Managing for resource sustainability: the potential of civic science

Abstract

Discovering a means to reconcile ecological integrity and resource use is an enduring theme in human societies and the central question of sustainable development. This paper examines the philosophical assumptions, the general approaches and the substantive challenges associated with three tactics used to manage natural resources. In this essay, it is argued that civic science is an emerging paradigm to pursue sustainable development and that adaptive co-management is a potential mechanism for implementation. Although civic science is not a panacea, it elucidates and clearly informs the science-policy domain in which resource managers function.