Claudia Baldwin

The great experiment with devolved NRM governance: lessons from community engagement in Australia and New Zealand since the 1980s

Since the 1980s, natural resource management (NRM) in Australia and New Zealand has been an ambitious experiment with community engagement. Underpinned by theory about public participation, adult education and agricultural extension, but also influenced by neoliberalisms calls for ‘smaller government’, governments embraced engagement as a cost-effective approach to effecting change. Critiques of community engagement are often misguided as they are frequently based on inauthentic or poor engagement practices. Moreover, these critiques have often failed to grasp the nature of the problems being addressed, acknowledge the contributions of engagement or understand the importance of building adaptive capacity to respond to an increasingly complex and uncertain future. The foundations for this commissioned article emerged at a workshop where we reflected and deliberated on our experience as NRM researchers and practitioners over the past 20 years. We begin by identifying the key theories underpinning community engagement and community-based NRM (CBNRM). We then reflect on the experience with community engagement in NRM over the past 20 years and identify key lessons for practitioners and policy makers. Drawing on these insights, and the developing theory around new governance and resilience thinking, we identify opportunities for community engagement under a range of possible futures.

Interrogating resilience: toward a typology to improve its operationalization

In the context of accelerated global change, the concept of resilience, with its roots in ecological theory and complex adaptive systems, has emerged as the favored framework for understanding and responding to the dynamics of change. Its transfer from ecological to social contexts, however, has led to the concept being interpreted in multiple ways across numerous disciplines causing significant challenges for its practical application. The aim of this paper is to improve conceptual clarity within resilience thinking so that resilience can be interpreted and articulated in ways that enhance its utility and explanatory power, not only theoretically but also operationally. We argue that the current confusion and ambiguity within resilience thinking is problematic for operationalizing the concept within policy making. To achieve our aim, we interrogate resilience interpretations used within a number of academic and practice domains in the forefront of contending with the disruptive and sometimes catastrophic effects of global change (primarily due to climate change) on ecological and human-nature systems. We demonstrate evolution and convergence among disciplines in the interpretations and theoretical underpinnings of resilience and in engagement with cross-scale considerations. From our analysis, we identify core conceptual elements to be considered in policy responses if resilience is to fulfill its potential in improving decision making for change. We offer an original classification of resilience definitions in current use and a typology of resilience interpretations. We conclude that resilience thinking must be open to alternative traditions and interpretations if it is to become a theoretically and operationally powerful paradigm.

“At the water's edge”: community voices on climate change

The photovoice research project, “At the waters edge”, which gives voice to communities exploring the threats and impact of climate change and rising sea levels on coastal communities, was conducted during an environmental art symposium in the Noosa Biosphere Reserve, Australia in June 2009. Photos by participants illustrated both local and global threats and reflected psychological tension between global and local action. This research partnership with the local people demonstrated an innovative visualisation technique which can be used to collaboratively build capacity and consensus about adaptation to climate change. It also contributed to the Biosphere Reserves educational and cultural aims in relation to climate change.

Deconstructing the concept of shared responsibility for disaster resilience: a Sunshine Coast case study, Australia

Abstract Due in part to the increase in frequency and intensity of extreme weather events in Australia, emergency management has recently transitioned from a command-and-control civil defence structure to one promoting ‘shared responsibility’ between government, businesses, non-government, communities and individuals. The objective is to enable communities to become disaster resilient as opposed to fortified against risk. In this paper, using a case study approach, we examine whether this national resilience approach has been effectively institutionalised at the local scale. To do this, we draw upon the knowledge of those working within the traditional emergency management and community service sectors to identify which factors influence the resilience of a community in the case study location and determine which stakeholder classes are considered responsible for developing and enhancing each factor. The results indicate that all three tiers of government are still seen to be largely responsible for the case study’s disaster resilience; however, local community groups comprised of volunteers are also perceived to be largely responsible for disaster resilience despite obvious capacity and resourcing limitations.

Reclaiming the balance: social and economic assessment – lessons learned after ten years of water reforms in Australia

Australias National Water Initiative has identified an important role for the use of social and economic assessments in the water sharing and allocation planning process. Such assessments can be used to identify locations and sectors at highest risk; advise on possible social and economic impacts of water sharing options; inform transparent and fair trade-offs; identify ways of mitigating negative impacts, including structural adjustment; provide accurate information to stakeholders and decision-makers on which to base decisions; and provide an understanding of the cultural context in relation to ‘other public benefit outcomes’, including indigenous objectives and values. This paper reviews the lessons learned about water sharing planning by water planners and stakeholders around Australia based on experience since the COAG water reforms in 1994. Eleven case studies from the Australian states and the Northern Territory are used to illustrate the state of practice in the use of social and economic assessments to inform decisions on risks and trade-offs in developing Water Allocation Plans. Recommendations are made about how water planning can be improved with the use of social and economic assessments.

Accountability in planning for sustainable water supplies in South East Queensland

Abstract Providing a secure water supply for future population growth that accommodates climate change is a high priority of governments. Moreover, investing in such costly infrastructure must meet obligations for economic, social and environmental sustainability and high standards of governance. In this research, the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) sustainability framework is used to assess alternative water supply options proposed in the 2009 draft South East Queensland (SEQ) Water Strategy. While it has become the norm for large companies to use the GRI to report on progress using economic, social and environmental sustainability indicators, this paper investigates the applicability of the GRI 2005 Public Agency Supplement designed for use by governments. By including indicators about public policy disclosures, efficiency and effectiveness, governments can be called to account for decision-making that affects future generations. The results illustrate the value of the GRI approach as a basis for improving transparency in governance and decision-making to achieve sustainability performance in water source options.

Valuing third sector sustainability organisations – qualitative contributions to systemic social transformation

ABSTRACT The number and diversity of civil society or third sector sustainability organisations (TSSOs) have increased in recent decades. TSSOs play a prominent role in local approaches to sustainability. However, the contributions made by TSSOs are not fully understood, beyond a limited suite of quantifiable outputs and impacts. In this qualitative study, we examine how four TSSOs from two Australian regions, Tasmania and Queenslands Sunshine Coast, contribute to social transformation beyond discrete outputs. We examine the operation, ethos, scope and influence of these organisations over time. In so doing, we identify three common ways in which these organisations facilitate social change: by (i) enhancing social connectivity through boundary work; (ii) mobilising participatory citizenship and (iii) contributing to social learning. We conclude that TSSOs contribute significantly to the systemic social conditions that enable change for sustainability and the development of community resilience and well-being, but do so in ways undervalued by existing metrics, formal evaluation processes and funding models. Clearer recognition of, and strategic emphasis on, these qualitative contributions to social transformation is vital in ensuring that TSSOs remain viable and effective over the long term.

Subtle implications: public participation versus community engagement in environmental decision-making

In the early 2000s, a distinct shift occurred in government and public discourse from ‘public participation’ to ‘community engagement’. Our search of Google trends (after Butteriss 2014), based on frequencies of keyword searches, shows that worldwide, the term ‘public participation’ is in decline, while ‘community engagement’ is rising (Figures 1 and 2). In 2004 (the first year data are available), the term ‘community engagement’ was searched 40 per cent of the extent to which ‘public participation’ was searched. Apart from two periods in 2013, when search numbers matched, the indicator suggests that interest in community engagement has been firmly in the ascendancy relative to public participation. In April 2016, the worldwide search rate for ‘community engagement’ was double that for public participation. From 2004 to 2016, Australia was the main source of searches for the term ‘community engagement’, with double the rate of South Africa, 2.5 times the rate of Canada and the UK, and treble the rate of USA (though some of these countries have other preferred terms). In Australia, searches for the term ‘public participation’ were negligible, and the term community engagement prevails (South Australia, Queensland, and Victoria were the dominant sources of web searches) (Figure 2). Data are not available for New Zealand. This change in preferred terminology is puzzling. Does it signify a new way of thinking and major shift in practice, a difference in contexts (discrete decisions versus more continuous policy development, or the interest in corporate social responsibility and social licence to operate), or a change in preferred terms for much the same concepts? We suspect all of these. The preeminent international organisation in this field, International Association for Public Participation (IAP2) confirms that it uses the terms ‘public participation’ and ‘community engagement’ interchangeably. It defines public participation as:

Using participatory visual methods for information exchange about climate risk in canal estate communities

Kilometres of high-value residential real estate have been created through the development of canal estates in low-lying coastal areas of Southeast Queensland, Australia, since the 1970s. Many of these are predicted to be affected by the combined effects of climate change: sea level rise, storm surge and severe weather events. This research identifies perceptions and understanding of vulnerability to climate change of residents of one canal estate. It compares the effectiveness of four participatory visual methods for information exchange and dialogue about climate change risk: risk maps (flood hazard), participatory planning (digital mapping of vulnerable areas), Photovoice (resident-derived photos) and 3D climate change scenarios. Participants favoured the 3D visualisation for its realistic representation of flood heights in a streetview and ability to focus in on particular sites. This interactive engagement approach will benefit State and local governments, the property market and communities in communicating about climate change in coastal areas in general and in considering responses to the long-term impacts of climate change in canal estates in particular.

Growing Future Planners: A Framework for Integrating Experiential Learning into Tertiary Planning Programs

The planning industry expects that tertiary planning education will prepare graduating planners with practical planning skills, applicable in an increasingly complex world. However, planning schools are not required to systematically include practice or experiential learning in curriculum. In this article, we explore the benefits of experiential learning, highlight gaps in application of the concept, and present a framework for integrating experiential learning in planning education at a tertiary level. The framework comprises core principles, applied to a range of experiential activities, scaffolded across an undergraduate planning program to provide increasing engagement in practice.