Exploring the human-nature nexus towards effective nature-based solutions
The Aral Sea case
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 11460563 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Shahzoda Alikhanova (0000-0003-1646-7820, University of Oxford, corresponding author), E J Milner-Gulland (0000-0003-0324-2710, University of Oxford), Joseph W Bull (0000-0001-7337-8977, University of Oxford) |
| Year | 2024 |
| Volume | 139 |
| Pages | 107073 |
| Publication date | 2024-04-01 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Land Use Policy (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0264-8377 • E-ISSN: 1873-5754 |
| Publisher | Elsevier BV (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1016/j.landusepol.2024.107073 |
| OpenAlex | W4391055358 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 2 |
| References cited | 41 |
Incorporating societal challenges and values into the design of locally appropriate nature-based solutions (NbS) is an integral strategy for ensuring benefits for both communities and the environment. But how are human-nature relations impacted when the environments containing resources which are valued and relied on, undergo dramatic and sustained change on decadal timescales? To explore this interplay, we selected Muynak as a case study, once a thriving town on the shores of the former Aral Sea in Uzbekistan. We conducted a social survey among the residents to identify the use of natural resources and the values they assign to the most common and yet highly degraded resources in the area (wetlands, rangelands, afforested areas, the Aral Sea, and wildlife). The survey was complemented with expert interviews. Our study suggests that grasslands are the most frequently used of the resources under study, while wetlands and wildlife are generally more valued. Overall, resources were more culturally valued than financially, historically, or recreationally. The majority of respondents perceived a degradation in most natural resources over the past decade, particularly wetlands (79 %), followed by grasslands (48 %), and the Aral Sea (42 %). Wetlands were reported to be in a state of ongoing degradation by 79 % of respondents, which negatively affected the livelihoods of almost half of the households in the survey area. Afforested areas were the only resources reported to have a positive perceived change in both status and their effect on well-being. The vast majority of respondents (83 %) felt that human well-being was linked to environmental conditions. This study lays the foundation for future interventions to develop nature-based solutions to benefit both people and nature, and highlights the continuing value placed on nature by residents of an area that has suffered substantial anthropogenic degradation
Agriculture · Agroforestry · Archaeology · Environmental planning · Environmental protection · Environmental resource management · Geography · Herding · Livelihood · Natural resource · Nexus (standard · Rangeland · Social science · Socioeconomics · Sociology · Thriving · Wetland · Wildlife · Conservation, Biodiversity, and Resource Management · Environmental Science · Land Use and Ecosystem Services · Transboundary Water Resource Management · Ecology · Forestry
A literature review of connectedness to nature and its potential for environmental management
How to analyze Likert and other rating scale data
Using perceptions as evidence to improve conservation and environmental management
Climate and environmental change in arid Central Asia
Connectivity With Nature as a Measure of Environmental Values
Guiding principles for evaluating the impacts of conservation interventions on human well-being
Cultural and spiritual significance of nature
Cultural ecosystem services and decision‐making
Leveraging Nature‐based Solutions for transformation
A Review of the Elements of Human Well-Being with an Emphasis on the Contribution of Ecosystem Services
Valuing nature’s contributions to people
Core principles for successfully implementing and upscaling Nature-based Solutions
Changes in the global value of ecosystem services
Rethinking ecosystem services to better address and navigate cultural values
Balancing the use of wetlands for economic well-being and ecological security
Assessing, mapping, and quantifying cultural ecosystem services at community level
Defining Indicators Which Make Sense to Local People
The dynamics and characteristics of aeolian dust in dryland Central Asia
Impacts of an environmental disaster on psychosocial health and well-being in Karakalpakstan
| Citations per year | 2 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2026 - 2026 (1) |
| Highly cited | No |