In Theme 4, we emphasise methodological development or adaptation to answer questions requiring, or benefitting from, combining approaches and methods. This implies the use of a large diversity of knowledge sources, from traditional ecological knowledge, through citizen science to more formal scientific knowledge (spanning social and natural sciences), as well as innovative processes in promoting knowledge exchange and co-learning.
The field of methods to study social-ecological systems is very broad. In the next five years we will promote transdisciplinary and co-learning approaches that lead to transformation in the way humans operate for a healthier biosphere and more just societies. We expect transformative adaptation of the social-ecological systems to be one of the greatest challenges of environmental governance, and are therefore continuing to explore frameworks that can recognise multiple (desired) futures for nature and society, and explicitly acknowledge the potential trade-offs between values co-existing in the various social-ecological systems in which we operate. Network theory, integrating ecological and socioeconomic systems, may also provide a path to predict how alternative management actions and changing future conditions will alter ecosystem services, and we see Bayesian Network (BN) modelling as another promising method to meet challenges in ecosystem-based management, particularly if done in a participatory manner.
A handbook for these methods has been compiled by some of our colleagues from the South African Programme for Ecosystem Changes and Society (Biggs et al. 2021) which describes some of the methods we have used and, in some instances, adapted in the last few years. This practical handbook has proven a great reference work and resource for students and established researchers. These combined approaches and diverse knowledge portfolios can be used to explore very specific questions ranging from biodiversity monitoring and very complex issues related to environmental governance.
