families. Some of these options have already been initiated by some midwives. This ...
Cosmopolitan Civil Societies: An Interdisciplinary Journal, 2012
The notion that sustainability rests on three pillars -economic, environmental and social -has be... more The notion that sustainability rests on three pillars -economic, environmental and social -has been widely accepted since the 1990s. In practice, however, the economic and environmental aspects have tended to dominate the sustainability agenda, and social aspects have been sidelined. Two reasons for this are: 1) there is a lack of data collected about which to build meaningful pictures of social aspects of sustainability for populations over time, and 2) there is a lack of recognition of the role of social factors in sustainability, and a related lack of understanding of how to analyse them in conjunction with economic and environmental factors. This paper surveys the literature about sustainability in fisheries, focussing on Australia, and focussing on the way social aspects have been treated. The paper finds that the problems that have been identified for assessing the social in sustainability in general are certainly manifest in fisheries. Management of Australian fisheries has arguably made great improvements to biological sustainability over the last decade, but much remains to be done to generate similar improvements in social sustainability for fishing communities. This is the case for governmentrun resource management as well as for initiatives from the private sector and conservation organizations as part of movements for corporate social responsibility and ethical consumerism. A significant challenge for improving sustainability in Australian fisheries, therefore, lies in improving data collection on social factors, and in bridging disciplinary divides to better integrate social with economic and biological assessments of sustainability.
Engaging with Capitalism: Cases from Oceania, 2013
Asia-Pacific Fishing Livelihoods
This chapter examines the role that governance plays in shaping fishing livelihoods. This include... more This chapter examines the role that governance plays in shaping fishing livelihoods. This includes formal government regulation as well as other factors that shape fishing, such as markets, buyer requirements and social norms. Institutional arrangements serve as a key component of fishing livelihoods, by prescribing the conditions under which fishing livelihoods operate. In this chapter we sketch out some of the trends in fisheries governance across parts of the Asia-Pacific, before discussing examples in Australia and Indonesia.
The Journal of Environment & Development
The blue economy is a globally emerging concept for ocean governance that seeks to tap the econom... more The blue economy is a globally emerging concept for ocean governance that seeks to tap the economic potential of the oceans in environmentally sustainable ways. Yet, understanding and implementation of particular visions of the blue economy in specific regions diverge according to national and other contexts. Drawing on a discourse analysis of Chinese language documents, this article assesses how the blue economy has been conceptualised in Chinese state policy and discourse. Part of a state ideology and practice of modernisation that is defined in terms of rejuvenation under a strong state, the blue economy in China is seen as an opportunity to promote modernisation from overlapping economic, geopolitical and ecological perspectives and actions. China’s distinctive model for the blue economy presents emerging challenges for global ocean governance.
The Japanese, and other Asians, are increasingly taking over some of the roles previously played ... more The Japanese, and other Asians, are increasingly taking over some of the roles previously played by Europeans in the Pacific islands, which is giving rise to interesting new economic relationships, and interesting new interactions between nationalities. This book considers the role of the Japanese in the Solomon Islands, focusing in particular on a joint venture between the Japanese multinational Maruha Corporation and the Solomon Islands government, which managed a tuna fishing and processing enterprise which was a mainstay of the Solomon Islands economy from the 1970s to 2000. It considers a range of important themes including the changing nature of colonialism, the degree to which people's ethnic sense of self, and therefore their relationship with others, is affected by how modern (or primitive) their nation is perceived to be, and how all this relates to the development of capitalism, nationalism, and modernity
Neoliberalism is a political economy term that refers to a public policy mix that is market orien... more Neoliberalism is a political economy term that refers to a public policy mix that is market oriented, pro trade liberalization and advocates minimal state intervention in the economy. Japanese governance has arguably not been based on neoliberal principles, and some see this as contributing to Japan's long running recession. Japan's distant water tuna longline fleet has been in economic difficulties since the early years of the recession. In 2001 Prime Minister Koizumi came to power promising neoliberal style reform. This paper presents a history of government involvement in the distant water tuna longline industry and looks for evidence that recent reforms have changed this involvement; both in terms of observable changes to governance structures, and of key stakeholders' receptiveness to neoliberalism as visible in their representations of issues facing tuna fisheries. We find that very few neoliberal reforms have been implemented in this sector. Furthermore key stakeholders show little sympathy with neoliberal policy prescriptions, meaning they are unlikely to champion such reforms. This conclusion may be specific to fisheries since in Japan the political importance of food production and the iconic status of fish cuisine make the sector particularly susceptible to economic nationalism. In examining relations between industry and government the paper also highlights problems in Japan's co-management of fisheries.
Australas Psychiatry, 1998
METHODOLOGICAL PROBLEMS WITH CONSUMER SATISFL4CTION MEASURES Methodologicaal pn)blems with the co... more METHODOLOGICAL PROBLEMS WITH CONSUMER SATISFL4CTION MEASURES Methodologicaal pn)blems with the concept of consunier satisfaction lie in the fact that many factors other than the care patients receive affects their response to surveys. Some examples are: severity ...
This article proposes that contemporary ethnic subjectivities are shaped by modernist discourses.... more This article proposes that contemporary ethnic subjectivities are shaped by modernist discourses. Ethnographic material about a group of Okinawan fishermen who worked with Solomon Islanders from 1971 to 2000 is used to explore the effect on national identities of being perceived as modern, or primitive. Okinawa is an island group to the south of Japan that became part of the Japanese Empire in the 1870s. Since then Okinawa has been defined as primitive against modern Japan. Modernist discourse was one of the range of influences on relations between Okinawan fishermen and Solomon Islanders. Symbolically violent identifications of Okinawans as more modern than Solomon Islanders stymied efforts at grassroots cosmopolitanism. Insofar as perceptions of relative levels of modernness of ethnic groups act to rank them, modernism is therefore one of the factors at stake in competition between nationalisms and friction between ethnic groups.
Research on a joint venture tuna fishing and processing enterprise based in the Solomon Islands f... more Research on a joint venture tuna fishing and processing enterprise based in the Solomon Islands from 1971 to 2000, Solomon Taiyo Ltd., provides a means to investigate clashing conceptions of identity and modernity. The analysis is based on interviews, news media and ...
Resource conflict is a common feature of coastal management. This conflict is often managed by us... more Resource conflict is a common feature of coastal management. This conflict is often managed by using spatial planning tools to segregate uses, with access decisions made through a comparison of the economic costs and benefits of the competing sectors. These comparisons rarely include an in-depth analysis of the extent or nature of the conflict. One commonly experienced form of resource conflict in coastal communities involves professional fishing, recreational fishing and broader coastal tourism. In New South Wales, Australia the professional fishing industry is often seen as being in conflict with recreational fishing and tourism, and there are frequent calls to close areas to professional fishing, arguing that this will provide improved economic benefits to local communities. This research examined the relationships between the three sectors using economic valuations, qualitative interviews and a large-scale representative questionnaire of the general public. The results revealed highly interconnected and mutually supportive relationships, with professional fishing providing a range of services that benefit both tourism and recreational fishing. These results suggest that spatial management exercises that seek to segregate or remove one sector from an area, may be counter-productive to the interests of all these groups. Relying on economic valuations of each sector as if they stand alone is insufficient to adequately understand their roles in local communities. Resource allocation decisions should be based on evaluations that consider the interconnections between sectors, and consider whether negotiated sharing of resources may provide greater community benefits than excluding certain groups of users.
The principles of Ecologically Sustainable Development and Ecosystem Based Fisheries Management r... more The principles of Ecologically Sustainable Development and Ecosystem Based Fisheries Management require that fisheries be managed for social as well as environmental and economic objectives. Comprehensive assessments of the success of fisheries in achieving all three objectives are, however, rare. There are three main barriers to achieving integrated assessments of fisheries. Firstly, disciplinary divides can be considered " too hard " to bridge with inherent conflicts between the predominately empirical and deductive traditions of economics and biophysical sciences and the inductive and interpretative approach of much of the social sciences. Secondly, understanding of the social pillar of sustainability is less well developed. And finally, in-depth analysis of the social aspects of sustainability often involves qualitative analysis and there are practical difficulties in integrating this with largely quantitative economic and ecological assessments. This article explores the social well-being approach as a framework for an integrated evaluation of the social and economic benefits that communities in New South Wales, Australia, receive from professional fish harvesting. Using a review of existing literature and qualitative interviews with more than 160 people associated with the fishing industry the project was able to identify seven key domains of community well-being to which the industry contributes. Identification of these domains provided a framework through which industry contributions could be further explored, through quantitative surveys and economic analysis. This framework enabled successful integration of social and economic, and both qualitative and quantitative information in a manner that enabled a comprehensive assessment of the value of the fishery.
Over recent decades it has become widely accepted that managing fisheries resources means managin... more Over recent decades it has become widely accepted that managing fisheries resources means managing human behaviour, and so understanding social and economic dynamics is just as important as understanding species biology and ecology. Until recently, fisheries managers and researchers have struggled to develop effective methods and data for social and economic analysis that can integrate with the predominantly biological approaches to fisheries management. The field is now growing fast, however, and globally, researchers are developing and testing new methods. This paper uses three divergent case studies to demonstrate the value of using qualitative social science approaches to complement more conventional quantitative methods to improve the knowledge base for fisheries management. In all three cases, qualitative interview and document review methods enabled broad surveying to explore the research questions in particular contexts and identified where quantitative tools could be most usefully applied. In the first case (the contribution of commercial fisheries to coastal communities in eastern Australia), a wellbeing analysis identified the social benefits from particular fisheries, which can be used to identify the social impacts of different fisheries management policies. In the second case (a gender analysis of fisheries of small islands in the Pacific), analysis outlined opportunities and constraints along fisheries supply chains, illuminated factors inhibiting community development and identified ecological factors that are typically overlooked in conventional fisheries management. In the third case (sea cucumber fisheries in Papua New Guinea), an interactive governance analysis assessed how well fisheries management tools fit the ecological, social and economic reality of the fishery and the trade in its products, including market influences and stakeholder values. The qualitative approach adopted in these three case studies adds a new dimension to understanding fisheries that is not possible with a focus solely on quantitative data. With the development of new policies on release programs (stock enhancement, restocking) and artificial reefs, and the momentum to use these interventions from recreational fishing groups, the qualitative approach will provide an important contribution to understanding their wider costs and benefits.
The purpose of this paper is to raise awareness and stimulate discussion and research into matern... more The purpose of this paper is to raise awareness and stimulate discussion and research into maternity care options for Aboriginal women living in remote areas of Australia and Canada. These two countries have similar situations in that some communities are so remote that emergency medical care requires the use of aircraft. In addition, both countries have, since the 1970s, adopted policies for the transfer of mothers in late pregnancy to hospitals in urban centres. For many Aboriginal families this policy has been far from ideal. As a result, some Aboriginal women fail to seek early health care when pregnant. In order to counteract this, it is necessary to offer culturally sensitive maternity care that Aboriginal women will accept. The results of an evaluation of a birthing centre in the Canadian Arctic will be presented along with a range of birthing choices for remote area Aboriginal women and their families. Some of these options have already been initiated by some midwives. This ...
Cosmopolitan Civil Societies: An Interdisciplinary Journal, 2012
The notion that sustainability rests on three pillars -economic, environmental and social -has be... more The notion that sustainability rests on three pillars -economic, environmental and social -has been widely accepted since the 1990s. In practice, however, the economic and environmental aspects have tended to dominate the sustainability agenda, and social aspects have been sidelined. Two reasons for this are: 1) there is a lack of data collected about which to build meaningful pictures of social aspects of sustainability for populations over time, and 2) there is a lack of recognition of the role of social factors in sustainability, and a related lack of understanding of how to analyse them in conjunction with economic and environmental factors. This paper surveys the literature about sustainability in fisheries, focussing on Australia, and focussing on the way social aspects have been treated. The paper finds that the problems that have been identified for assessing the social in sustainability in general are certainly manifest in fisheries. Management of Australian fisheries has arguably made great improvements to biological sustainability over the last decade, but much remains to be done to generate similar improvements in social sustainability for fishing communities. This is the case for governmentrun resource management as well as for initiatives from the private sector and conservation organizations as part of movements for corporate social responsibility and ethical consumerism. A significant challenge for improving sustainability in Australian fisheries, therefore, lies in improving data collection on social factors, and in bridging disciplinary divides to better integrate social with economic and biological assessments of sustainability.
Engaging with Capitalism: Cases from Oceania, 2013
© 2014 Elsevier Ltd. Improving the social acceptability or 'social licence' of Marine Protected A... more © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. Improving the social acceptability or 'social licence' of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) is a key challenge facing countries all around the world. As the world moves slowly towards the establishment of a global network of MPAs, it is increasingly apparent that a greater understanding of social responses to MPAs is required, given they are often met with resistance from local communities. A series of in-depth, semi structured interviews were conducted across coastal users in New South Wales, Australia, including surfers, recreational fishers, professional fishers, spearfishers, walkers, divers, snorkellers, kayakers and other community members. The research identified the values, images and principles at work amongst coastal users to determine the dominant 'cultural models' within the community and how these models influenced attitudes towards MPAs. This research indicates that traditional consultation models may not be sufficient to address the full spectrum of community needs, and in fact suggests the need to re-conceive the make -up of 'the community' itself. In the context of MPA planning 'the community' is not an amalgamation of a range of homogenous stakeholder groups but instead a diverse and complex mix of identities and value systems which are not confined to particular interest groups. Incorporating consideration of the diverse range of values, images and principles found within and across stakeholder groups will require new and innovative approaches to participation and management.
© 2018 by the authors. Private standards, including ecolabels, have been posed as a governance so... more © 2018 by the authors. Private standards, including ecolabels, have been posed as a governance solution for the global fisheries crisis. The conventional logic is that ecolabels meet consumer demand for certified "sustainable" seafood, with "good" players rewarded with price premiums or market share and "bad" players punished by reduced sales. Empirically, however, in the markets where ecolabeling has taken hold, retailers and brands-rather than consumers-are demanding sustainable sourcing, to build and protect their reputation. The aim of this paper is to devise a more accurate logic for understanding the sustainable seafood movement, using a qualitative literature review and reflection on our previous research. We find that replacing the consumer-driven logic with a retailer/brand-driven logic does not go far enough in making research into the sustainable seafood movement more useful. Governance is a "concert" and cannot be adequately explained through individual actor groups. We propose a new logic going beyond consumer- or retailer/brand-driven models, and call on researchers to build on the partial pictures given by studies on prices and willingness-to-pay, investigating more fully the motivations of actors in the sustainable seafood movement, and considering audience beyond the direct consumption of the product in question.
© 2018, The Author(s). Gender shapes livelihoods through access to resources and the distribution... more © 2018, The Author(s). Gender shapes livelihoods through access to resources and the distribution of benefits from economic activities. To work effectively with local people, resource management and community development initiatives should therefore be sensitive to the influence of gender on livelihoods. This paper considers gender in the context of broader social trends around livelihoods and focuses on a case study of shell money production and trade in the Langalanga Lagoon in Malaita Province, Solomon Islands. We pool data from several recent research projects with historical material from secondary sources. We find that the gender division of labour in the shell money value chain has changed somewhat over time, particularly in that women are now actively involved in trading. However, this shift has created friction due to norms about what kinds of activities are suitable for women, and who should control cash incomes. Whilst shell money remains one of the most important livelihoods in Langalanga lagoon, our findings also illustrate that the shell money value chain and the income earned varies considerably from family to family, with some making a better living than others. We argue that interventions seeking to improve livelihoods in coastal communities should thus be based on an understanding of differentiation within communities, and practitioners should consider whether interventions will result in community development, or may have the impact of increasing inequality between families.
© 2018 The coastal and marine environment is often managed according to the principles of sustain... more © 2018 The coastal and marine environment is often managed according to the principles of sustainable development, which include environmental, economic, and social dimensions. While each are equally important, social sustainability receives a lower priority in both policy and research. Methodologies for assessing social sustainability are less developed than for environmental and economic sustainability, and there is a lack of data on the social aspects of sustainable development (such as social equity), which constitutes a barrier to understanding social considerations and integrating them into natural resource management. This paper explores a threat and risk assessment to the marine estate in New South Wales, Australia, which identified and categorised both the benefits that communities gain from the marine estate and the threats to those benefits. A broad range of benefits were identified including participation (e.g., socialising and sense of community), enjoyment (e.g., enjoying the biodiversity and beauty), cultural heritage and use, intrinsic and bequest values, the viability of businesses, and direct economic values. Threats to community benefits were categorised as resource use conflict, environmental, governance, public safety, critical knowledge gaps and lack of access. An integrated threat and risk assessment approach found that the priority threats to community benefits were environmental threats (e.g., water pollution), critical knowledge gaps (e.g., inadequate social and economic information), governance (e.g., lack of compliance), resource-use conflict (e.g., anti-social behaviour), and lack of access (e.g., loss of fishing access). Threat and risk assessment is an evidence-based tool that is useful for marine planning because it provides a structured approach to incorporating multiple types of knowledge and enables limited resources to be targeted to the threats identified as being most important to address.
© 2019 John Wiley \& Sons Ltd Small-scale fisheries are subject to various governing institutio... more © 2019 John Wiley \& Sons Ltd Small-scale fisheries are subject to various governing institutions operating at different levels with different objectives. At the same time, small-scale fisheries increasingly form part of domestic and international market chains, with consequent effects for marine environments and livelihoods of the fishery-dependent. Yet there remains a need to better understand how small-scale fisheries market chains interact with the range of governance institutions that influence them. In this paper, we examine how multiple governance systems function along market chains, in order to identify opportunities for improved multiscale governance. We use three small-scale fisheries with varying local to global market chains operating in the Asia-Pacific region to develop a framework for analysis. Drawing from Interactive Governance theory we identify governing systems that have come to operate at particular sections in each market chain. We recognize four institutions that shape the governance over the length of the chain; namely those centred on (a) government, (b) private sector and pricing, (c) decentralized multistakeholder management and (d) culture and social relations. The framework shows how diverse arrangements of these governing institutions emerge and take effect along market chains. In doing so, we seek to move away from prescribed “ideals” of universal governing arrangements for fisheries and their market chains, and instead illuminate how governing systems function interactively across multiple scales.
For several decades people have been grappling with how to retain the material safety and cultura... more For several decades people have been grappling with how to retain the material safety and cultural richness of indigenous non-capitalist societies and economies, but also gain the health, wealth, education and life opportunities the modern capitalist world offers. This book brings together examples of attempts to forge locally appropriate versions of modernity; development that suits the aspirations and circumstances of particular groups of people. Authors question how the market economy has been variously negotiated by groups who also have other systems through which they organize their social and economic life. What has worked for these people, what has not, and why? The volume addresses how, as a social and economic system, capitalism has been very effective in generating wealth and technological innovation, but has also been associated with great social inequity and environmental damage. Its inherent flaws have been highlighted by the escalation of ecological problems arising from growth-oriented capitalism and various economic crises, the latest being the Global Financial Crisis and its ongoing fallout.
China Japan and South Korea’s international relations are shaped by the fact that all three count... more China Japan and South Korea’s international relations are shaped by the fact that all three countries are significant importers of resources. This book brings together work on specific aspects of the politics of resources for each of these countries, regionally and internationally. There are some similarities in the approaches taken by all these three. For example, their development assistance shares a focus on infrastructure building and reluctance to purposefully influence domestic politics. However, there are also significant differences due in large part to the individual nature of the states as international actors. China has significant domestic supplies of resources while Japan and Korea are net importers. China’s size also marks it out as different, as does its state socialist history and continuing authoritarian state. One of the key issues to understanding contemporary resource politics in Northeast Asia is that Western dominance of the world order is currently declining. In some cases Northeast Asian approaches to resources are seen as being mercantilist. In other cases Northeast Asian powers are seen as replacing Western powers in exploiting resource-rich developing countries. This book gives readers an informed view of this very important issue in contemporary international relations.