• Logged in as Unregistered User
  • Sign in

Social-Ecological Systems Meta-Analysis Database: Theory

Transhumance

Variable relationship:

Commons using actor groups that are able to move across a landscape (Actor Mobility) in order to make use of multiple commons (Commons Alternatives) are more adaptive (Actor Adaptive Capacity) to fluctations in the availability of any particular commons. This arrangement also helps to avoid the exhaustion of any given local commons (Commons Condition Trend).

This mobility and its adaptive functionality is frequently coupled with flexible group boundaries regarding commons access (Commons Boundary Negotiability) that allow ad hoc arrangements to be made about who is allowed to use this commons and under what conditions. The importance of these connections is increased under conditions of low resource productivity (Productivity) and unpredictability (Inter-annual Predictability, Intra-annual Predictability).

The most common example of this phenomenon is transhumance, or the seasonal movement of natural resoure users and livestock, frequently from lowland areas in the winter to highland areas in the summer. Popular examples of this include African pastoralist societies (see Niamir-Fuller 1998).

Project
SESMAD
Sector(s)
 
Scientific Field
Component Type(s)
Natural Resource Unit, Natural Resource System
Status
Public

Variables

VariableRoleRole ExplanationValue
Property regimeUnderlying independent variableTranshumance communities generally use common property to manage their commons, as this is an additional adaptation to resource-scarce conditions.Common property
Commons user mobilityUnderlying independent variableHigh actor mobility enables the actor group to move to different commons and adapt to changes in any one of them.High
Commons alternativesProximate independent variableHigh mobility enables an actor group to use multiple commons, which increases its adaptive capacity.Easily access other commons
Commons boundary negotiabilityModerating independent variableThe access to alternative commons is frequently enabled by rules regarding the use of these resources that create negotiable boundaries over who is allowed to use them.Negotiable
Inter annual predictabilityModerating independent variableLow intra-annual predictability makes the ability of commons users to move and adapt to changing conditions more desirable, increasing their adaptive capacity.Low
Intra annual predictabilityModerating independent variableLow intra-annual predictability makes the ability of commons users to move and adapt to changing conditions more desirable, increasing their adaptive capacity.Low
ProductivityModerating independent variableLow levels of productivity may necessitate increased mobility and coordination on the part of resource users, since no one of them has the ability to sustain themselves with their own resources.Poorly productive
Commons condition trendFinal outcomeThe mobility of the resource users enables them to avoid over-harvesting from any particular localized commons, which helps the commons recover and avoid exhaustion.Remained the same or improved
Actor adaptive capacityFinal outcomeAs a result of the ability to move through separate commons, the livelihood diversity of the group enables it to adapt to increasing scarcity in any one of them is increased.Increased

Related Theories

TheoryRelationshipCharacterizing Variables
Roving banditrycontradictory

Related Studies

StudyRelationship

Mwangi, Esther, and Elinor Ostrom. 2009. “Top-down Solutions: Looking up from East Africa’s Rangelands.” Environment 51 (1): 34–44.

describe

Brottem, Leif, Matthew D Turner, Bilal Butt, and Aditya Singh. 2014. “Biophysical Variability and Pastoral Rights to Resources: West African Transhumance Revisited.” Human Ecology 42 (3): 351–365.

describe

Niamir-Fuller, M., 1998. The resilience of pastoral herding in Sahelian Africa, in: Berkes, F., Folke, C. (Eds.), Linking Social and Ecological Systems: Management Practices for Building Resilience. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, pp. 250–284.

describe