Anne Zimmermann

Researchers' roles in knowledge co-production: experience from sustainability research in Kenya, Switzerland, Bolivia and Nepal

Co-production of knowledge between academic and non-academic communities is a prerequisite for research aiming at more sustainable development paths. Sustainability researchers face three challenges in such co-production: (a) addressing power relations; (b) interrelating different perspectives on the issues at stake; and (c) promoting a previously negotiated orientation towards sustainable development. A systematic comparison of four sustainability research projects in Kenya (vulnerability to drought), Switzerland (soil protection), Bolivia and Nepal (conservation vs. development) shows how the researchers intuitively adopted three different roles to face these challenges: the roles of reflective scientist, intermediary, and facilitator of a joint learning process. From this systematized and iterative self-reflection on the roles that a researcher can assume in the indeterminate social space where knowledge is co-produced, we draw conclusions regarding training. Copyright , Beech Tree Publishing.

Special Issue: Gender and Sustainable Development in Mountains—Transformative Innovations, Tenacious Resistances

Despite years of ‘‘gender mainstreaming’’ in development, many challenges remain. A decade ago, Anand and Josse (2002) noted the persistence of gender discrimination, exploitation, and disenfranchisement of women in mountain regions. Although there have been some innovations and progress towards gender equality since their article appeared in MRD, tenacious resistances and contestations persist in the face of rigorous feminist research, knowledge, agency, and activism (Cornwall et al 2007; Sandler and Rao 2012). Both institutional barriers and global drivers of change (eg climate change, globalization, geopolitical shifts, economic crises, and gender-blind development interventions) are worsening the conditions of women’s lives, as well as widening socio-economic inequalities between women and men (Pearson 2004; UNICEF 2009). For women and men living in harsh mountain conditions, challenges have a different set of complexities compared to those of people living in the plains (Anand et al 2002). Innovative and strategic approaches to gender transformative change have never been more necessary. However, their potential within development institutions requires serious reflection, stocktaking, analysis, and resources, as well as profound changes to gender power relations in both institutional and applied development contexts (Verma 2014, in this issue).

Special Issue: Central Asian Mountain Societies in Transition

While there is growing recognition of the scope of challenges and opportunities that Central Asian mountain societies have before them, there is a lack of natural and social science analysis of current realities and of the impact of development practices. Rigorous research on Central Asia and analysis of existing and potential development practices are needed to both fill known gaps and explore blind spots in knowledge of Central Asian mountain societies. Such findings are essential for further developing options for sustainable livelihoods and sound ecosystems, together with the people of Central Asia’s mountains (Kerven et al 2012, in this issue; Kreutzmann 2012).

Focus Issue: Water Governance in Mountains

The United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development recognized that ‘‘mountain ecosystems play a crucial role in providing water resources to a large portion of the world’s population’’ in its Rio+20 outcome document, The Future We Want (UNGA 2012). While the role of mountains as a water resource base is well recognized, their role in sustainable use and management of water—for food and agriculture, for livelihoods and poverty alleviation, for drinking water and sanitation, for energy, cities, and industries, and in combating desertification, land degradation, and drought—is significant but underappreciated. The role of water governance in mountains, and how mountains relate to the plains, is a ‘‘blind spot’’ in the literature, especially when compared to water governance in the plains, where there is a large body of work on integrated water resource management.

Focus Issue: Water Resources in the Upper Indus Basin and Beyond

The Indus river basin supports the world’s largest irrigation system. Climate change is definitely adding risks to the prime sectors of agriculture, energy, disaster management, and sanitation, where water plays the most critical role. The main issue is uncertainty in the volume and seasonality of future water supply. The recent incidence of extreme rainfall and flooding has led to devastation. At the same time, all scenarios predict a serious shortfall in future water supply in the basin and point to the need for better (transboundary) management. Since the integrated water resources management (IWRM) approach at basin level has successfully addressed similar problems in other river basins, we feel that an integrated river basin management (IRBM) approach for the Indus will not only enhance supply by storing water during high flow but also increase use efficiency by allocating water amongst the sectors and users more judiciously. What is needed are policy and institutional reforms that ensure both equitable access and remove disincentives to conserving water. In MRD 31.3 (August 2011), 3 initial papers focusing on the Indus Basin and water resource management were published; in this issue, 3 additional papers discuss the linkages between climate, precipitation, glaciology, and river runoff.

Focus Issue: Implications of Out- and In-Migration for Sustainable Development in Mountains

Today, about 1 billion people worldwide are international or internal migrants (IOM–GMDAC 2016:5) and migration is taken into account in several targets of the Sustainable Development Goals (IOM 2017). Migration is also greatly affecting mountain societies and mountain ecosystems, with direct negative and positive implications for their development. Migration processes are very diverse, context-specific, highly complex, and often poorly understood. Although general data on population changes exist, they often fail to reveal dynamic local outand inmigration patterns and do not account for migration within mountain areas, for example from rural to urban areas. Nor do demographic data reveal the reasons for people’s migration choices, the types of migration, and the social, economic, cultural, institutional, and ecological negative and positive impacts of migratory processes on both places of origin and destination areas.

Focus Issue: Family Farming in Mountains—Institutional and Organizational Arrangements in the Context of Globalization

Mountain farming is family farming, as claimed in a publication prepared for the International Year of Family Farming (IYFF) 2014 (Wymann von Dach et al 2013). Indeed, global estimates show that 500 million of 570 million farms can be conceived as family farms (Lowder at al 2014) according to the Food and Agriculture Organization’s definition (FAO 2013). The share of family farms is likely to be the same or even higher in mountains, where external investment in land by corporate agricultural enterprises is presumably less attractive than in the more accessible lowlands. Mountain farms in developing countries are geared mainly towards family consumption, while farming in industrialized countries is market-oriented; and in Europe, mountain farming is increasingly being determined by policies that also emphasize the role of landscape preservation. The contribution of family farming to sustainable development in mountains thus differs a great deal from region to region. But all mountain farms face similar challenges and opportunities: environmental constraints as well as unique niches and diversity, lack of infrastructure and poor accessibility as well as attractive settings. In addition, mountain farms deal with increasing climate variability and global socioeconomic dynamics such as outand in-migration, commodification of crops and natural resources, tourism, conservation, and radical changes in cultural and political values. Based on centuries of experience in tackling mountain environments, farming families and communities have developed distinctive forms of institutions and organizational arrangements. This issue of MRD addresses the question to what extent these institutions and organizational arrangements have been able to cope with the current multiple challenges. It also explores whether family farming practices have succeeded in generating solutions in combination with new institutional arrangements and policies, and whether this enables family farmers in mountains to benefit from new opportunities.

Focus Issue: Green Economy and Livelihoods in Mountains

In June 2012, thousands of participants will gather at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro for advancing sustainable development (http:// www.earthsummit2012.org/). The summit will be the culmination of an extensive debate on the new concept of green economy proposed in 2008 by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). According to UNEP’s working definition, a green economy aims to result ‘‘...in improved human well-being and social equity, while significantly reducing environmental risks and ecological scarcities. In its simplest expression, a green economy can be thought of as one which is low carbon, resource efficient and socially inclusive’’ (UNEP 2011; 2). While the new concept is perceived by many as an ‘‘attractive orientation out of the crisis of neoliberalism’’ (Brand 2012; 28) and is thought to have the potential to correct failures of the prevailing economic paradigm, current discussions are revealing that skepticism is widespread: Is the green economy really conceived in a way comprehensive enough to lead to a fundamental transformation of our societies towards sustainable development? Major challenges lie ahead in conceptualizing and adapting the green economy concept to different contexts (eg to the specificities of mountain areas). Indeed, can a green economy really offer opportunities and greater equity to people in mountains?

Knowledge for Sustainable Mountain Development—Consolidating MRD's Editorial Policy and Practices

As announced last November, the year 2011 marks yet another turning point in the journal’s history, consolidating its ability to fulfill its mission: MRD now has a reconstituted International Editorial Board (IEB) and an Honorary Board. We invite you to visit our website to become acquainted with our new governance structure: http://www.mrd-journal.org/about_eteam.asp. Since January 2011, the new members of the IEB have taken over more responsibility: they are helping to shape MRD’s editorial policy, solicit contributions, reflect on the journal’s orientation and ability to take up emerging mountain themes of worldwide relevance, and generally enhance the network of scientific and development specialists committed to mountains and mountain societies. Collaboration with these internationally renowned scholars and development specialists started in Perth, Scotland, at a side event during the memorable conference on ‘‘Global Change and the World’s Mountains’’ hosted by the Centre for Mountain Studies (CMS) in September 2010. We look forward to working with our new Board members, who will serve on the IEB for the next 3 years, with the challenge of maintaining and even increasing the visibility of mountains in Rio +20 in 2012. Our thanks go to all former Regional Editors and members of the International Editorial Advisory Board (MRD 2010) for their commitment to MRD during the last 11 years. Their support and advice proved invaluable for the journal and—by extension—for the broad community of mountain researchers and mountain development specialists who rely on the journal for evidencebased information and innovative ideas.

Nachhaltige Entwicklung in die Hochschullehre integrieren – Ein Leitfaden mit Vertiefungen für die Universität Bern. Grundlagen.

Nachhaltige Entwicklung in die Hochschullehre integrieren ist ein Leitfaden, der sich besonders, aber nicht ausschliesslich, an Dozierende aus allen Disziplinen der Universitat Bern richtet, die das Querschnittsthema „Nachhaltige Entwicklung“ in universitare Veranstaltungen aufnehmen und integrieren mochten. Er enthalt kurze, grundlegende Informationen zu den Themen Nachhaltige Entwicklung (NE) und Bildung fur Nachhaltige Entwicklung (BNE) (Grundlagen), sowie praktische Konzepte, Instrumente, Anleitungen, Hinweise, Beispiele, Links und Folien zur Integration dieser Themen in die Lehre (Vertiefungen 1-4). Beim vorliegenden Dokument handelt es sich um die Grundlagen.