Supplementary information on case study context and methods
Chilika lagoon, on the eastern coast of India, possesses a unique combination of biological and human systems. Located in Odisha state near the Bay of Bengal, it extends over an area of approximately 1200 square kilometres. Chilika hosts a mix of estuarine, marine and freshwater ecosystems and is a Ramsar wetland of global conservation importance. 225 species of fish, 800 species of fauna, 710 species of plant flora and a variety of phytoplankton, algae and other forms of life characterise the lagoon ecosystem. Some of these species are included in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Animals. More than 400,000 caste-based fishers in approximately 150 villages comprise the active human system of the lagoon. There are seven different types of fisher castes and sub-castes in Chilika.There exists a rigid hierarchy between the fisher and non-fisher castes, whereby the non-fishers are considered higher and fishers as lower castes, which clearly reflectspower dynamics and equity concernsinherent in fisher caste structures. See Nayak (2011), Nayak and Berkes (2010, 2011) for a detailed analysis of the dynamics associated with such socio-political arrangements in Chilika lagoon. These fishers have customarily worked in Chilika’s productive ecosystem for cultural and livelihood (a mix of subsistence and marketing for income) needs, creating and sustaining a functional human-environment system for generations. However, there is an increased disconnect between the lagoon and its fishers due to significant environmental changes (Nayak and Berkes 2012; Nayak 2014).
The Tam Giang lagoon, a system of three interconnected lagoons, plays a strong economic role in central Vietnam’s ThuaThien-Hue Province. The lagoon stretches for approximately 70 kilometres along the coast of the South China Sea, covering an area of approximately 220 square kilometres. The lagoon is estimated to directly support at least 100,000 of the 300,000 people who live in 33 communes and villages around the lagoon (Tuyen et al. 2010). High biological productivity within the lagoon is attributed to the rich influx of nutrients from surrounding rivers and the intrusion of saltwater through two openings to the South China Sea. Over 900 species have been identified in the Tam Giang lagoon (Tuan et al. 2009). Resource use in the lagoon was historically relatively low intensity until the 1980s when aquaculture and more intensive capture gear fishing technologies began appearing, in conjunction with local population increases. Since the late 1980s there has been increased pressure placed on the lagoon ecosystem which has resulted in occasional conflicts between fisher groups and eventually the introduction of new forms of management based on collective property rights (Marschke et al. 2012).
In Chilika, the first phase of the research was undertaken during 2007 – 2009 (28 month data set) through household surveys, household level livelihood monitoring (18 months) and a general survey of two fisher villages. In one village, 35 percent of the 285 fisher households were sampled for survey. A mix of purposive and stratified random sampling was used to include households with a range of socio economic and livelihood profiles, and their exposure to social-ecological change. In the second village, 100 percent sampling was done to include all the 60 fisher households. For the purpose of household livelihood monitoring, 20 households in the first village and 10 households in the second village were purposively selected from the pool of already surveyed households in both the villages. Attention was given to factors such as ongoing outmigration, loan transactions, role of fishing as a livelihood source, and health issues in selecting households for monitoring. This monthly household monitoring was conducted using a questionnaire. Additionally, all 150 fisher villages were selected for general survey in collaboration with the Fisher Federation and other local contact persons. Each village was given one questionnaire to fill out in larger village meetings or in a meeting of the village committee. Survey questionnaires were distributed through village visits and federation meetings, and the village was asked return the survey using an attached return postal envelope.
In addition, a number of interviews and focus groups were conducted with multiple actors at community (e.g., caste, gender, occupation, non-fishers, etc.), NGO, fisher federation and government department levels. Even though the main focus of the study was on the fishers, representation from non-fisher castes, fish traders, large buyers, aquaculturists, tourist associations. Several community consultations and workshops were organised to follow up on findings, share and interpret these findings, and explore policy implications. The second phase started in 2011 and is currently in progress. Recently, a series of interviews were conducted in January-March 2013 to assess new developments and record the status of social-ecological change. A state level policy workshop with 30 fishers and other resource persons was organised in February 2013. For more details on the methods used in Chilika case refer to Nayak (2011, 2014).
The work in the Tam Giang lagoon has involved participatory action research in collaboration and consultation with a research team based at Hue University of Agriculture and Forestry (HUAF) since 2006. The first phase of the research was supported by an International Development Research Centre (IDRC) project that worked in three communes (VinhGiang in the south, Phu My in the central region, and HuongPhong in the north) to develop a model for establishing Fishers Associations and allocating collective property rights for fishers. The research component of the project was directed towards examining the implications of these new property rights regimes for fisheries. Research activities included 12 district and communal level workshops conducted annually (2006-2009) with a range of stakeholders concerned with fisheries management and allocation of communal property rights for fishers (for more details see Tuyen et al. 2010; Armitage et al. 2011; Marschke et al. 2012). A total of 51 semi-structured interviews with key informants from district and provincial government officials took place between 2007 and 2011. Livelihood surveys with 87 households (representing roughly 15 percent of households in the communes) in 2009 investigated fisher rights over common pool resources in line with formal institutional arrangements or traditional practices (Marschke et al. 2012).
A second phase of research in the Tam Giang lagoon, ongoing since 2012, is based on the doctoral work of one of the co-authors and is also carried out in collaboration with the team from HUAF. This research focuses on the CauHai region of the lagoon and is using resilience thinking and a social-ecological transformations lens to evaluate the interplay between environmental change, shifts in livelihoods, and the new property rights arrangements. Research has focused on two communes (VinhGiang and Loc Binh) and one town (Phu Loc) around the CauHai region of the lagoon. Nine focus groups took place in 2012 with groups of fishers in order to assess their perceptions of social-ecological changes. The focus groups were followed up with 15 key informant interviews with local experts familiar with the history and recent changes in the lagoon. Another set of 73 surveys and 59 semi-structured interviews were used to assess the levels of collaboration among all 8 communes and 15 FAs in this region of the lagoon, district and provincial government agencies, and local researchers and NGOs who have been involved with the rights allocation processes.