Collaborating for resilience in complex aquatic resource commons: Lessons for policy and practice

How can multi-stakeholder dialogue be used to assess and address the roots of environmental resource conflict in complex commons characterized by multiple levels of governance? This paper presents the results of a collaborative initiative aimed at strengthening aquatic resources governance in three ecoregions—Lake Victoria (Uganda), Lake Kariba (Zambia), and Tonle Sap Lake (Cambodia)— implemented from mid-2010 through early 2013. Analysis drawn from multi-stakeholder dialogue workshops and follow-on activities in each of the lake systems characterizes the sources of resource conflict, associated governance challenges, and opportunities for institutional innovation to address these. These innovations include attempts to increase community voices in private sector investment decisions and secure access rights for marginalized households in the face of competition, as well as strengthen community-based co-management, resource protection, public health, and gender equity. For each case, we consider interactions across scales with regard to ecosystem services, livelihood opportunities, and institutions of government, civil society, and the private sector. We then compare the process of participatory dialogue, action, and learning in each of the sites, noting the core set of principles employed, the diverse approaches to applying these in different socio-cultural and political contexts, and the outcomes as measured through evaluations led by local actors. The paper concludes with a synthesis of lessons regarding the conditions under which such an approach to multi-stakeholder dialogue is appropriate, the contributions this approach can make to improve multilevel governance as well as its limitations, and strategies for improving this domain of practice in the future.