Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/1959.11/18378
Title: The "Rules of Engagement": A Socio-legal Framework for Improving Community Engagement in Natural Resource Governance
Contributor(s): Howard, Tanya  (author)orcid 
Publication Date: 2015
Open Access: Yes
Handle Link: https://hdl.handle.net/1959.11/18378
Open Access Link: http://opo.iisj.net/index.php/osls/article/view/346Open Access Link
Abstract: Increasing community action in natural resource governance is commonly seen as a pathway for improving decision making, enabling increased on-ground activity and facilitating widespread acceptance of government and industry legitimacy in managing natural resources. Other perspectives on community engagement see the promise of enriching existing or emerging democratic values by addressing the limitations of representative governance. While the practice of community engagement has been well described, more work needs to be done to understand the institutional factors that contribute to the expectations attached to these practices, and how the role of community in natural resource governance can be improved. This article presents findings from a review of academic and practitioner literature on the topics of 'community engagement' and 'natural resource governance'. 127 articles were reviewed and the resulting conceptual framework is described. A thematic analysis of the data-set was then conducted to further clarify and extend the research question. The results reveal a persistent focus on practical aspects of engaging community, without sufficient analysis of how institutional dynamics such as legal requirements, policy drivers and implementation contexts impact on the realities of community environmental governance. The paper concludes with future research directions in the pursuit of improving the role of community in natural resource governance. It is expected that the insights generated through this article will have relevance to other modern democratic societies and be of interest to environmental lawyers, policy makers and community advocates.
Publication Type: Journal Article
Source of Publication: Onati Socio-Legal Series, 5(5), p. 1209-1235
Publisher: Onati International Institute for the Sociology of Law
Place of Publication: Spain
ISSN: 2079-5971
Fields of Research (FoR) 2008: 180111 Environmental and Natural Resources Law
050203 Environmental Education and Extension
Fields of Research (FoR) 2020: 410403 Environmental education and extension
480203 Environmental law
Socio-Economic Objective (SEO) 2008: 960799 Environmental Policy, Legislation and Standards not elsewhere classified
960703 Environmental Education and Awareness
960704 Land Stewardship
Socio-Economic Objective (SEO) 2020: 190203 Environmental education and awareness
190299 Environmental policy, legislation and standards not elsewhere classified
Peer Reviewed: Yes
HERDC Category Description: C1 Refereed Article in a Scholarly Journal
Appears in Collections:Journal Article
School of Environmental and Rural Science

Files in This Item:
2 files
File Description SizeFormat 
Show full item record

Page view(s)

1,340
checked on Sep 24, 2023
Google Media

Google ScholarTM

Check


Items in Research UNE are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.