The methodology of socially-oriented observations (SOO) started to be developed within the International Polar Year (IPY) 2007–2008 PPS Arctic project. The main objective of SOO is to increase knowledge and observation of changes in quality of life conditions and to reveal trends in human capital and capacities. SOO are needed also to assess and monitor trends in resilience and sustainability of coupled socio-ecological systems and to predict changes. Moreover they should help to identify and monitor the implementation of local plans and adaptation strategies that will stimulate human capital improvement and act not only as the agent of economic modernisation, but as important directions for building resilient socio-ecological systems. The first experiments to implement SOO methodology were carried out in the municipal regions of the Russian north in different biomes (from coastal tundra to southern taiga zone) of Murmansk, Arkhangelsk Oblast and the Republic of Komi. SOO approaches, based both on local people's perceptions and statistics, help to identify the main issues and targets for life quality, human capital and environment improvement and thus to distinguish the most important changes and trends for further monitoring. Key issues were identified in the state of human capital and quality of life conditions: depopulation, increasing unemployment, aging, declining physical and mental health, quality of education, loss of traditional knowledge, marginalisation etc. Human induced disturbances such as uncontrolled forests cuttings and poaching are increasing while observed changes in climate and biota have become additional factors influencing land use and overall sustainability. The main aim of this paper is to show how the methodology of SOO may help to delineate main thresholds arising within socio-ecological systems for their resilience assessment.
Monitoring of social-ecological systems dynamics and sustainability is of high importance in a rapidly changing Arctic. The goal of this essay is to discuss and articulate the principles for designing a suitable Arctic sustainability monitoring framework based on the convergence between resilience thinking and sustainable development paradigms. We propose to integrate sustainability monitoring into the socially-oriented observations (SOO) methodologies in order to design Arctic sustainability monitoring as a transdisciplinary participatory activity that results in both co-production of sustainability knowledge and building more sustainable and resilient Arctic social-ecological systems by enabling continuous observation and informed decision-making. Special attention is given to approaches for developing sustainability indicators to monitor trends in Arctic social-ecological systems. It is argued that sustainability monitoring is a valuable component of the Arctic sustainability knowledge system that integrates social and natural sciences and engages Indigenous, local, and traditional knowledge, entrepreneurship, education, and decision-making. Bringing together diverse knowledge systems is the primary route to collectively pursue sustainability in a holistic, polycentric, multifaceted, participatory, and knowledge-driven manner. Transdisciplinary SOO approaches and methods are specifically discussed.
Traditional subsistence socio-ecological systems (TSSESs) based on hunting, gathering and fishing are widely spread all-over the taiga zone of Siberia. Nowadays, they are strongly impacted by several drivers of change, coming from human activities and climate changes with cascading both positive and negative effects on all components of ecosystem functions and services. The effects may influence quality of life of indigenous people and human capacities. Key multi-scale issues and possible ways of their solution are identified in TSSESs of Evenkia municipal district of the Krasnoyarsk region based on scientific research and traditional local knowledge and perceptions integration. Among key issues the degradation of ecosystems heavily impacting local subsistence resources availability (fish and meat for food as well as wild animals' skins for sale) is the most urgent for the indigenous people living on land. Several negative driving forces both socio-economic and natural such as widespread poaching, forest land auctions and increasing annual rent obligations for hunting grounds to the indigenous peoples, imposing limits (quarters) without taking into account real subsistence need of indigenous communities, non-compensated impact of spreading infrastructure and logging on taiga forest ecosystems and hunting grounds, as well as climate changes, are impacting quality of life and human capacities of indigenous people. This analysis of key issues and driving forces leading to them gives us opportunity to propose several ways of such issues solution. The improvement of control and management of TSSESs sustainability with active participation of indigenous people is the principle way for achieving TSSESs resilience and sustainability.
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