Case Studies of Social-Ecological Systems

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Type

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

Munglori "Turf" (forest territory) Management, India

Case
Munglori is a village in Uttaranchal, India. The resource appropriated from Munglori Turf Management is fodder. There is a system of informal, locally recognized rules which are respected in and across villages and through which the local oak forests are managed. These rules supersede national laws and result in a reasonable level of forest management. Both institutional and geographical factors affect the boundary of the resource. From the standpoint of social-ecological systems analysis...
09 Aug 2016

Na Pae and Muang Mai Irrigation Systems, Ban Pae Luang, Thailand

Case
The Na Pae Irrigation System is located in the village of Ban Pae Luang, Chiang Mai Province, Thailand.  The resource appropriated related to the social dilemma is water for irrigation diverted through canals from Mae Pae River. The original case was reported in 1983 and catalogues an action situation involving 80 members. At the beginning of the period discussed by the authors, there was a balanced supply of biological and physical resources withdrawn compared to the number of units available...
09 Aug 2016

Nabagram irrigation system, Comilla district, Bangladesh

Case
The Nabagram Irrigation System is located in Comilla District in Bangladesh. The resource appropriated related to the social dilemma is water for irrigation appropriated by a tube well The original case was reported in 1979 and catalogues an action situation involving 50 families. Nabagram improved its efficiency and technology largely through mobilization of locally provided and controlled resources, developing only limited dependency on a government agency.This case study is part of the...
09 Aug 2016

Nae Pae and Muang Mai Irrigation Systems

Case
Fai Muang Mai is one of three irrigation systems along the Mae Klang River in the Chiang Mai Province, Thailand. Muang Mai is the most upstream of the Mae Klang River irrigation systems and provides irrigation to 800 hectares of riceland and orchards through a weir and canal network. The system is managed and maintained by an irrigation organization known as Mu Muang Mai, composed of farmers within the command area. The original case includes a comparative analysis of two traditional irrigation...
09 Aug 2016

Nam Tan Irrigation Project

Case
The Muong Phieng Valley is located in the Nam Tam watershed in the Sainyabuli Province of western Laos. The main agricultural product is rice. The area suffered major infrastructural changes in two periods. First, during the Nam Tam Irrigation project administered by USAID and the Lao government in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Second, during the Nam Tam Rehabilitation project in the 1990s, supervised by UNDP, UNCF and the Lao government.This case was part of the original CPR database...
09 Aug 2016

Naya Dhara Ko Kulo (Kot Village Panchayat), Sindhu Palchok district, Nepal

Case
This case study is part of the original Common-Pool Resource (CPR) database developed in the 1980's by Edella Schlager and Shui Yan Tang at Indiana University. A summary of the original CPR coding conducted in the 1980s by Edella Schlager and Shui Yan Tang at Indiana University may be found under the CPR tab in the Institutional Analysis section below. This case is also part of the original Nepal Irrigation Institutions and Systems (NIIS) database developed in the 1980's by a team of...
09 Aug 2016