Using Transdisciplinary Action Research Toward Sustainable Management of Vineyard Management and Tourism in the Negev Highlands

Abstract

Communities often lack a framework to guide research and action by which to mitigate complex socio-ecological challenges in the face of conflicting interests and poorly understood ecological and socio-political mechanisms. In an effort to provide such a framework, this article offers an approach for the systematic analysis of societal interactions with the landscape as well as for the structure and function of the ecosystem. Using an approach informed both by transdisciplinary research (TdR) and participatory action research (PAR), modeling is employed to identify trajectories of human influence on the ecosystem, which is illustrated using a case from the Negev Highlands of Israel. The approach identifies several cascades of effects, allowing diverse stakeholders to better understand the mechanisms by which human activities change the capacity of the ecosystem to support human well-being over time, as well as building capacity for stakeholder cooperation for sustainable management.