Ecosystems provide many of the material building blocks for human well-being. Although quantification and appreciation of such contributions have rapidly grown, our dependence upon cultural connections to nature deserves more attention. We synthesize multidisciplinary peer-reviewed research on...

To move beyond Hardin's tragedy of the commons, it is fundamental to avoid falling into either of two analytical and policy traps: (1) deriving and recommending "panaceas" or (2) asserting "my case is unique." We can move beyond both traps by self-consciously building diagnostic theory to help...

Most studies that apply fuzzy-set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (fsQCA) rely on macro-level data, but there is an increasing number of studies that rely on units of analysis at the micro level, i.e., municipalities, communities, local associations, programs within protected areas or...

Most powerful social science analytical tools are well suited for studying static situations. Static and mechanistic analysis however, is not adequate to understand the changing world in which we live. In order to adequately address the most pressing social and environmental challenges looming...

Small-scale fisheries (SSF) contribute substantially to global food security, sustainable marine ecosystems and poverty alleviation. Yet many SSF face problems of overexploitation and poverty calling for novel governance approaches that enhance human-wellbeing, equity and ecological...

Increased interest in oceans is leading to new and renewed global governance efforts directed toward ocean issues in areas of food production, biodiversity conservation, industrialization, global environmental change, and pollution. Global oceans governance efforts face challenges and...

An enduring challenge for the policy and political sciences is valid and reliable depiction of policy designs. One emerging approach for dissecting policy designs is the application of Elinor Ostrom and Sue Crawford's institutional grammar tool (1995; 2005). The grammar tool offers a method to...

An enduring challenge for the policy and political sciences is valid and reliable depiction of policy designs. One emerging approach for dissecting policy designs is the application of Elinor Ostrom and Sue Crawford's institutional grammar tool (1995; 2005). The grammar tool offers a method to...