Social Wellbeing Indicators for Marine Management: Crafting Decision Tools for Human Complexity
Presentation Abstract
This paper presents outcomes of the Social Wellbeing Indicators for Marine Management (SWIMM) working group, charged with developing a protocol for selecting indicators of human wellbeing for ecosystem-based management. Initiated by NOAA, our approach was specifically designed to inform federal management of the California Current, the large marine ecosystem running from Vancouver Island to Baja California. Hence, a major challenge was scale: how can we define, operationalize, and measure human wellbeing at such a large geographic scale, which encompasses tremendous social and cultural diversity, including potentially disparate notions of what counts as “wellbeing”? How can we both serve stated management responsibilities, and expand resource agencies’ awareness of the complexity of human wellbeing? How can we ensure that human wellbeing is not only measured, but also improved as a result of measurement? In this paper we report on how the SWIMM project addressed these questions, by re-drawing a social-ecological conceptual framework, developing a comprehensive and scalable typology of human wellbeing, and focusing on attributes of wellbeing that support diverse human relationships with the ocean and coast. We also report on data gaps and research challenges that must be addressed to achieve fully integrated ecosystem assessments. We outline how the SWIMM approach fits within the nested structure of decision-making affecting Salish Sea management, and we look forward to discussing how it might complement parallel efforts to assess human wellbeing in the region.
Session Title
Human Wellbeing Related to the Salish Sea
Conference Track
People
Conference Name
Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference (2016 : Vancouver, B.C.)
Document Type
Event
Start Date
2016 12:00 AM
End Date
2016 12:00 AM
Location
2016SSEC
Type of Presentation
Oral
Genre/Form
conference proceedings; presentations (communicative events)
Contributing Repository
Digital content made available by University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.
Subjects – Topical (LCSH)
Well-being--Salish Sea (B.C. and Wash.); Coastal zone management--Salish Sea (B.C. and Wash.)
Geographic Coverage
Salish Sea (B.C. and Wash.)
Rights
This resource is displayed for educational purposes only and may be subject to U.S. and international copyright laws. For more information about rights or obtaining copies of this resource, please contact University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA 98225-9103, USA (360-650-7534; heritage.resources@wwu.edu) and refer to the collection name and identifier. Any materials cited must be attributed to the Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference Records, University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.
Type
Text
Language
English
Format
application/pdf
Social Wellbeing Indicators for Marine Management: Crafting Decision Tools for Human Complexity
2016SSEC
This paper presents outcomes of the Social Wellbeing Indicators for Marine Management (SWIMM) working group, charged with developing a protocol for selecting indicators of human wellbeing for ecosystem-based management. Initiated by NOAA, our approach was specifically designed to inform federal management of the California Current, the large marine ecosystem running from Vancouver Island to Baja California. Hence, a major challenge was scale: how can we define, operationalize, and measure human wellbeing at such a large geographic scale, which encompasses tremendous social and cultural diversity, including potentially disparate notions of what counts as “wellbeing”? How can we both serve stated management responsibilities, and expand resource agencies’ awareness of the complexity of human wellbeing? How can we ensure that human wellbeing is not only measured, but also improved as a result of measurement? In this paper we report on how the SWIMM project addressed these questions, by re-drawing a social-ecological conceptual framework, developing a comprehensive and scalable typology of human wellbeing, and focusing on attributes of wellbeing that support diverse human relationships with the ocean and coast. We also report on data gaps and research challenges that must be addressed to achieve fully integrated ecosystem assessments. We outline how the SWIMM approach fits within the nested structure of decision-making affecting Salish Sea management, and we look forward to discussing how it might complement parallel efforts to assess human wellbeing in the region.
