SESYNC - National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center
Permanent URI for this communityhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/15599
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Item Socio-Environmental Synthesis Tutorials(SESYNC, 2015-01) Wei, CynthiaSocio-environmental (S-E) synthesis advances the understanding of S-E systems. These tutorials introduce fundamental concepts about S-E systems. Each tutorial consists of written text and accompanying resources that illustrate some of the key concepts for understanding S-E systems. The series includes: Tutorial 1- Overview of Socio-environmental Synthesis; provides an overview of the socio-environmental research and problem solving approach. Tutorial 2- Systems Perspectives and Dynamics; provides an overview of systems perspectives and the importance of understanding the behavior and dynamics of systems. Tutorial 3- Understanding Socio-environmental Systems: Thresholds, States, and Resilience; this tutorial describes basic concepts important for understanding the complex behavior of systems. Tutorial 4- Understanding Socio-environmental Systems: Hierarchy and Scale; this tutorial provides an introduction to concepts of hierarchy and scale and their importance for understanding socio-environmental systems. Learning Goals include: Tutorial 5- Understanding Socio-environmental Systems: Adaptive Cycles: his tutorial provides a basic introduction to the concept of adaptive cycles and their utility for understanding socio-environmental systems.Item The Blind Spot in the Green Revolution: Temples, Terraces, and Rice Farmers of Bali(2013-07) Wei, Cynthia; Burnside, William; Che-Castaldo, JudyThis case explores the complex interactions in a socio-environmental system, the Balinese wet rice cultivation system. Using a combination of the interrupted case and directed case methods, students are presented with an issue that arose during the implementation of Green Revolution agricultural policies in Bali: rice farmers were required to plant new high yield rice varieties continuously rather than following the coordinated cropping schedules set up by water temple priests. Students examine qualitative and quantitative data from classic anthropological research by Dr. Steven Lansing to learn about the important role that water temples play in achieving sustainable rice cultivation in Bali. Using a model that synthesizes ecological, hydrological, and ethnographic data, Lansing and his colleague, Dr. James Kremer, were able to demonstrate that temple priests determine the cropping schedules for farmers in a way that reduces pest growth and helps to manage limited water resources, maximizing rice yields. This four-part case can be used for a wide range of courses in a few class periods (total class time approximately 4.5-5 hrs.)Item Save the Turtles! And the Grizzlies? Or the Woodpeckers? Prioritizing Endangered Species Conservation(SESYNC, 2013-07) Che-Castaldo, Judy; Burnside, William; Wei, CynthiaThis case study explores the complexities involved in endangered species management and provides an opportunity for students to perform an exercise in socio-environmental synthesis. Developed for introductory undergraduate courses in environmental studies or conservation biology, it contains suggested modifications for upper-level undergraduate and graduate courses. Students take the position of wildlife managers who must decide how best to allocate limited resources for conserving multiple threatened and endangered species. Students are provided with data on the ecological characteristics and socio-economic circumstances for a set of five species, and then work in small groups to develop conservation priority rankings based on those data. Students summarize their decisions in writing and in small-group presentations, and the case concludes with an instructor-led discussion of how actual conservation priorities are determined.