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Call for Papers: Satoyama Initiative Thematic Review volume 5

2018.12.10

The United Nations University Institute for the Advanced Study of Sustainability (UNU-IAS) and the Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES) are pleased to announce a call for papers for the fifth volume of the series “Satoyama Initiative Thematic Review”. The fifth volume will be a special collaborative feature with the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), on the theme “Understanding the multiple values associated with sustainable use in socio-ecological production landscapes and seascapes (SEPLS)”. Authors from IPSI member organizations who have case studies relevant to this theme are highly encouraged to submit a manuscript following the guidance provided in this call for papers.

 

About the “Satoyama Initiative Thematic Review”:

The Satoyama Initiative Thematic Review is a compilation of case studies providing useful knowledge and lessons focusing on a specific theme related to “socio-ecological production landscapes and seascapes (SEPLS)”. The overall aim is to collect practical experiences and relevant knowledge, taking advantage of on-the-ground activities by practitioners while contributing to policy recommendations. Each volume also includes a synthesis chapter clarifying its relevance to policy and academic discussion to encourage the application of lessons learned in the field.

See the past four volumes from the link below.

Vol.1: “Enhancing knowledge for better management of SEPLS”

 Vol.2: “Mainstreaming concepts and approaches of SEPLS into policy and decision-making”

Vol.3: “Sustainable livelihoods in SEPLS”

Vol.4: “Sustainable use of biodiversity in SEPLS and its contribution to effective area-based conservation

 

Theme

“Understanding the multiple values associated with sustainable use in socio-ecological production landscapes and seascapes (SEPLS)”

In this volume we seek to highlight:

  1. how different stakeholders in SEPLS have different visions of the landscape or seascape and resources therein, priorities for their use, and subsequent perceptions of their values; and
  2. how such multiple values perceived by different actors impact decisions made and actions taken, including which values are prioritized over others

Visions may include humans and nature as an interconnected system, nature as provider of services to humans, or others. Based on these visions, priorities for resource use could range from efficiency-focused approaches to production (e.g., increasing productivity, planting a single crop) to equity-based approaches (e.g., seeking fairness and justice from production to pricing, developing a mosaic of land uses). These visions and priorities are broadly included in the concept of “values”, which encompasses multiple notions including worldviews, preferences, relative importance given to activities and resources, and measurements including metrics such as population status or prices.

This volume will focus particularly on the relevance of SEPLS to understanding and maintaining the multiple values of nature. Contributions could highlight the roles, attitudes and actions of smallholders, indigenous peoples and local communities (IPLCs) and regulatory bodies in conserving biodiversity through their actions in production landscapes and seascapes, and what and how multiple values of nature are perceived and provided in the maintenance of SEPLS, especially where local on-the-ground benefits for biodiversity also have implications for national and global policymaking processes.

IPSI partners are invited to contribute case studies related to this theme, demonstrating experiences and insights on, among others:

  • How do different groups of smallholders and other communities relate to and conceptualize “nature” and its values, why it matters, what values are prioritized, and what do they do to uphold these values? How does this affect decisions, activities and management practices within SEPLs?
  • What drivers could affect small holders and other communities’ views on values related to nature and what impacts do these changes have on both culture and environment with SEPLS? For instance:
    • What effects can environmental conflicts (e.g. mining, building of dams, intensive farming, etc.) or exposure to other knowledge and value systems (e.g. “modern” science, education and policies) have on indigenous and local knowledge and practices within SEPLS, and understandings of the value of “nature”?
    • What are the ramifications of these changes, both for culture and the environment, within SEPLS?
  • How has the recognition of multiple values of nature brought about constructive change in management practices, policies or institutions at local, national, regional or global levels?
  • Who are the key actors and what are their roles, and what are the experiences that can be learnt from different communities?

 

Background

This special volume, a collaboration with IPBES, will contribute to the understanding of multiple values, how they are expressed in decision making, and implications for sustainable use of resources. This is the focus of the ongoing “Methodological assessment regarding the diverse conceptualization of multiple values of nature and its benefits, including biodiversity and ecosystem services” (hereafter “Values Assessment”) being produced by IPBES. In particular, it aims to provide knowledge for IPBES’ ongoing assessments that seek to understand how small holders and other communities make decisions relating to resource use and management. The Values Assessment, being produced based on a decision by the IPBES plenary in March 2018, is a critical evaluation of the state of knowledge regarding the multiple values of nature, produced by independent global experts together with government representatives and other stakeholders.

The word “value” has interrelated but distinct dimensions and is understood broadly and analysed differently in the biophysical sciences, social sciences, economics, and Indigenous and Local Knowledge (ILK).

According to IPBES, value can refer to:

  • a principle or core belief
  • a preference (for something or for a particular state of the world)
  • the importance (of something for itself or for other things);
  • a measure (for example the number of species).

In the IPBES conceptual framework[1] these dimensions of value are focused on:

  • nature (non-anthropocentric or intrinsic values)
  • nature’s benefits/contributions to people (anthropocentric values: instrumental)
  • good quality of life (anthropocentric values: relational)

Work is ongoing to clarify the multiple values of nature, as elaborated in the “Scoping Document for the Values Assessment (IPBES/6/INF/9)”[2] and “Preliminary guide regarding diverse conceptualization of multiple values of nature and its benefits, including biodiversity and ecosystem functions and services”[3] on which the Values Assessment is built. The objective of the Values Assessment is to evaluate:

  • the diverse conceptualization of values of nature and its benefits, including biodiversity and ecosystem services (provisioning, regulating and cultural) consistent with the IPBES’s conceptual framework;
  • the diverse valuation methodologies and approaches;
  • the different approaches that acknowledge, bridge and integrate the diverse values

and valuation methodologies for policy and decision-making support; and

  • knowledge and data gaps and uncertainties.

The long-term sustainable management of SEPLS could directly illustrate the various values integrated in SEPLS management and the challenges and opportunities related to such integration. SEPLS could also illustrate approaches to engaging a wide range of stakeholders and integrating disciplines for holistic ecosystem and resource management towards human wellbeing and potentially, socio-ecological resilience. For this reason, SEPLS could provide practical insights in understanding, measuring and maintaining these multiple values of nature, and have strong policy significance for the achievement of the CBD’s Aichi Biodiversity Targets, National Biodiversity Strategic Action Plans (NBSAPs) and post 2020 framework, and also for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and others.

 

How to submit a manuscript and what happens after submission:

Eligibility:

Authors are invited to submit a paper if at least one of the authors belongs to an IPSI member organization. (See https://satoyama-initiative.org/old/en/partnership/ipsi_members/)

 

Procedure:

Authors are requested to submit an abstract (400 words) to the IPSI Secretariat by email (isi@unu.edu) by 11 January 2019. Submission of a full manuscript should be made before 11 March, after receiving confirmation from the editorial team. Authors are requested to follow the Authors’ Guide and the reference style, and are encouraged to use the Template for Manuscripts. Case studies that have already been submitted to the IPSI Secretariat can be submitted after editing as needed to conform to the Author’s Guide. After screening, selected authors will be informed in late March and then invited to a Case Study Workshop planned to be held in Japan in late May 2019. This Case Study Workshop will offer an opportunity for getting feedback on manuscripts and discussion among participants for development of a synthesis paper to be included in the volume.

 

Timeline (dates are subject to change):

11 January 2019:                         Deadline for submission of abstracts (400 words)

11 March 2019:                           Deadline for submission of full manuscripts

March 2019:                   Notification of selected authors

Late May 2019:                            Selected authors participate in Case Study Workshop (Japan)

July 2019:                        Revision of manuscripts

November 2019:                         Publication

 

Related documents:

 

For inquiries, please contact…

Mr. Yohsuke Amano or Dr. Evonne Yiu at the IPSI Secretariat (isi@unu.edu).

[1] https://www.ipbes.net/conceptual-framework

[2] https://www.ipbes.net/system/tdf/ipbes-6-inf-9_en.pdf?file=1&type=node&id=16522

[3] http://www.ipbes.net/sites/default/files/downloads/IPBES-4-INF-13_EN.pdf