Governance and management dynamics of landscape restoration at multiple scales: Learning from successful environmental managers in Sweden.
Due to a long history of intensive land and water use, habitat networks for biodiversity conservation are generally degraded in Sweden. Landscape restoration (LR) is an important strategy for achieving representative and functional green infrastructures. However, outcomes of LR efforts are poorly studied, particularly the dynamics of LR governance and management. We apply systems thinking methods to a series of LR case studies to analyse the causal structures underlying LR governance and management in Sweden. We show that these structures appear to comprise of an interlinked system of at least three sets of drivers and four core processes. This system exhibits many characteristics of a transformative change towards an integrated, adaptive approach to governance and management. Key challenges for Swedish LR projects relate to institutional and regulatory flexibility, the timely availability of sufficient funds, and the management of learning and knowledge production processes. In response, successful project leaders develop several key strategies to manage complexity and risk, and enhance perceptions of the attractiveness of LR projects.
Stockholm University, Department of Physical Geography, Environmental and Resource Dynamics Group, 106 91, Stockholm, Sweden. Electronic address: lucas.dawson@natgeo.su.se.
Lucas
L
Dawson
Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Faculty of Forest Sciences, School for Forest Management, Forest-Landscape-Society Network, SE-730 21, Skinnskatteberg, Sweden. Electronic address: marine.elbakidze@slu.se.
Marine
M
Elbakidze
Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Faculty of Forest Sciences, School for Forest Management, Forest-Landscape-Society Network, SE-730 21, Skinnskatteberg, Sweden. Electronic address: per.angelstam@slu.se.
Per
P
Angelstam
Stockholm University, Department of Physical Geography, Environmental and Resource Dynamics Group, 106 91, Stockholm, Sweden. Electronic address: johannagordon@mac.com.
Johanna
J
Gordon
D044822:Biodiversity; D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources; D017753:Ecosystem; D013548:Sweden
Causal loop modelling; Environmental system dynamics; Green infrastructure; Integrated adaptive governance & management; Landscape restoration