Browse case studies header
There follows a list of case studies in the SES Library.
Title | Type |
|---|---|
Living in a network of scaling cities and finite resources | Case |
| Many urban phenomena exhibit remarkable regularity in the form of nonlinear scaling behaviors, but their implications on a system of networked cities has never been investigated. Such knowledge is crucial for our ability to harness the complexity of urban processes to further sustainability science. In this paper, Qubbaj et al. (2014) develop a dynamical modeling framework that embeds population–resource dynamics—a generalized Lotka–Volterra system with modifications to incorporate the urban... | 30 Sep 2016 |
Loma Alta community forest, western Equador | Case |
| This paper provides an explanation for the lack of institutions regulating the Loma Alta Forest. The community has not yet created any rules regarding forest use. The members of the community with the biggest economic stake in the forest have no reason to limit their exploitative practices, and thus little demand exists for forest regulation at the local level. The Loma Alta Forest is in danger of being more severely degraded in the near future because of the lack of forestry institutions.... | 09 Aug 2016 |
Lothar farmer-managed irrigation system, Chitwan district, Nepal | Case |
| Lothar is a farmer-managed irrigation system in the Chitwan district, about 30 kilometres east of the city of Bharatpur in Nepal. The resource unit is water for irrigation. The system comprises of a main canal, an approach canal, six branch canals, and field channels. Individual farmers are responsible for maintaining field channels and tertiary canals. During the time of the original case, which spans from 1985 to 1986, there was no history of conflicts in the irrigation system. This case... | 09 Aug 2016 |
Love River Restoration, Taiwan | Case |
| Love River Restoration case is part of the comparative urban river analysis developed between 2019 to 2020 by Herlin Chien at United Nations University, Institute for the Advanced Study of Sustainability in Japan. The common pool resource system is the Love River (12 km) located in a metropolitan city of Kaohsiung with 2.7 million inhabitants. This case is identified by the Executive Yuan - central government in Taiwan as one of eleven rivers with more than 50% of mediumly polluted section in... | 21 Jul 2020 |
Lurin Sayoc Irrigation, Quinua District, Peru | Case |
| Lurin Sayoc is one of the two barrios of Quinua district of Ayacucho Province in the Peruvian highlands. The resource appropriated related to the social dilemma is water for irrigation distributed through a canal, diverted by stream. The original case was reported in 1976 and 1977 and catalogues an action situation involving 5,348 people. The author reported many fights around water use.This case study is part of the original Common-Pool Resource (CPR) database. A summary of the original CPR... | 09 Aug 2016 |
Magar Kulo, Bhote Namlang Village Panchayat, Sindhupalchok District, Nepal | Case |
| This case is part of the original Nepal Irrigation Institutions and Systems (NIIS) database developed in the 1980's by a team of researchers under the direction of Dr. Elinor Ostrom at Indiana University. In addition, this case is also part of a longitudinal study that has repeatedly investigated 19 farmer-managed irrigation systems (FMIS) in the Indrawati River Basin that participated in an innovative intervention designed to improve irrigation performance not only by improving physical... | 09 Aug 2016 |
Majha Ko Kulo (b), Thamalangtar Dhap Village Panchayat, Sindhupalchok District, Nepal | Case |
| This case is part of the original Nepal Irrigation Institutions and Systems (NIIS) database developed in the 1980's by a team of researchers under the direction of Dr. Elinor Ostrom at Indiana University. In addition, this case is also part of a longitudinal study that has repeatedly investigated 19 farmer-managed irrigation systems (FMIS) in the Indrawati River Basin that participated in an innovative intervention designed to improve irrigation performance not only by improving physical... | 09 Aug 2016 |
Majha Ko Kulo (d), Baguwa, Sikharpur Village Panchayat, Sindhupalchok District, Nepal | Case |
| This case is part of the original Nepal Irrigation Institutions and Systems (NIIS) database developed in the 1980's by a team of researchers under the direction of Dr. Elinor Ostrom at Indiana University. In addition, this case is also part of a longitudinal study that has repeatedly investigated 19 farmer-managed irrigation systems (FMIS) in the Indrawati River Basin that participated in an innovative intervention designed to improve irrigation performance not only by improving physical... | 09 Aug 2016 |
Marine Protected Areas in the Gulf of California, Sonora, Mexico | Case |
| Marine protected areas remain as one of the most popular tools for the conservation and management of natural resources in marine ecosystems. However, mere establishment of MPAs without the proper design, management, or enforcement tools may give a false sense of security that such MPAs will be enough to sustain marine resources. The Gulf of California (GOC), in Mexico, has received a great deal of attention over the past 20 years as a region where conservation and resource management efforts... | 09 Aug 2016 |
Maritime Extractive Reserve (MER) and Traditional Beach Seining in Arraial do Cabo, Brazil | Case |
| The Arraial do Cabo Marine Extractive Reserve (MER) and fishing community is located on a cape that extends approximately 40 km into the ocean about 164 km east of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The MER encompasses a total marine area of approximately 57 ha which is utilized by seiners/fishermen from four different beaches. The case study involves a time period which predates the 1960s and ends approximately in the early 2000s and draws on informal and semi-structured interviews with... | 09 Aug 2016 |
Mathematical Models in Social Ecological Systems | Case |
| This case is an umbrella to capture a range of models of ecological, social, social-ecological, and other natural systems (e.g. climate). In addition, there are several models whose main purpose is to demonstrate model visualization features related to a number of famous mathematical models including the Lorenz Model, the discrete logistic, and predator prey models. The Lorenz Model, probably the most famous of all simple models, is the first ever model of a chaotic dynamical system.... | 09 Aug 2016 |
Matsigenka agriculture, Manu Biosphere Reserve, Peru | Case |
| Arable land among the Matsigenka is a public good (Ostrom 2005: 24). At base the Matsigenka do not have institutions that regulate who can access arable land. Anyone who has been incorporated into a community has the right to access arable land. The only requirement before opening up a new field is that people must state their intent. This practice decreases the probability of clearing a plot of land that someone else was planning to clear. In short, use of arable land does not affect the... | 09 Aug 2016 |
Mauraro irrigation system, Mauraro barrio, Albay province, Philippines | Case |
| Mauraro Irrigation system is located in Albay in Philippines. The resource appropriated related to the social dilemma is water for irrigation distributed through a canal. The original case was reported in 1980 and catalogues an action situation involving 26 farmers. In the Mauraro Irrigation System, nobody in particular is responsible for the allocation and distribution of water. The cleaning and repair of the system's structures are the responsibility of each and every farmer. But the farmer... | 09 Aug 2016 |
Messolonghi-Etolico Lagoon Fishery | Case |
| The Messolonghi-Etolico lagoon is in the northern part of Patraikos Gulf, on the west coast of central Greece. The original case, which was published in 1984, catalogues an action situation with approximately 200 independent fishermen and 170 fishermen in 11 co-ops. The resource units are mullets, sea-bream, eel, and sea-bass. The co-ops feel the independents are free-riders on co-op efforts to trap fish; independents resent the co-ops' privileges, power, and subterfuges to restrict membership... | 09 Aug 2016 |
Mount Desert Island Lobster Fishery | Case |
| The lobster grounds of Mount Desert Island are located within Hancock County, Maine, some 250 miles northeast of Boston and 150 miles southwest of the U.S. - Canada border. The original case spans from 1969 to1974 and catalogues an action situation involving approximately 75 lobster fishermen; lobster is the stationary resource unit.This case study is part of the original Common-Pool Resource (CPR) database. A summary of the original CPR coding conducted in the 1980s by Edella Schlager and Shui... | 09 Aug 2016 |