What are the main challenges that impede sustainable mountain governance at the local level? Research undertaken by the MRI’s Mountain Governance Working Group seeks to shed light on this important question.

There is growing consensus that securing a sustainable future for our changing mountains requires effective governance. However, the biogeophysical complexity and diversity of mountain social-ecological systems, their vulnerability to climatic and global change processes, their status as commons, and the vital importance of their ecosystem services for people living both in and far from mountains mean that mountains pose a particular set of governance challenges – few of which are well understood. New research conducted by the MRI’s Mountain Governance Working Group and published this month in the journal Mountain Research and Development seeks to address this knowledge gap.

"Resolving major governance conundrums requires cross-level coordination, development of partnerships, and participatory processes in which mountain peoples have a strong voice.” – Professor Catherine Tucker, Associate Director of Academic Affairs at the University of Florida’s Center for Latin American Studies and MRI Mountain Governance Working Group Lead.


Global survey, local challenges

The researchers analysed 75 responses to a global online survey of local mountain governance that explored a range of known governance challenges in order to discover which are most prevalent, and whether relative strength of local governance helps to mitigate these challenges. Survey participants spanned five continents, and were researchers and practitioners who work in the field of mountain governance.

“To our knowledge, this is the first global study that endeavours to understand the challenges for mountain governance at the local level,” says lead author Professor Catherine Tucker, Associate Director of Academic Affairs at the University of Florida’s Center for Latin American Studies. “It encompasses research sites across Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Americas, and focuses on local level experiences of governance that support or undermine human well-being and sustainability. Other global studies of mountain governance tend to look at the meta and macro levels, although local governance arrangements directly influence human well-being and environmental sustainability.”

Through their analysis, the researchers identified a number of major local governance challenges. These included contradictory policies, poverty, and the presence of valuable non-renewable natural resources. Sites with weaker local governance reported significantly greater prevalence of certain challenges, in comparison to those with stronger arrangements. “Our comparative analysis of the 75 online survey responses revealed that weak governance at the local level is associated with greater problems with corruption, lack of transparency, impunity for powerful actors, policies that exacerbate societal inequities, and inadequate access to educational opportunities,” says Tucker. 

Picture 2 Challenges for Governing Mountains Sustainably

Pictured: Gathering for a church event, Velika Planina, Slovenia. Photo by Catherine M. Tucker.

Impact of external factors

However, the researchers also found that many challenges did not differ significantly according to strength of local governance, implying that external factors play a key role. “While strong local governance appears to support sustainability and well-being in certain dimensions – such as transparency, fair application of laws, and access to educational opportunities and health care – many governance challenges occurred regardless of local governance arrangements. These included contradictory policies, environmental degradation, increasing vulnerability to natural hazards, lack of employment, and high rates of outmigration.”

This finding, the researchers stress, points to a need to improve governance across all levels to support the sustainability of mountain social-ecological systems. “Many mountain peoples face a set of conundrums reflecting geographic, political, and socioeconomic marginalization,” says Tucker. “Yet mountains attract powerful external actors. A key example is that of mining operations, which can degrade the environment while generating profits for outsiders rather than local people. External interventions and global processes exceed the capacity of local governance to address alone. Therefore, resolving major governance conundrums requires cross-level coordination, development of partnerships, and participatory processes in which mountain peoples have a strong voice.”

There is, concludes Tucker, much more work to be done in this area. “Given the diversity of mountain peoples and environments, our sample is too small to provide strong, generalizable conclusions. Even so, the results indicate lines for further inquiry.”


Read more: Tucker, C.M., Alcántara-Ayala, I., Gunya, A., Jimenez, E., Klein, J. A., Xu, J., and Bigler, S. L. ‘Challenges for Governing Mountains Sustainably: Insights from a Global Survey.’ Mountain Research and Development (2021): https://doi.org/10.1659/MRD-JOURNAL-D-20-00080.1

This article is part of Mountain Research and Development Vol. 41, No. 2 , May 2021. The table of contents for this open issue is available to view on the Mountain Research and Development website.


Cover image: Shepherd family courtyard, Chillihua, Province of Melgar, Peru. Photo by Catherine M. Tucker.

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