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Human Dynamics and Environmental Change in Socioecological Systems
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Human Dynamics and Environmental Change in Socioecological Systems

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Social Ecology and Sustainability".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 August 2023) | Viewed by 5207

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Mary J. Thornbush

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Environmental Studies, York University, Toronto, ON, Canada
Interests: smart cites and urban sustainability
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

It is my pleasure to introduce the special issue on Human Dynamics and Environmental Change in Socioecological Systems. It is anticipated that it will publish contemporary interdisciplinary research in the area of integrated socioenvironmental issues, where humans drive environmental change and recovery in systems. In some cases, humans and other animals can both be drivers and adapters in the system, with the environmental (or ecological) aspect responding in attempts to recover from triggered change. This can be both how humans have adapted to environmental change (human dynamics) as well as how nature has been affected and recovered (environmental change), itself adapting to a trigger that has offset the equilibrium.

Relevant research questions in this research area include: what is driving socioenvironmental/-ecological systems? How are they adapting to human/animal-driven change? How are socioenvironmental systems adapting to change? Rather than limit the focus to people, other animals can be considered (e.g., livestock, etc.). Agricultural themes are especially welcome, although not exclusively. The timeline of relevance here is open, as systems can have memory effects and inherit factors from the past triggering change in the long-term. Both open and closed systems can be included. An overarching ambition of this endeavour is to provide examples from all over the world, from different cultural perspectives and environmental contexts. In other words, by retaining a broad solicitation, it is anticipated that diversity can be gleaned in this special issue, including a breadth of approach and interpretation that may be missing from more focused publications.

It is pertinent to approach socioecological systems from an integrated perspective that involves consideration of both human dynamics and environmental change. Whereas the human dimension includes sociocultural and politicoeconomic aspects, the physical realm of the system examines the biophysicochemical environmental/ecological domain. This special issue has a socioenvironmental focus that addresses contemporary holistic change that is driven by human dynamics. Contributions are expected to adopt this perspective by investigating relevant subject matter, as for example socioecological systems, environmental/landscape change, and the human triggers of landscape/environmental change, with a particular focus on adaptation occurring in both human and environmental components. By exploring both components of socioenvironmental/-ecological systems, it is possible to discern human/animal contributions (drivers) as well as environmental responses that in their own way pose challenges to environmental sustainability. The special issue will accept studies from anywhere in the world that integrate both human and environmental/ecological aspects relating to human-environmental interactions. Research articles, review papers, book reviews, editorials, commentaries, and case studies are admissible for submission. Submissions are to adhere to Sustainability’s requirements and be 5000-7000 words in length, except for review papers (10,000 words). All submissions must explicitly address sustainability from an integrated perspective and, in some way, make original contributions to the field.

Dr. Mary J. Thornbush
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • landscape change
  • integrated environment
  • interdisciplinarity/multidisciplinary research
  • diversity
  • systems

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

19 pages, 2549 KiB  
Article
Social–Ecological System Understanding of Land Degradation in Response to Land Use and Cover Changes in the Greater Sekhukhune District Municipality
by Motsoko Juniet Kgaphola, Abel Ramoelo, John Odindi, Jean-Marc Mwenge Kahinda, Ashwin Seetal and Constansia Musvoto
Sustainability 2023, 15(4), 3850; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15043850 - 20 Feb 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2259
Abstract
Land degradation is a major risk to the sustainability and functioning of socioecological systems (SES), especially in arid/semiarid regions. By understanding a system and its interlinkages, the socioecological approach offers an innovative way to explore degradation. This is achieved through a synergistic analytical [...] Read more.
Land degradation is a major risk to the sustainability and functioning of socioecological systems (SES), especially in arid/semiarid regions. By understanding a system and its interlinkages, the socioecological approach offers an innovative way to explore degradation. This is achieved through a synergistic analytical approach to improve the ability of identifying and understanding systems, predicting their behaviour, and modifying them to achieve the desired effects. This research provides a roadmap for an integrated interdisciplinary approach that is a critical factor in understanding the drivers of land degradation. It can be used to determine appropriate land management action. The aim of this study was, therefore, to apply an integrated SES approach to a degraded rural semiarid context to address the land degradation problem using the Greater Sekhukhune District Municipality in South Africa as a case study. The Drive Pressure State Condition and four Responses (DPSCR4) framework (modified from Drive Pressure State Impact and Response (DPSIR)) was used as the SES to assess land degradation. Key informant interviews, focus group discussions with local pastoralists and traditional authorities, and the scientific literature were triangulated to systemically analyse DPSCR4. Land degradation neutrality (LDN) was integrated into the framework to draw conclusions on sustainable land management (SLM). The results show that the main anthropogenic activities driving land degradation are overgrazing, land tenure, poverty and disenfranchisement, unsustainable land use, and cropland abandonment, which favour bush encroachment. Natural factors such as topography, dispersive duplex soils, and climate variability and change predispose the district to soil erosion and gully formation. In combination with human activities, this exacerbates land degradation. The study recommends measures to enable informed integrated land use planning and management using the DPSCR4 and LDN frameworks to improve landscape conditions in rural semiarid regions and provide sustainable livelihoods for the rural poor in developing countries who depend on natural resources. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Human Dynamics and Environmental Change in Socioecological Systems)
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19 pages, 1219 KiB  
Article
Socio-Economic and Environmental Challenges of Small-Scale Fisheries: Prognosis for Sustainable Fisheries Management in Lake Kariba, Zambia
by Imikendu Imbwae, Shankar Aswani and Warwick Sauer
Sustainability 2023, 15(4), 3179; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15043179 - 09 Feb 2023
Viewed by 2548
Abstract
The Lake Kariba fishery is of regional importance; it accounts for 35% of the total Zambian fish production. However, emerging evidence in the recent decades suggests that the fishery is facing socio-economic and environmental challenges. Using Ostrom’s framework for analysing socio-ecological systems, we [...] Read more.
The Lake Kariba fishery is of regional importance; it accounts for 35% of the total Zambian fish production. However, emerging evidence in the recent decades suggests that the fishery is facing socio-economic and environmental challenges. Using Ostrom’s framework for analysing socio-ecological systems, we examined the social, economic, and environmental problems faced by the fishing communities in Lake Kariba. The framework links various social, economic, and ecological factors to devise a sustainable fisheries management plan. A combination of survey questionnaires, focus group discussions, observations, and key informant interviews were used to assess this sustainability challenge. The data collected were subjected to bivariate and descriptive analysis. The results obtained did not show a significant decline in fish production over the past 13 years (R2 Linear = 0.119, p = 0.248). However, the experts and the fishers have reported declining trends in valuable fish species such as Oreochromis mortimeri, compounded by the increased fishing efforts (X2 = 180.14, p value = ˂ 0.00001). The key threats identified include: overfishing, weak institutions, and the introduction of invasive fish species such as Oreochromis niloticus. This situation has raised fears of fish depletion among the stakeholders. Based on these results, we recommend stronger institutional collaboration among the stakeholders in the riparian states and education that illustrates the global value of fisheries for food security and biodiversity conservation in pursuing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Human Dynamics and Environmental Change in Socioecological Systems)
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