Using systems thinking to improve natural resource governance and strengthen weak networks (original) (raw)

2016, INCOSE International Symposium

This paper reports on the decision‐making processes in international conservation as found in two southern African case studies, the Greater Limpopo Transfrontier Conservation Area, and the Greater Mapungubwe Transfrontier Conservation Area. Using systems thinking to approach the model of cross‐border natural resource governance and management provided insights at the landscape scale, particularly regarding the absence of a physical institution that can be evaluated and consequently improved. The overall objective of the research project was to consult with all layers of decision and policy makers involved in order to synthesize the current state of knowledge, identify the range of potential incremental effects of management responses on natural and human systems, and determine the range of values that drive decision‐making processes. The methodology involved analyses of semi‐structured interviews with stakeholders involved in the TFCAs, as well as relevant policies and treaty docum...