On the road through the Bolivian Amazon: a multi-level land governance analysis of deforestation

Previous studies have shown that collective property rights offer higher flexibility than individual property and improve sustainable community-based forest management. Our case study, carried out in the Beni department of Bolivia, does not contradict this assertion, but shows that collective rights have been granted in areas where ecological contexts and market facilities were less favourable to intensive land use. Previous experiences suggest investigating political processes in order to understand the criteria according to which access rights were distributed. Based on remote sensing and on a multi-level land governance framework, our research confirms that land placed under collective rights, compared to individual property, is less affected by deforestation among Andean settlements. However, analysis of the historical process of land distribution in the area shows that the distribution of property rights is the result of a political process based on economic, spatial, and environmental strategies that are defined by multiple stakeholders. Collective titles were established in the more remote areas and distributed to communities with lower productive potentialities. Land rights are thus a secondary factor of forest cover change which results from diverse political compromises based on population distribution, accessibility, environmental perceptions, and expected production or extraction incomes.

Trade Governance in the Digital Age (Preface)

The development of new digital technologies has resulted in significant transformations in daily life, from the arrival of online shopping to more fundamental changes in the ways we work and communicate. Many of these changes raise questions that transcend market access and liberalisation and demand cooperation and coherent regulatory design. International trade regulation has hitherto not reacted in a forward-looking manner to the digital revolution; particularly at the multilateral level, legal engineering has yielded few tangible results. This book examines whether WTO laws possess the necessary flexibility and resilience to accommodate the changes brought about by burgeoning digital trade. By revealing both the potential and the limitations of the WTO framework, it provides a broad picture of the interaction between digital technologies and trade regulation, links the often disconnected discourses of international trade law, intellectual property and cyberlaw, and explores discrete problems in different domains of global trade regulation.

Food Security and Agri-Foreign Direct Investment in Weak States: Finding the Governance Gap to Avoid ‘Land Grab’

Food security is important. A rising world population coupled with climate change creates growing pressure on global world food supplies. States alleviate this pressure domestically by attracting agri-foreign direct investment (agri-FDI). This is a high-risk strategy for weak states: the state may gain valuable foreign currency, technology and debt-free growth; but equally, investors may fail to deliver on their commitments and exploit weak domestic legal infrastructure to ‘grab’ large areas of prime agricultural land, leaving only marginal land for domestic production. A net loss to local food security and to the national economy results. This is problematic because the state must continue to guarantee its citizens’ right to food and property. Agri-FDI needs close regulation to maximise its benefit. This article maps the multilevel system of governance covering agri-FDI. We show how this system creates asymmetric rights in favour of the investor to the detriment of the host state’s food security and how these problems might be alleviated.

Assessing the sustainability of water governance systems: the sustainability wheel

We present and test a conceptual and methodological approach for interdisciplinary sustainability assessments of water governance systems based on what we call the sustainability wheel. The approach combines transparent identification of sustainability principles, their regional contextualization through sub-principles (indicators), and the scoring of these indicators through deliberative dialogue within an interdisciplinary team of researchers, taking into account their various qualitative and quantitative research results. The approach was applied to a sustainability assessment of a complex water governance system in the Swiss Alps. We conclude that the applied approach is advantageous for structuring complex and heterogeneous knowledge, gaining a holistic and comprehensive perspective on water sustainability, and communicating this perspective to stakeholders.

Adapting agricultural water governance to climate change: Experiences from Germany, Spain and California

This study describes and discusses initiatives taken by public (water) agencies in the state of Brandenburg in Germany, the state of California in the USA and the Ebro River Basin in Spain in response to the challenges which climate change poses for the agricultural water sector. The drivers and actors and the process of changing agricultural water governance are its particular focus. The assumptions discussed are: (i) the degree of planned and anticipatory top-down implementation processes decreases if actions are more decentralized and are introduced at the regional and local level; (ii) the degree of autonomous and responsive adaptation approaches seems to grow with actions at a lower administrative level. Looking at processes of institutional change, a variety of drivers and actors are at work such as changing perceptions of predicted climate impacts; international obligations which force politicians to take action; socio-economic concerns such as the cost of not taking action; the economic interests of the private sector. Drivers are manifold and often interact and, in many cases, reforms in the sector are driven by and associated with larger reform agendas. The results of the study may serve as a starting point in assisting water agencies in developing countries with the elaboration of coping strategies for tackling climate change-induced risks related to agricultural water management.

Institutions for sustainable governance of forests: Equity, robustness and cross-level interactions in Mawlyngbna, Meghalaya, India

This study adopts Ostrom’s Social-Ecological Systems (SES) framework in empirical fieldwork to explain how local forestry institutions affect forest ecosystems and social equity in the community of Mawlyngbna in North-East India. Data was collected through 26 semi-structured interviews, participatory timeline development, policy documents, direct observation, periodicals, transect walks, and a concurrent forest-ecological study in the village. Results show that Mawlyngbna's forests provide important sources of livelihood benefits for the villagers. However, ecological disturbance and diversity varies among the different forest ownership types and forest-based livelihood benefits are inequitably distributed. Based on a bounded rationality approach, our analysis proposes a set of causal mechanisms that trace these observed social-ecological outcomes to the attributes of the resource system, resource units, actors and governance system. We analyse opportunities and constraints of interactions between the village, regional, and state levels. We discuss how Ostrom’s design principles for community-based resource governance inform the explanation of robustness but have a blind spot in explaining social equity. We report experiences made using the SES framework in empirical fieldwork. We conclude that mapping cross-level interactions in the SES framework needs conceptual refinement and that explaining social equity of forest governance needs theoretical advances.

Causes, forms and consequences of the professionalization of international sport federa-tions in Switzerland: Conceptual framework and first results

Synopsis: Sport organisations are facing multiple challenges originating from an increasingly complex and dynamic environment in general, and from internal changes in particular. Our study seeks to reveal and analyse the causes for professionalization processes in international sport federations, the forms resulting from it, as well as related consequences. Abstract: AIM OF ABSTRACT/PAPER - RESEARCH QUESTION Sport organisations are facing multiple challenges originating from an increasingly complex and dynamic environment in general, and from internal changes in particular. In this context, professionalization seems to have been adopted by sport organisations as an appropriate strategy to respond to pressures such as becoming more “business-like”. The ongoing study seeks to reveal and analyse the internal and external causes for professionalization processes in international sport federations, the forms resulting from it (e.g. organisational, managerial, economic) as well as related consequences on objectives, values, governance methods, performance management or again rationalisation. THEORETICAL BACKGROUND/LITERATURE REVIEW Studies on sport as specific non-profit sector mainly focus on the prospect of the “professionalization of individuals” (Thibault, Slack & Hinings, 1991), often within sport clubs (Thiel, Meier & Cachay, 2006) and national sport federations (Seippel, 2002) or on organisational change (Griginov & Sandanski, 2008; Slack & Hinings, 1987, 1992; Slack, 1985, 2001), thus leaving broader analysis on governance, management and professionalization in sport organisations an unaccomplished task. In order to further current research on above-mentioned topics, our intention is to analyse causes, forms and consequences of professionalisation processes in international sport federations. The social theory of action (Coleman, 1986; Esser, 1993) has been defined as appropriate theoretical framework, deriving in the following a multi-level framework for the analysis of sport organisations (Nagel, 2007). In light of the multi-level framework, sport federations are conceptualised as corporative actors whose objectives are defined and implemented with regard to the interests of member organisations (Heinemann, 2004) and/or other pressure groups. In order to understand social acting and social structures (Giddens 1984) of sport federations, two levels are in the focus of our analysis: the macro level examining the environment at large (political, social, economic systems etc.) and the meso level (Esser, 1999) examining organisational structures, actions and decisions of the federation’s headquarter as well as member organisations. METHODOLOGY, RESEARCH DESIGN AND DATA ANALYSIS The multi-level framework mentioned seeks to gather and analyse information on causes, forms and consequences of professionalization processes in sport federations. It is applied in a twofold approach: first an exploratory study based on nine semi-structured interviews with experts from umbrella sport organisations (IOC, WADA, ASOIF, AIOWF, etc.) as well as the analysis of related documents, relevant reports (IOC report 2000 on governance reform, Agenda 2020, etc.) and important moments of change in the Olympic Movement (Olympic revenue share, IOC evaluation criteria, etc.); and secondly several case studies. Whereas the exploratory study seeks more the causes for professionalization on an external, internal and headquarter level as depicted in the literature, the case studies rather focus on forms and consequences. Applying our conceptual framework, the analysis of forms is built around three dimensions: 1) Individuals (persons and positions), 2) Processes, structures (formalisation, specialisation), 3) Activities (strategic planning). With regard to consequences, we centre our attention on expectations of and relationships with stakeholders (e.g. cooperation with business partners), structure, culture and processes (e.g. governance models, performance), and expectations of and relationships with member organisations (e.g. centralisation vs. regionalisation). For the case studies, a mixed-method approach is applied to collect relevant data: questionnaires for rather quantitative data, interviews for rather qualitative data, as well as document and observatory analysis. RESULTS, DISCUSSION AND IMPLICATIONS/CONCLUSIONS With regard to causes of professionalization processes, we analyse the content of three different levels: 1. the external level, where the main pressure derives from financial resources (stakeholders, benefactors) and important turning points (scandals, media pressure, IOC requirements for Olympic sports); 2. the internal level, where pressure from member organisations turned out to be less decisive than assumed (little involvement of member organisations in decision-making); 3. the headquarter level, where specific economic models (World Cups, other international circuits, World Championships), and organisational structures (decision-making procedures, values, leadership) trigger or hinder a federation’s professionalization process. Based on our first analysis, an outline for an economic model is suggested, distinguishing four categories of IFs: “money-generating IFs” being rather based on commercialisation and strategic alliances; “classical Olympic IFs” being rather reactive and dependent on Olympic revenue; “classical non-Olympic IFs” being rather independent of the Olympic Movement; and “money-receiving IFs” being dependent on benefactors and having strong traditions and values. The results regarding forms and consequences will be outlined in the presentation. The first results from the two pilot studies will allow us to refine our conceptual framework for subsequent case studies, thus extending our data collection and developing fundamental conclusions. References: Bayle, E., & Robinson, L. (2007). A framework for understanding the performance of national governing bodies of sport. European Sport Management Quarterly, 7, 249–268 Chantelat, P. (2001). La professionnalisation des organisations sportives: Nouveaux débats, nouveaux enjeux [Professionalisation of sport organisations]. Paris: L’Harmattan. Dowling, M., Edwards, J., & Washington, M. (2014). Understanding the concept of professionalization in sport management research. Sport Management Review. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1016/j.smr.2014.02.003 Ferkins, L. & Shilbury, D. (2012). Good Boards Are Strategic: What Does That Mean for Sport Governance? Journal of Sport Management, 26, 67-80. Thibault, L., Slack, T., & Hinings, B. (1991). Professionalism, structures and systems: The impact of professional staff on voluntary sport organizations. International Review for the Sociology of Sport, 26, 83–97.

Network Dynamics in Natural Resource Governance: A Case Study of Swiss Landscape Management

Structural characteristics of social networks have been recognized as important factors of effective natural resource governance. However, network analyses of natural resource governance most often remain static, even though governance is an inherently dynamic process. In this article, we investigate the evolution of a social network of organizational actors involved in the governance of natural resources in a regional nature park project in Switzerland. We ask how the maturation of a governance network affects bonding social capital and centralization in the network. Applying separable temporal exponential random graph modeling (STERGM), we test two hypotheses based on the risk hypothesis by Berardo and Scholz (2010) in a longitudinal setting. Results show that network dynamics clearly follow the expected trend toward generating bonding social capital but do not imply a shift toward less hierarchical and more decentralized structures over time. We investigate how these structural processes may contribute to network effectiveness over time.

The doctrine of multilayered governance: The Example of Swiss Foreign Migration Policy

The New Swiss interdepartemental cooperation structure results in a new setting in negotiations and stimulates the counterpart or for the same setting and at least for the same domestic cooperation.