Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin - Resource Economics

Problem dimensions

Problem dimensions

The question of which system of rules – together with the appropriate organisational forms for their practical implementation – should underlie the use, management and conservation of natural resources leads to a series of existential research questions. It is often the consequences of institutional failures which threaten people and their natural livelihoods: resource degradation such as soil erosion and desertification, pollution and loss of freshwater resources, loss of biodiversity and genetic resources, clearing of forests and fish population decline, climate change, exhaustion of fossil fuels and the related bioenergy problematic, in addition to poverty, hunger and under-development, as well as institutional upheaval in many, and not only post-socialist, countries. All of these are challenges which motivate a better understanding and better formation of an institutional resource economics and the institutions of sustainability. You can read more about the Problem Dimensions and the related research projects here


You can read more about selected questions in institutional resource economics here: 

Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin | Thaer-Institute | Resource Economics | Research challenges | Problem dimensions | Climate Change, Requirements for Mitigation and Adaptation

Climate Change, Requirements for Mitigation and Adaptation

According to data provided by the „Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change“, the global mean temperature has increased by 0.74 °C (± 0.18 °C) during the last century. The trend is increasing: the first decade of the third millennium has been warmer than the 1990s, which have been warmer than the 1980s (IPCC).

Most probably, the reason for this recent climate change can be found in an increase of the natural greenhouse effect due to human activities. The main causes are the combus-tion of fossil fuels, deforestation, intensive agriculture, and livestock production. Through these activities greenhouse gases – especially carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide – accumulate in the atmosphere. These gases reduce the heat radiation emissions into space and lead to a rise in temperature on earth. This increase in temperature causes a deglaciation of glaciers and the poles, resulting in rising sea levels. The temperature increase notably disturbs global water cycles and has a strong impact on climate.

Climate change poses several new challenges to humanity. A recent paper estimates that only in Germany climate change will cost about 800 billion Euros until the year 2050 (Kemfert). Countries in the tropics are even more severely affected. Agriculture in these countries will face tremendous drops in production. Adverse effects on health add to these problems, e.g. through heat waves or the accelerated spread of infectious diseases – especially in countries with a poor public health system (WHO).

Multiple adaptation and mitigation requirements arise from the negative consequences of climate change. In the next years, it will be crucial to develop appropriate strategies to cope, for instance, with floodings and droughts. At the same time, to combat further climate change, global greenhouse gas emissions will have to be reduced – e.g. by the ex-tensification of agriculture or the development of renewable energies.

The question as to who has to carry the burden of adaption to and mitigation of climate change will increasingly lead to conflicts between regions, countries, economic sectors, social strata, and generations. To develop adequate institutions and organizations will be crucial to resolve these conflicts. The Division of Resource Economics is actively engaged in international research projects in this field.

 

This problem dimension has been addressed in the following research projects:

  • econCCadapt
    Economics of Climate Change Adaptation - Integrating Economic Modeling and Institutional Analysis at Different Scales
  • SASCHA
    Sustainable Land Management and Adaptation Strategies to Climate Change for the Western Siberian Corn-belt
  • MEGACITY 2
    Climate and Energy in a Complex Transition Process Towards Sustainable Hyderabad. Mitigation and adaptation strategies by changing institutions, governance structures, life styles and consumption patterns

 

Bhatt, Brijesh Governance Structure for Enhanced Energy Efficiency in Irrigation Electricity Distribution System of Andhra Pradesh

Chidambaram, Bhuvanachihtra

Sustainable Traffic Solutions on the Basis of Vehicle Emission Simulation Models

Ghosh, Ranjan Kumar Deregulation, Institutional Reforms and Efficiency in Power Generation: The case of Andhra Pradesh

Horam, Phungmayo

Analysis of Market Potential and Government Policy for Renewable Energy in Hyderabad.

Papasozomenou, Ourania

Self-governance in Small European Communities: Responses to climate change impacts on water resources?

Pham Thanh Lan Understanding farmer’s adaptation to climate change – A case study of rice production in Northern Vietnam

Bhaskar Poldas

Analysis of the influence of religious interpretations for climate change on the climate related behavior of citizens in Hyderabad, India

Seema Singh Potential and Constraints of building Environmental Health Risk Resilient Communities in the Emerging Mega City of Hyderabad/India

 

Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin | Thaer-Institute | Resource Economics | Research challenges | Problem dimensions | World Nutrition, Poverty, Social Exclusion, and Political Conflicts

World Nutrition, Poverty, Social Exclusion, and Political Conflicts


 

Source: Wikimedia Commons map based on UNWFP 2009 Hunger Map

 

Agriculture, fisheries, horticulture and forestry represent the basis for human nutrition. At the same time, they also provide subsistence and income for a large part of the global population, especially in less industrialized countries. Accordingly, natural resource management plays a central role in the Millennium Development Goals of the United Nations. The first of the eight millennium goals aims to reduce proportion of absolute poverty and malnutrition by half from 1990 to 2015.

According to the statistics of the Wordbank, , in 2005 around 1.4 billion people (one in four) were affected by absolute poverty, having less than $ 1.25 per day. FAO states that about 15% of the world's population, i.e. more than 870 million people, were malnourished in 2004-06, and the trend is increasing. (FAO 2009).

Institutional Resource Economics deals with the use of natural resources and particularly analyses the systems of rules and the relationships of actors who influence the allocation of resources. The rules of a society and the economic use of natural resources they are expected to bring about have a crucially affect nutrition and income through farming practices. For research in the context of less industrialized agrarian-oriented countries, multiple aspects of social, economic, and political exclusion and the resulting poverty, malnutrition and conflicts play a crucial role.

 

This problem dimension has been addressed in the following research projects:

 

  • CAPRI
    Collective Action and Property Rights for Poverty Reduction
  • Ethiopia
    The Role of Local Level Institutions Towards Enhancing Sustainable Rural Livelihoods in Rural Ethiopia
  • RSP
    Making Rural Services Work for the Poor. The Role of Rural Institutions and their Governance for Agriculture-led Development

 

Gandhi, Ruhi

Vulnerability of Urban Poor to Changes in Food Accessibility: A study of opportunities and constraints for adaptation to climate change and rapid urbanization in Hyderabad

Müller, Ulrike

Pro-poor Service Delivery in India – A behavioral economics perspective

Korf, Benedikt (2004)

Conflict, Space and Institutions. Property rights and the political economy of war in Sri Lanka. Institutional Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources, Vol. 19. Aachen: Shaker

Rahausen, Elke V. (2003)

Die Comunidad im Wandel. Zur Situation und Integration von Mapuche-Kleinbauern in der chilenischen Gesellschaft. Berichte aus der Agrarökonomie November 2003. Aachen: Shaker

Bogale, Ayalneh (2002)

Land Degradation, Impoverishment and Livelihood Strategies of Rural Households in Ethiopia: Farmers' perceptions and policy implication. Institutional Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources, Vol. 8. Aachen: Shaker

 

 

Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin | Thaer-Institute | Resource Economics | Research challenges | Problem dimensions | Water shortage and contamination; waste water and sanitation

Water shortage and contamination; waste water and sanitation

Agriculture has historically been the single largest user of fresh water resources. If limited in its temporal and spatial availability, water has at the same time been the most important obstacle to agricultural development. Water is a pivotal input to plant production and animal husbandry. Surface and subsurface water bodies are also important sinks for a number of agricultural wastes including organic manure, mineral fertilizers and pesticides. The local manifestations of the water cycle are a key determinant for a complex system of micro-climatic conditions faced by agricultural production.

Today a multitude of additional social and economic activities depend directly or indirectly on the reliable availability of water. Accordingly, water resources are used for numerous industrial purposes, such as in the cooling of combustion engines or as a solvent in chemical processes. Water further serves as a source for drinking, cooking, recreation and the removal and treatment of human wastes. This overall trend is catalyzed by global population growth and the rapid economic development of major transition countries such as China, India and Brazil.

As in agriculture also most other types of water use tend to rely on the resource’s capacity to simultaneously serve as a source and a sink. Differences, however, exist in terms of the qualities and quantities they require. Furthermore, water is frequently demanded at very different times and locations. The finiteness and the physical mobility of water add up to the problem by resulting in numerous complex interactions between water users across space and time. Water has consequentially become the object of increasing coordination problems and competition.

The theoretical concepts developed by the Division of Resource Economics serve to further extend our analytic capacities for examining existing systems of rules and actors that take part in today’s struggle over water. The quest to analyze how nature-related institutions evolve, how they interact with other sets of social rules and how those institutions determine the allocation of costs and benefits from water use, represents a pivotal step towards facilitating the increasingly important need for coordination of water related conflicts.

 

This problem dimension has been addressed in the following research projects:

  • ELaN
    Development of an Integrated Approach to Land Management for Sustainable Use of Water and Matter in North-Eastern Germany, Sub-project 9 “Property Rights and Transactions”

 

Berger, Lars

Economic decision-making from an institutional perspective. The case of non-point-source pollution in Lake Taihu, P.R.C.

Hagemann, Nina

Governing Natural Resources in Transition Countries – the case of waste water management in the city of Lviv (Ukraine)

Hamidov, Ahmad

Community-based Agricultural Water Management: Institutions for Water Management and Conditions for Sustainability of Water Users Associations in Uzbekistan

Jakhalu, Atoho

Governance of Inter-Sectoral Water Re-allocation within the Context of Urbanization in Hyderabad

Kiran, Keerthi

Institutional Analysis for Sustainable Abatement of Industrial Water Pollution in Hyderabad, India

Mackinnon, Anne(extern)

Water Management in the Rocky Mountains: Establishment, evolution, challenge and resilience of locally-crafted institutions in the high, cold dessert of Wyoming

Patil, Vikram

Institutions, Institutional Changes and Impacts in the Rehabilitation of Displaced Farmers: The Case of the Upper Krishna Irrigation Project, India

Deneke, Tilaye Teklewold (2011)

Water Governance in Amhara Region of Ethiopia: An institutional analysis. Institutional Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources, Vol. 45. Aachen: Shaker

Srigiri, Srinivasa Reddy

Institutions of Collective Action for Resource Protection and Poverty Reduction: Participation of the poor in watershed management projects in India

Marelli, Beatrice (2010)

Common-Pool Resources: the Search for Rationality Through Values. Empirical evidence for the theory of collective action in northern Italy

Schleyer, Christian (2009)

Institutional Change of Water Management Systems. Institutional Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources, Vol. 39. Aachen: Shaker

Theesfeld, Insa

Water and Institutional Analysis – Power and Leadership in Natural Resource Management

Chennamaneni, Ramesh

Agricultural Transformation and Institutional Change in India: a comparative study on watershed development approaches and emerging issues for perspective policy

 

 

 

Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin | Thaer-Institute | Resource Economics | Research challenges | Problem dimensions | Adaptation Pressures from Globalisation, Structural Change, Agricultural and Environmental Policy

Adaptation Pressures from Globalisation, Structural Change, Agricultural and Environmental Policy

In the process of globalisation actors increasingly raise demands on the use of natural resources globally. The conflict dimensions of globalisation become evident with an increase of claims on the use of natural resources. A fundamental challenge of globalisation is to meet and balance the different and growing demands on the use of natural resources. This endeavour gains significance and urgency in view of the rising claims on natural resources and at the same time decreasing stocks of the respective resources due to resource depletion and degradation. A difficulty in search of solutions is the overlay of property rights of decision makers at all levels from local to global regarding the use of natural resources. A further challenge in the quest to meet diverging claims is that actors and societies involved in globalisation have different political, economic and social starting situations. However, pressures from global resource claims on local production, trade and the supply of goods and services from agriculture and forestry increase in the course of globalisation. As a consequence, the drive for structural change in agriculture increases, as well as need to adapt environmental and agricultural policy to changing demands and conditions for policy making.

The rules of societies and their economic activities have a central impact on structural change and the adaptation of natural and social systems in the progress of globalisation. Institutional resource economics is especially concerned with the use of natural resources and studies focally the systems of rules and actors who influence the use of resources. The research activities at the Division of Resources Economics contribute to the quest of explaining the interplay of values, social organisation, technology development, knowledge generation, resources use and environmental changes. Further, our results add to the formation and design of formal rights and informal rules on the use of natural resources.

 

This problem dimension has been addressed in the following research projects:

  • COOP
    Support for Farmers' Cooperatives
  • ARC
    The Changing Role of Agricultural Institutions and Farming: A Collaborative Project in Germany and United Kingdom
  • GRANO
    Approaches for a Sustainable Agricultural Production in North-eastern Germany (GRANO); Project group 1: Decentral evaluation and coordination mechanisms
  • ITAES
    Integrated Tools to Design and Implement Agri-Environmental Schemes
  • MULTAGRI
    Capitalisation of Research Results on the Multifunctionality of Agriculture and Rural Areas
  • Land Use Conflicts (Spreewald)
    Does Money Solve Land Use Conflicts? On Governance Problems of Agri-Environmental Support Programs
  • SEAMLESS
    A System for Environmental and Agricultural Modelling; Linking European Science and Society
  • SENSOR
    Sustainability Impact Assessment: Tools for Environmental, Social and Economic Effects of Multifunctional Land Use in European Regions
  • COST A 12 RURAL INNOVATION
    European Cooperation in the Field of Scientific and Technical Research
  • TERESA
    Types of interaction between Economy, Rural Society, Environment and Agricultural activities in European regions

 

Schleyer, Christian Market-based instruments as components of institutional arrangements for the provision of ecosystem services – The example of land use measures for climate- and nature-protection in cultural landscapes in Central Europe

Kaim, Eike

Analysis of Supply Chain Management: Case studies on the market for nursery products in Germany

Margarian, Anne (2010)

The Regional Specifity of Structural Change in Agriculture. Institutional Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources, Vol. 41. Aachen: Shaker

Arzt, Katja (2008)

Local Participation and Sustainable Resource Use. An institutional analysis of agri-environmental- forums. Institutional Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources, Vol. 38. Aachen: Shaker

Eggers, Jörg (2005)

Dezentralisierung der Agrarumweltmaßnahmen in der europäischen Agrarpolitik: Hemmnisse eines institutionellen Wandels. Institutional Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources, Vol. 25. Aachen: Shaker

Kolloge, Sabine (1999)

Eine Wirkungsanalyse der Agenda 21 in Bezug auf eine nachhaltige Landwirtschaft und ländliche Entwicklung am Beispiel von Kommunen in England und Deutschland. Regensburg: Transfer

Bogale,   Ayalneh

Resource Governance and Emerging Institutions for Sustainable Management of Natural Forests in Ethiopia: Analysis of Institutional Change and Benefits to Forest Dwellers in Adaba-Dodola Forest Priority Area

 

 

Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin | Thaer-Institute | Resource Economics | Research challenges | Problem dimensions | Environmental Impact of Agricultural Production and Different Cultivation Systems

Environmental Impact of Agricultural Production and Different Cultivation Systems

The agricultural sector has a key function to ensure global food security. On the one hand, intensive agricultural production allows a steady increase of global harvests and provides and increases security of supply. On the other hand, the agricultural economy, compared with other economic sectors, has the greatest impact on the use of natural resources that may often lead to exploitation and degradation, but also to its preservation. Intensive agricultural production based on high input of chemicals and energy often leads to increasing uniformity, both regarding the products and the modes of production. Negative externalities such as loss of natural habitats by the expansion of agricultural land and the associated impact on biodiversity, soil degradation such as erosion, depletion and pollution of natural water resources and climatic changes are only a few examples of this problem area. Global value chains and the associated environmental burdens add new challenges at local and global level. Developments such as rising living standards in growing economies and increasing population, extended use of renewable energy from biomass and climate change reinforce these challenges.

This results in important research issues Institutional Resource Economics has to address as it deals with the systems of rules and relationships between actors influencing the use of natural resources. Appropriate social rules and the expected economic use of natural resources have a significant influence on the forms of intensive agricultural production and its environmental consequences. The cultivation of genetically modified crops (GM crops) in European agriculture opens up a new problem dimension. As the actors involved hold different interests on this issue and frame the problem accordingly, there is a fundamental need for addressing the question of rivalry and coexistence in this context. Already back in 2003, the European Commission published recommendations on how to conceptualize the coexistence between the different agricultural production systems – conventional, organic and GM crop farming. In the context of these guidelines, farmers and consumers shall be given the freedom of choice to select between these three options.

According to the European guidelines, coexistence is defined as a merely economic issue, including only those GM crops which have obtained a market approval through positive risk assessment. In line with Regulation 1830/2003, a labelling threshold of 0.9% for adventitious and technically unavoidable GM traces applies. In order to guarantee lower GM traces and thus to prevent the produce from being labelled, several measures can be taken, such as the installation of isolation distances between neighbouring maize fields which reduce the probability of cross-pollination. According to the German Act on Genetic Engineering (Gentechnik-Gesetz, GenTG), isolation distances of 150 m between a GM maize field and a conventional maize field apply in Germany. This distance is increased up to 300 m between a GM maize field and an organic maize field reflecting a higher degree of protection of organic produce from GM traces.

From a scientific point of view, the question arises whether the actors involved in Germany actually hold the same perception on coexistence as the European Commission. An entirely new institutional framework may be needed to reconcile all interests. This problem dimension is addressed in subproject 11 on cooperative and hierarchical forms of institutional change in the case of GM crop cultivation in Germany, which is part of the DFG-funded cooperative project “Structural Change in the Agricultural Sector (SiAg)".

 

This problem dimension has been addressed in the following research projects:

  • LABOR
    Labour Organization and the Adoption of Integrated Pest Management
  • SIAG
    FG 986: Structural Change in Agriculture - Sub-project 11: Cooperative and Hierarchical Forms of Institutional Change (SIAG)

Consmüller, Nicola

Structural Change in Agriculture - TP 11: Cooperative and hierarchical forms of institutional change (SIAG)

Kutschke, Andreas (extern)

New Political Economy of Determination and Assessment of Airborne Emissions and Immissions from Animal Husbandry Facilities in the German Approval Process Practice

von Bock und Polach, Charlotte (2010)

Relevance of Social Capital and Social Networks for Temporary Migration of Polish Seasonal Labour – The case of asparagus farms in Brandenburg (Germany). Institutional Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources, Vol. 43. Aachen: Shaker

Irawan, Evi (2009)

The Effect of Farm Labor Organization on the Adoption of Integrated Pest Management (IPM)

Hernández, José (2011) 

Analysis of Economic Driving Forces in Crop Protection. A case study of apple production in the EU

Beckmann, Volker

Essays in Institutional Analysis. Application to Economic Transition, Technology Adoption and Environmental Governance in Agriculture

Srinivasa Reddy Srigiri

In Pursuit of Effective Governance Structures and Institutions for Abatement of Urban Pollution: Industrial pollution in Hyderabad

 

Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin | Thaer-Institute | Resource Economics | Research challenges | Problem dimensions | Interference with Fish Stocks, Wildlife, and Forests

Interference with Fish Stocks, Wildlife, and Forests

Fish, forest and wildlife resources and their habitats play a major role in global carbon cycle and preservation of biodiversity. These resources are under massive exploitation pressure because of their extractive characteristics constituting common pool goods. Research in the field of institutional economics indicates sustainable appropriation, use and conservation not only by central government control but also by variety and complexity of multilevel formal and informal institutions of manifold governance structures (Gibson et al. 2000; Ostrom 1999, 2005; Hagedorn 2002, 2008; Bromley 2009).

Nevertheless, world´s fish, forest and wildlife resources are currently experiencing deep degradation. Up to 25% of deep sea fish species suffer from a high level of depletion and 52% are almost below an acceptable level (FAO 2007). Furthermore, up to 80% of fish species of economic interest are overfished (FAO 2007). In inland waters, one of the most serious threats for wild freshwater species are user demand driven stocking measures with hatchery-bred fish potentially resulting in irreversible repercussions for aquatic biodiversity (Eby 2006).

Forest resources are experiencing great challenges due to deforestation and forest degradation. The conversion of tropical forest into agricultural land is a major driver of forest loss (FAO 2010). National and international efforts within the last few decades to reduce forest loss –while having some impact – have however failed to substantially slow down the loss of the world´s forests (Pfaff et al. 2010). Around 13 million hectares of forest were converted to other uses or disappeared through natural causes each year in the last decade (FAO 2010).

In the European area, game is strongly influenced by habitat conditions shaped through heterogeneous user demands and preferences, causing simultaneously wildlife damage. In Germany, the so-called hunting associations manage the problem of this negative external effect (Rauchenecker 2010). In many parts of Africa and Asia, the most immediate threat to wildlife are unsustainable hunting and trading in wildlife and wildlife products, and human-wildlife conflict (FAO 2007). A challenge for policy-makers is to balance conservation of wildlife resources with the livelihood requirements of local populations (FAO 2007). Because of growing human access to wildlife habitat, game changes social and reproduction behaviour. These factors influence degree and level of wildlife damage.
 

This problem dimension has been addressed in the following research projects:

  • VIETNAM
    Devolution of Forest Management in Vietnam
  • ADAPTFISH-2
    Adaptive Dynamics and Management of Coupled Social-Ecological Systems Exemplified by Recreational Fisheries
Schlüter, Maja Mechanisms of resilience in coupled social-ecological systems - examples from irrigation and fisheries

Arauz Torres, Mario Alberto

Institutional Change in Natural Resource Management: a case study regarding the evolution of the forest policy in Nueva Segovia, Nicaragua

Daedlow, Katrin

Adaptive Governance in Social-ecological Systems: Lessons from German recreational fisheries (ADAPTFISH-2)

Keutmann, Sarah The Role of Institutional Change for the Sustainable Cultivation of Energy Crops – The case of agro-wood production in Brandenburg, Germany

Nguyen, Minh Dao

Institutional and Policy Change in Forestry: Implications for sustainable forest management and sustainable livelihoods for forest-based rural communities in upland areas: A case study in Son La province, Vietnam

Rauchenecker, Katharina (2010)

Institutional Change in Hunting and Game Management – The case of German hunting associations. Institutional Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources, Vol. 42. Aachen: Shaker

Nguyen, Tan Quang (2004)

What Benefits and for Whom? Effects of devolution of forest management in Dak Lak, Vietnam. Institutional Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources, Vol. 21. Aachen: Shaker

Than, Tran Ngoc (2004)

From Legal Acts to Village Institutions and Forest Use Practices: Effects of devolution in the central highlands of Vietnam. Institutional Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources, Vol. 27. Aachen: Shaker

Literature:

Bromley, Daniel W. (2009). Abdicating Responsibility: the Deceits of Fisheries Policy. Fisheries 34 (6):280-290.

Eby, L. A.; Roach W. J.; Crowder, L. B.; Stanford, J. A. (2006) Effects of Stocking-Up Freshwater Food Webs. Trends in Ecology and Evolution 21(10):576-584.

FAO (2007). The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture 2006. Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations, Rome.

FAO (2007). State of the World`s Forests. Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations, Rome.

FAO (2010). Global Forest Resources Assessment 2010, Main Report. FAO Forestry Paper 163. Rome.

Gibson, C., McKean, M., Ostrom, E. (2000). People and Forest: Communities, Institutions and Forest. Massachusetts, USA. Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Global Witness (2007). Independent Forest Monitoring in Nicaragua: Second Summary Report of Activities. Washington DC, USA. Global Witness Publishing Inc.

Hagedorn, Konrad (2008). Particular Requirements for Institutional Analysis in Nature-Related Sectors. European Review of Agricultural Economics 35 (3), 357-384.

Hagedorn, Konrad; Arzt, Katja and Peters, Ursula (2002). Institutional Arrangements for En¬vironmental Co-operatives: A conceptual Framework. Environmental and Institutional Change. In: Hagedorn, Konrad (ed.). Environmental Cooperation and Institutional Change. Theories and Policies for European Agriculture. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar, 3 25.

Ostrom, Elinor. (2000). Reformulating the Commons. Swiss Political Science Review 6(1), 29-52.

Ostrom, Elinor (2005). Understanding Institutional Diversity. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.

Pfaff, A.; Sills, E.; Amacher, G.; Coren, M.; Lawlor, K.; Streck., C. (2010). Policy Impacts on Deforestation. Lessons Learned from Past Experiences to Inform New Initiatives. Nicholas Institute Report, Duke University. NI R 10-02

Katharina Rauchenecker (2010). Institutioneller Wandel im Bereich Jagd und Wildtiermanagement – Das Beispiel der Jagdgenossenschaften. Institutional Change in Agricultural and Natural Resources, Vol. 42. Aachen: Shaker.

Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin | Thaer-Institute | Resource Economics | Research challenges | Problem dimensions | Environmental Consequences of Intensive Agricultural Production Practices

Environmental Consequences of Intensive Agricultural Production Practices


The agricultural sector has a key function to ensure global food security. On the one hand, intensive agricultural production allows a steady increase of global harvests and provides and increases security of supply. On the other hand, the agricultural economy, compared with other economic sectors, has the greatest impact on the use of natural resources that may often lead to exploitation and degradation, but also to its preservation. Intensive agricultural production based on high input of chemicals and energy often leads to increasing uniformity, both regarding the products and the modes of production. Negative externalities such as loss of natural habitats by the expansion of agricultural land and the associated impact on biodiversity, soil degradation such as erosion, depletion and pollution of natural water resources and climatic changes are only a few examples of this problem area. Global value chains and the associated environmental burdens add new challenges at local and global level. Developments such as rising living standards in growing economies and increasing population, extended use of renewable energy from biomass and climate change reinforce these challenges.

This results in important research issues Institutional Resource Economics has to address as it deals with the systems of rules and relationships between actors influencing the use of natural resources. Appropriate social rules and the expected economic use of natural resources have a significant influence on the forms of intensive agricultural production and its environmental consequences.


In the Division of Resource Economics this problem dimension is addressed in the following research project:
  • SUNRISE Sustainable Use of Natural Resources in an Institutional Perspective
Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin | Thaer-Institute | Resource Economics | Research challenges | Problem dimensions | Issues of Economic Development and Developmental Cooperation

Issues of Economic Development and Developmental Cooperation

In development studies there is an emerging consensus on the importance of institutions – systems of societal rules – in economic development and social change. One example is recognition of non-codified property rights in natural resources by the state held by traditional users of tropical forests. This recognition often proves essential to reduce the vulnerability of their livelihood. Based on the general acknowledgement of the importance of institutions three different research threads developed. The first treats institutions as the independent variable and inquires the relationship between a given set of institutions and observed societal outcomes – be they aspired or considered in the need of change. The second research thread inverts the approach adopted by the first and analyses the question of how and by what drivers institutions change. That is, institutions become the dependent variable. One aspect covered under this research thread is the relationship between progressive legal reforms and prevailing and persistent social structures. This question assumes particular importance when legal reforms aim to strengthen the social position of marginalised groups. The third research thread investigates the possibility of fostering institutional change by third parties. The identification of criteria for efforts to change institutions is an important aspect covered by this research thread. Institutional research in this field critically discusses “institutional transplants”, that is, the transfer of institutional innovations that generated desired social outcomes in a given situation to other societal contexts. The question of adapted solutions assumes high importance in this regard.
 

This problem dimension has been addressed in the following research projects:

  • MEGACITY 1
    Hyderabad as a Megacity of Tomorrow: Sustainable Urban Food and Health Security and Environmental Resource Management

 

Padmanabhan, Martina Gender and Institutional Analysis - Resource Management in Asia and Africa

Rommel, Jens

The Institutional Mediation of Community Heterogeneity and Collective Action Outcomes

Schmidt, Oscar

Democratization or Path-dependency? An institutional analysis of the evolution of access to land and water resources in South-East Anatolia, Turkey

Weigelt, Jes (2011)

Reforming Development Trajectories? Institutional change of forest tenure in the Brazilian Amazon

Hundie, Bekele (2008)

Pastoralism, Institutions and Social Interactions: Explaining the coexistence of conflicts and cooperation in pastoral Afar, Ethiopia. Institutional Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources, Vol. 34. Aachen: Shaker

Beyene, Fekadu (2008)

Challenges and Options in Governing Common Property. Customary institutions among (agro-)pastoralists in Ethiopia. Institutional Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources, Vol. 32. Aachen: Shaker

Seema Singh Potential and Constraints of building Environmental Health Risk Resilient Communities in the Emerging Mega City of Hyderabad/India

 

 

 





 

 

 

 

Loss of Nature, Biodiversity and Genetic Resources

The 'Global Convention on Biological Diversity', signed in 1992 at the Earth Summit in Rio, is an institutional arrangement which describes biodiversity as "the variability among all living organisms from all sources, including terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and ecological complexes of which they are part, this includes diversity within species, between species and of ecosystems." The contracting parties are conscious of the importance of biological diversity for evolution and for maintaining life sustaining systems of the biosphere.

However, genetic diversity, species and whole ecosystems are disappearing as a result of human increasing demands on natural ecosystems. Our production methods pollute nature; population growth degrades ecosystems and consequently diversity of species declines. In a world of globalization conventional agriculture diminishes diversity of genetic resources. Many habitats are being converted to less diverse systems which provide more harvestable goods to people. The 'Global Biodiversity Assessment' notes that the main underlying causes of the loss of biodiversity are demographic, economic, institutional and technological factors.

Within the convention each contracting party has to fulfil several tasks such as controlling access to genetic resources, monitoring components of biological diversity, regulating biological resources and establishing means to limit the risks likely to affect the conservation of biodiversity; considering the risks to human health. The contracting parts note that, ultimately, the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity will contribute to peace for humankind.

 

This problem dimension has been addressed in the following research projects:

  • MEACAP
    Impact of Environmental Agreements on the Common Agricultural Policy
Bogale,   Ayalneh Resource Governance and Emerging Institutions for Sustainable Management of Natural Forests in Ethiopia: Analysis of Institutional Change and Benefits to Forest Dwellers in Adaba-Dodola Forest Priority Area

Perez Carmona, Alexander

Ex ante Institutional Alignments to NIMBY Problems: The siting of sanitary landfills in Colombia

Bisaro, Sandy

Climate Adaptation, Adaptive Management and Multilevel Governance: Institutions for sustainability in Lesotho's wetlands

Gouja, Majdi

Sustainable Resource Use in Wetlands of the Mediterranean: The Case of the Tunisian Island Djerba

Seyoum, Aseffa (2009)

Microeconomics of Wild Coffee Genetic Resources Conservation in Southwestern Ethiopia: Forest zoning and economic incentives for conservation. Institutional Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources, Vol. 40. Aachen: Shaker

Boening, Frank (2007)

Accessing Land at the Agricultural Frontier. A case study from the Honduran Mosquitia. Institutional Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources, Vol. 33. Aachen: Shaker

Jungcurt, Stefan (2007)

Institutional Interplay in International Environmental Governance. Policy interdependence and strategic interaction in the regime complex on plant genetic resources for food and agriculture. Institutional Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources, Vol. 30. Aachen: Shaker

Gatzweiler, Franz (2002)

The Changing Nature of Economic Value. Indigenous gorest garden values in Kalimanatan, Indonesia. Institutional Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources, Vol. 16. Aachen: Shaker

Rommel, Kai (1998)

Kosten und Nutzen des Biosphärenreservates Schorfheide-Chorin. Eine empirische Analyse der mikroökonomischen Bestimmungsfaktoren einer naturerhaltenden Ökonomie. Regensburg: Transfer

Watanabe, Shigeo

Successful Elements of Bioprospecting Contracts in Case of Namibian Marula Oil

Gatzweiler, Franz

Political Economy of Biodiversity Conservation

Padmanabhan, Martina

Gender and Institutional Analysis - Resource Management in Asia and Africa

Hidayat, Aceng (2005) Institutional Analysis of Coral Reef Management: A case study of Gili Indah Village/West Lombok, Indonesia. Institutional Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources, Vol. 22. Aachen: Shaker

 

Literature

  • Heywood, V.H. (1995). The Global Biodiversity Assessment. United Nations Environment Program. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge Pp. xi + 1140.
  • McNeely, Jeffrey A. (1992): The sinking ark: pollution and the worldwide loss of biodiversity. Biodiversity and Conversation, 1 (1): 2-18.
  • United Nations (1992). Convention on Biological Diversity. http://www.cbd.int/convention/text/

 

 

Transformation of autocratic and socialist systems

During the last three decades, not only socialist countries with centrally planned economies, but also numerous autocratic regimes went through fundamental processes of institutional change. The question arises whether these transition processes are actually leading to sustainable systems, in particular as regards the use of natural resources and the protection of the natural environment. Environmental protection and resource governance in autocratic and socialist systems is often merely production-oriented and centrally organised. This has been considered the reason for unsustainable use of natural resources and their significant degradation. Accordingly, we often find we often water and air pollution by industry and agriculture, soil erosion and contamination, decrease of area under forest, in particular natural ones, in autocratic and socialist states. Similarly, nature conservation is also predominantly under central governance of in these countries.

The transition process which started at the end of the 1980s and the beginning of the 1990s has changed political regimes and economic systems. This strongly influenced the system of environmental protection and natural resource management which was reorganised or even replaced by more polycentric structures. As research results on Central and Eastern European countries as well as post-Soviet European and Central Asian states indicate, institutional change in the field of the use and protection of natural resources often occurs with active participation of international organizations, such as the European Union and the World Bank, which in particular promote decentralized management.

This experience illustrates that the transition process is usually changes property rights on natural resources, above all land and water, with a strong preference for private property regimes. In contrast, institutional reforms for public goods or common pool resources which prevail in the area of environmental services and natural resources and often require common or public property regimes often received less attention. New bureaucracies, in particular at regional and local level, have been established, but also a revival of informal institutions, which have been lost in the centralized systems, took place. Moreover, transition countries increasingly foster international integration by joining international agreements for the protection of the natural environment and sustainable use of natural resources.

Institutional change in this field has proven not to be a straightforward process. It faces obstacles which arise at various administrative levels and have different reasons ranging from incompliance of policy target group and weak policy enforcement. As a result, revival of ecosystems and shift towards sustainable use of natural resources can often not keep pace with the speed of environmental degradation. Meeting the challenge of twofold transition, i.e. transforming a socialist and centrally planned system towards polycentric governance and a sustainable social-ecological system, is not equally successful in all transition countries.
 

This problem dimension has been addressed in the following research projects:

  • Asia-Link RECREATE Project
    Restructuring Higher Education in Resource and Environmental Economics in East-Asian Transition Economies
  • CEESA
    Sustainable Agriculture in Central and Eastern Europe
  • COST A 12 RURAL INNOVATION
    European Cooperation in the Field of Scientific and Technical Research
  • IDARI
    Integrated Development of Agricultural and Rural Institutions in Central and Eastern European Countries
  • InDeCA
    Designing Social Institutions in Transition: Promotion of Institutional Development for Common Pool Resources Management in Central Asia

  • KATO
    Comparative Analysis of the Transition Process of the Agricultural Sector in Selected Central and Eastern European Countries
  • KSPW Regionale Strukturen im Wandel
    Third research and promotion period from the commission of research about the social and political changes in the new federal states of Germany
  • MACE
    Moderne Landwirtschaft in Mittel- und Osteuropa (Marie Curie)
  • SASCHA
    Sustainable Land Management and Adaptation Strategies to Climate Change for the Western Siberian Corn-belt

  • SUNRISE
    Sustainable Use of Natural Resources in an Institutional Perspective
  • Special Chair 
    Special Chair in “Socio-Economic Aspects of Transformation Processes in Central and Eastern European Agriculture“ at Wageningen University, The Netherlands (1994-1999)
  • Support of Democracy in the Ukraine
    Topic: „Developing Multi-Level and Decentralized Implementation Capacity for Natural Resource Management and Environmental Policies: A contribution to polycentric governance in an emerging democracy“
  • TEMPUS-BULGARIA
    European Integration - A Trainee Programme for Administrators in Agriculture and the Food Industry The Quality of Food: From the Soil to the Consumer
  • TEMPUS-UKRAINE
    The Quality of Food: From the Soil to the Consumer

 

Beckmann, Volker Essays in Institutional Analysis. Application to Economic Transition, Technology Adoption and Environmental Governance in Agriculture

Buschmann, Anna

Institutional Analysis of Agricultural Land Reforms in Georgia

Crewett, Wibke

Local Self-governments, Accountability and the Provision of Public Agricultural Services in Rural Kyrgyzstan

Hamidov, Ahmad Community-based Agricultural Water Management: Institutions for Water Management and Conditions for Sustainability of Water Users Associations in Uzbekistan
Hanisch, Markus (2003)

Property Reform and Social Conflict. A multi-level analysis of the change of agricultural property rights in post-socialist Bulgaria. Institutional Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources, Vol. 15. Aachen: Shaker

Hurrelmann, Annette (2005)

Agricultural Land Markets: Organisation, institutions, costs and contracts in Poland. Institutional Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources, Vol. 24. Aachen: Shaker

Kasymov, Ulan Designing Institutions in a Post-socialist Transition Process: Local institutions regularizing access to and management of pasture resources at local level in Kyrgyzstan

Klages, Bernd (2000)

Die Privatisierung der ehemals volkseigenen landwirtschaftlichen Flächen in den neuen Bundesländern - Grundlagen, Rahmenbedingungen, Ausgestaltung und Wirkungen. Institutional Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources, Vol. 5. Aachen: Shaker

Lütteken, Antonia (2002)

Agrar-Umweltpolitik im Transformationsprozess - Das Beispiel Polen. Institutional Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources, Vol. 14. Aachen: Shaker

Rudolph, Markus (2002)

Agrarstrukturpolitik im vereinten Deutschland. Eine Analyse der Gemeinschaftsaufgabe “Verbesserung der Agrarstruktur und des Küstenschutzes” im Lichte der Neuen Politischen Ökonomie. Institutional Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources, Vol. 20. Aachen: Shaker

Schlüter, Achim (2001)

Institutioneller Wandel und Transformation. Restitution, Transformation und Privatisierung in der tschechischen Landwirtschaft. Institutional Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources, Vol. 3. Aachen: Shaker

Stupak, Nataliya

nstitutional Analysis of Black Earth Soils Degradation and Conservation in the Ukraine
Theesfeld, Insa (2004)

A Common-Pool Resource in Transition. Determinants of institutional change for Bulgaria’s post-socialist irrigation sector. Institutional Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources, Vol. 23. Aachen: Shaker

Vien, Ha Thuc (2007)

Land Reform and Rural Livelihoods: An examination from the uplands of Vietnam. Institutional Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources, Vol. 28. Aachen: Shaker

 

Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin | Thaer-Institute | Resource Economics | Research challenges | Problem dimensions | Soil Degradation und Desertification including Land Conversion

Soil Degradation und Desertification including Land Conversion

Soil as a basis for human life serves as a natural habitat for human beings, plants and animals, as well as a factor for production. It is a filtration media for solid and liquid matter, carbon sink and it goes through several transformation processes such as conversion and decomposition (Blum 2008). Against the background of the rapid global population increase and technical progress that took place in the process of economic development, soil is under increasing pressure. Main consequences are degradation due to agricultural production, desertification caused by long dry periods and high land conversion due to increasing urbanization.

Soil degradation has several faces and facets: Agricultural land use is the main source of soil degradation such as soil compaction, soil erosion and nutrient loss. In areas with intensive irrigation, for example in the Mediterranean regions, salinization is the main reason for soil degradation, whereas in Africa it is primarily overgrazing. In arid regions of the world such as Africa and parts of Asia and South America desertification is a threat to soil as a natural habitat. Climate change and inadequate agricultural practices are causal factors.

Despite the fact that the German Federal Government aims at reducing land consumption to 30ha/day until 2020, soil loss due to urbanization and infrastructure development remains high in Germany (Statistisches Bundesamt 2011). In many emerging countries such as China land conversion is much higher. The agricultural area decreases not only by soil sealing but also because more and more land can no longer be cultivated due to erosion and droughts. Serious social consequences such as rural exodus, land use conflicts and others more are the result.

The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, the Kyoto Protocol and the Convention on Biological Diversity are examples for several international agreements that take soil and the protection of soils into account. At European level the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) provides a regulatory framework targeting inter alia soil conservation, however, in the end this framework does not provide the respective incentives or regulations are not sufficiently implemented (Gay et al. 2009). Obviously soil degradation is a problem of institutions calling for the analysis of relationship between transactions, actors, institutions and governance structures for the design and implementation of political and technical measures.

This problem dimension has been addressed in the following research projects:

  • GoCon
    Governing Farmland Conversion in the Quest for Sustainability: A comparative study of China and Germany
  • SOCO-CS
    Soil conservation and policy measures: case studies (SoCo-CS)

 

Kasymov, Ulan

Designing Institutions in a Post-socialist Transition Process: Local institutions regularizing access to and management of pasture resources at local level in Kyrgyzstan

Stupak, Nataliya

Institutional Analysis of Black Earth Soils Degradation and Conservation in the Ukraine

Tan Rong

Governing Farmland Conversion in China: Seeking efficient utilization of a collectively owned natural resource in transition

Yu Lu, M.Sc.

Impact of Institutional Change and Governance Reform on Farmers’ Behaviour in Grassland Use - Comparative studies of Ningxia and Inner Mongolia, China

Akhter, Tasneem (2011)

The Role of Property Rights for Land Degradation and Land Use Conflicts - The case of wetland in Gujranwala Published on March 11, 2011

Dirimanova, Violeta (2007)

Economic Effects of Land Fragmentation: Property rights, land markets and contracts in Bulgaria. Institutional Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources, Vol. 29. Aachen: Shaker

References

  • Blum, W.E.H., 2008: Characterisation of soil degradation risks: an overview. In: Tóth, G., Mon-tanarella, L. und Rusco, E. (Hrsg.), Threats to Soil Quality in Europe. Luxembourg: Office for Official Publications of the European Communities, S. 5-10.
  • Gay, S.H.; Louwagie, G.; Sammeth, F.; Ratinger, T.; Maréchal, B.; Prosperi, P.; Rusco, E.; Terres, J.; van der Velde, M.; Baldock, D.; Bowyer, C.; Cooper, T.; Fenn, I.; Hagemann, N.; Prager, K.; Heyn, N.; Schuler, J., 2009: Final report on the project ‘Sustainable Agriculture and Soil Conservation (SoCo)’. Luxembourg, European Commission. Abrufbar unter: http://soco.jrc.ec.europa.eu.
  • Statistisches Bundesamt 2011. Umweltökonomische Gesamtrechnung. Nachhaltige Entwicklung in Deutschland. Indikatoren zu Umwelt und Ökonomie. Wiesbaden, Statistisches Bundesamt. Available at: http://www.destatis.de/jetspeed/portal/cms/Sites/destatis/Internet/DE/Content/Publikationen/Fachveroeffentlichunen/UmweltoekonomischeGesamtrechnungen/Umweltindikatoren/Indikatoren__5850012119004,property=file.pdf

 

 

 

 

 

 

Transformation of autocratic and socialist systems


During the last three decades, not only socialist countries with centrally planned economies, but also numerous autocratic regimes went through fundamental processes of institutional change. The question arises whether these transition processes are actually leading to sustainable systems, in particular as regards the use of natural resources and the protection of the natural environment. Environmental protection and resource governance in autocratic and socialist systems is often merely production-oriented and centrally organised. This has been considered the reason for unsustainable use of natural resources and their significant degradation. Accordingly, we often find we often water and air pollution by industry and agriculture, soil erosion and contamination, decrease of area under forest, in particular natural ones, in autocratic and socialist states. Similarly, nature conservation is also predominantly under central governance of in these countries.

The transition process which started at the end of the 1980s and the beginning of the 1990s has changed political regimes and economic systems. This strongly influenced the system of environmental protection and natural resource management which was reorganised or even replaced by more polycentric structures. As research results on Central and Eastern European countries as well as post-Soviet European and Central Asian states indicate, institutional change in the field of the use and protection of natural resources often occurs with active participation of international organizations, such as the European Union and the World Bank, which in particular promote decentralized management.

This experience illustrates that the transition process is usually changes property rights on natural resources, above all land and water, with a strong preference for private property regimes. In contrast, institutional reforms for public goods or common pool resources which prevail in the area of environmental services and natural resources and often require common or public property regimes often received less attention. New bureaucracies, in particular at regional and local level, have been established, but also a revival of informal institutions, which have been lost in the centralized systems, took place. Moreover, transition countries increasingly foster international integration by joining international agreements for the protection of the natural environment and sustainable use of natural resources.

Institutional change in this field has proven not to be a straightforward process. It faces obstacles which arise at various administrative levels and have different reasons ranging from incompliance of policy target group and weak policy enforcement. As a result, revival of ecosystems and shift towards sustainable use of natural resources can often not keep pace with the speed of environmental degradation. Meeting the challenge of twofold transition, i.e. transforming a socialist and centrally planned system towards polycentric governance and a sustainable social-ecological system, is not equally successful in all transition countries.

In the Division of Resource Economics this problem dimension is addressed in the following research projects:

 

 

 

Problem dimensions

The question of which system of rules – together with the appropriate organisational forms for their practical implementation – should underlie the use, management and conservation of natural resources leads to a series of existential research questions. It is often the consequences of institutional failures which threaten people and their natural livelihoods: resource degradation such as soil erosion and desertification, pollution and loss of freshwater resources, loss of biodiversity and genetic resources, clearing of forests and fish population decline, climate change, exhaustion of fossil fuels and the related bioenergy problematic, in addition to poverty, hunger and under-development, as well as institutional upheaval in many, and not only post-socialist, countries. All of these are challenges which motivate a better understanding and better formation of an institutional resource economics and the institutions of sustainability. You can read more about the Problem Dimensions and the related research projects here


You can read more about selected questions in institutional resource economics here: 

Problem dimensions - Overview


Resource-overarching Dimensions:

Problems Caused by lacking of Institutions of Sustainability in a Broader Context

1.                World Nutrition, Poverty, Social Exclusion, and Political Conflicts
2.                Issues of Economic Development and Developmental Cooperation
3.                Transformation Processes of Autocratic and Socialist Systems
4.                Adatpion Pressures from Globalization, Structural Change, Agricultural and Environmental Policy
5.                Rivalry and Coexistence of Different Cultivation Systems
6.                Environmental Consequences of Intensive Agricultural Production Practices

 

Resource-specific Dimensions:

Problems Caused by lacking of Institutions of Sustainability in Single Problem Areas

7.                Soil Degradation und Desertification including Land Conversion
8.                Water Shortage and Contamination, Waste Water, and Sanitation
9.                Climate Change, Requirements for Mitigation and Adaptation
10.              Loss of Nature, Biodiversity, and Genetic Resources
11.              Interference with Fish Stocks, Wildlife, and Forests
12.              Depletion of Fossil Energy Stocks, and Provision of Renewable Energy

Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin | Thaer-Institute | Resource Economics | Research challenges | Problem dimensions | Depletion of Fossil Energy Resources and the Provision of Renewable Energy

Depletion of Fossil Energy Resources and the Provision of Renewable Energy

The exploitation of the stocks of fossil based resources is at dangerously high levels now. As far as crude oil is concerned, the maximum point of extraction i.e. the so-called peak oil has already been exceeded (Energie Watch Group 2008) and the security of supply appears to be a serious worry (IEA 2009). At the same time the capacity of the earth’s atmosphere to absorb greenhouse gases is limited, and any excess will stretch the impacts of climate change beyond manageable limits (IPCC 2007). In the recent past, renewable energy has emerged as an important option to mitigate supply problems and also simultaneously aid economic development.

In the academic and policy debates, issues related to the demand for energy, renewable re-sources, changing lifestyles, consumption patterns and the interactions among these, have only now gained popularity, thereby also bringing to light the conflicting dimensions contained within these. Such complex issues range from the conflicting patterns of competitiveness between the factors of production for solar, wind, earth, geothermal and bio-energy use up to their displacement and risk effects. For example, biomass cultivation für energy production shares the same production factors as agricultural food production (e.g. land and water) leading to land use tradeoffs. Biomass production also requires intensive agricultural practic-es, thus increasing the use of pesticides and fertilizers. Moreover, by distorting agricultural price incentives, they can potentially lead to income inequalities. These interdependencies arise due to the particular nature of transactions and need to be regularized through appro-priate sets of rules, i.e. institutions.

Although energy efficiency and increased share of renewable energy are considered im-portant so as to restrict climate change, there is still no concrete evidence that a shift to bio-mass production indeed has a positive mitigating impact. There are opportunity costs in terms of reduced food supply due to the diversion of common factors of production. On the contrary, the demand gap due to reduced food production may lead to further aggressive use of other greenhouse gas intensive production techniques, leading to a net increase in the quantum of such gases. Therefore, considering the current world food situation, a further question arises whether the production of bio-energy needs to be subjected to certain norms so that it not only serves the purpose of checking climate change but also does not prove detrimental to global food supply?

The work of the Department of Resource Economics focuses its research on such dilemmas as well the subsequent development of formal and informal rules needed to resolve or govern them on a sustained basis.

 

This problem dimension has been addressed in the following research projects:

  • MEGACITY 2
    Climate and Energy in a Complex Transition Process Towards Sustainable Hyderabad. Mitigation and adaptation strategies by changing institutions, governance structures, life styles and consumption patterns

Anggraini, Eva

Institutions and Governance of Oil Palm Production at the Smallholder Level in Indonesia and Its Impact on the Sustainability of Livelihood and Land Use

Bhatt, Brijesh

Governance Structure for Enhanced Energy Efficiency in Irrigation Electricity Distribution System of Andhra Pradesh

Chaliganti, Raghu

Governing Bio-fuel Plantations on Wastelands in India: Institutions and sustainability

Ehlers, Melf-Hinrich

Diffusion of Agricultural Bioenergy Utilisation at Regional Levels in Germany: Actor motivations and institutional change

Ghosh, Ranjan Kumar

Deregulation, Institutional Reforms and Efficiency in Power Generation: The case of Andhra Pradesh

Horam, Phungmayo

Analysis of Market Potential and Government Policy for Renewable Energy in Hyderabad.

Keutmann, Sarah

The Role of Institutional Change for the Sustainable Cultivation of Energy Crops – The case of agro-wood production in Brandenburg, Germany

Kimmich, Christian

Coordination, Conflicts, and Politics of Electricity Provision for Irrigation in South India

Proestou, Maria

Institutions, Habits and Deliberation - Wind energy in the case of Amorgos

Grundmann, Philipp

Institutional Change in Biomass and Bioenergy Production

 


Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin | Thaer-Institute | Resource Economics | Research challenges | Problem dimensions | Institutional Change and Governance Reform in Social-ecological Systems

Institutional Change and Governance Reform in Social-ecological Systems

 

Human behavior and in particular economic choices depend crucially on what social constructions actors and societies have developed over time and how these in turn have shaped their reasoning and visioning. This ubiquitous interdependence between structure and agency has found its expression in how traditions and religions, norms and rules, languages and discourses, trust and commitment, mental models and believes emerge, are practiced and change.

However, such processes of social construction and deconstruction do not take place only in the social world; indeed, they are crucially conditioned and influenced by attributes of the physical and natural environment. Those physical stocks and natural systems humans want to extract matter or energy from, grow living organisms on, or dispose into, show a wide range of properties and are subjected to changing scarcities. The interconnected ecological, biological, geological, hydrological, marine and atmospheric subsystems of the earth system are extremely diverse and complex, ever changing and only understood by humans to a limited extent. This equally applies to the tools, technologies and infrastructures humans have developed - with an rapidly increasing speed of innovation and expansion over the last century - and set up to use, manage, cope with and also protect those systems such as farm machines, irrigation systems, logging equipment and fishing devices.

Such tools, technologies and infrastructures have enabled humans to increase their capacity to perform nature-related transactions which had an important impact. This is because these transactions have properties that are typical of natural systems - because these are not completely designed by humans like transaction that relate to engineered systems. Hence the interdependence between actors they cause may be different requiring also different institutions and governance structures that regularize the interaction of natural-technological and social-institutional systems.

Given this natural and technological context that influences the social construction of human behavior it is obvious that regularizing and governing the interrelationship of humans vis-à-vis the intertwined systems outline above natural and technological systems, which will affect simultaneously the relationship among themselves, cannot be achieved by few and simple social constructions. In contrast, such diversity and complexity in natural and associated technological systems requires require corresponding diversity and complexity in institutions and governance structures and forms, what is not only a plausible suggestion but has been theoretically and empirically substantiated in a by the Vincent and Elinor Ostrom Workshop in Political Theory and Policy Analysis at Indiana University in Bloomington Vincent and Elinor Ostrom Workshop in Political Theory and Policy Analysis at Indiana University in Bloomington, USA.

There is one theoretical and empirical conclusion which should be emphasized: Any institutional analysis of the interaction of natural-technological and social-institutional systems should start from explicitly accepting complexity and diversity. This means to refrain from oversimplification in institutional analysis and to be careful with theoretical approaches and empirical methods which may automatically imply oversimplification. For policy recommendations it is equally important to avoid blueprints that give the impression that they could be successfully applied anywhere independently from the physical and social context and the historical background. Elinor Ostrom’s famous warning of panaceas applies.

 

This problem dimension has been addressed in the following research projects:

  • PINE (Transcoop)
    Promotion of Institutions for Natural Resource and Environmental Management in Central and Eastern Europe
Mann, Carsten Dynamics of governance regimes and reciprocal influence with policy instruments
Otto-Banaszak, Ilona From Government to Governance: Problems and Tensions in Transition to Polycentric Governance of Natural Resources
Pinto Siabato, Flavio Institutions for the Sustainability of the Economic and the Ecological Systems from a Perspective of Complex Systems
Schleyer, Christian Market-based instruments as components of institutional arrangements for the provision of ecosystem services – The example of land use measures for climate- and nature-protection in cultural landscapes in Central Europe
Schlüter, Maja Mechanisms of resilience in coupled social-ecological systems - examples from irrigation and fisheries
Theesfeld, Insa Water and Institutional Analysis – Power and Leadership in Natural Resource Management
Thiel, Andreas Shaping the scale of natural resource governance

Zikos, Dimitrios
Resource Scarcity, Competition and the Relationship between Conflict and Cooperation. The Role of Institutions in Shaping the Outcome