Description
This paper develops an integrative framework that combines scientific, Indigenous, and local knowledge to strengthen biodiversity conservation and adaptive governance in India’s Sundarbans and Western Ghats, two globally significant social–ecological systems facing climate vulnerability, biodiversity loss, and livelihood pressures. Although community-based conservation increasingly recognizes knowledge pluralism, practical approaches for synthesizing diverse knowledge systems remain limited. The framework builds on major contributions from social–ecological systems and sustainability science, including Berkes and Folke’s SES perspective, Cash et al.’s knowledge systems and boundary organizations, Folke et al.’s adaptive governance, Reed’s participatory approaches, Tengö et al.’s Multiple Evidence Base framework, Norström et al.’s principles of knowledge co-production, and Armitage et al.’s adaptive co-management scholarship. These perspectives emphasize resilience, participation, collaboration, social learning, and complementary knowledge systems. The framework integrates four components: participatory knowledge elicitation through interviews, mapping, workshops, and ethnography; ecological assessments of biodiversity and environmental change; boundary processes that facilitate dialogue among communities, researchers, governments, and civil society while respecting epistemological diversity; and adaptive governance mechanisms that translate synthesized knowledge into collective action through monitoring, feedback, experimentation, and learning. The framework is illustrated through the Sundarbans and Western Ghats, where Indigenous and local observations complement scientific assessments of climate adaptation, ecosystem resilience, biodiversity conservation, and traditional stewardship. Across both regions, knowledge co-production enhances legitimacy, trust, stakeholder participation, and adaptive governance.
| Topic | Topic 1: : Methods for integrating social and ecological knowledge |
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