Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
oversee implementation. According to her, parties may be willing to cooperate if
they a) consider the present situation to be unsatisfactory, and b) believe there is a
chance of a better outcome that will actually be implemented and is also fair. Other
authors on inter-organisational cooperation have identified a number of 'themes' to be
addressed, such as organising for cooperation (networks, commissions, etc.), the issue
of developing trust and goal setting (Huxham and Vangen 2005).
Still other literature that is highly relevant for understanding cooperation include
the literature on negotiation and mediation, such as the classic Getting to Yes by Fisher
and Ury (1981), which emphasises the importance of 'principled negotiation' and of
exploring more than two options. Other classics include Robert Axelrod's topic, The
Evolution of Cooperation (Axelrod 1984) and Elinor Ostrom's work on collective
action with regard to common pool resources (Ostrom 1990). Finally, many case
studies and meta-analyses have been published in the past three decades on wholly
or partly successful cases of cooperation, for instance in the field of transboundary
water resources (Mostert 2003). Important lessons from these case studies include
the importance of opportunities to interact, for instance in river basin commissions;
the role of package deals and issue linkage; and the importance of developing good
relations as a basis for mutually profitable exchanges.
1.4 TAKING ACTION
Although the projects that comprise the CoCooN programme all possess a strong
action component, in this volume we have chosen to highlight their academic perspec-
tives. Whereas many academics aim to further knowledge, policy is about the practical
measures needed to address an issue directly.
There are two chapters in this volume, however, that do take a more explicit
action perspective. The first is Chapter 10 (Timko, Chapter 10), which, as discussed
in the previous section, focuses on the biofuel issue and its impact on livelihoods.
The second action-oriented chapter by Kessler et al. (Chapter 11) hones in on the
CoCooN programme itself. It describes how this programme, which is innovative in
its explicit linking of research and policy goals, was designed and structured. This
chapter connects with the discussion that Frerks et al. (Chapter 2) devote to the policy
concerning conflict and cooperation over natural resources, both in the Netherlands
and abroad, and the manner in which key agents have addressed the nexus between
environmental issues and conflict.
Researchers deciding to engage with practice face a number of complications,
similar to those of so-called action research (Masters 1995). First of all, there is the
choice of what to work for and whom to work with (Mostert and Raadgever 2008).
Although these choices follow partly from the topic of study and the possibility of
identifying suitable action partners, there clearly is a normative element involved. In the
CoCooN programme, more so than in conventional research, researchers collaborate
with action partners on work that they consider important from a normative, societal
viewpoint. Being interested in the situation of those that are excluded, and therefore
marginalised and poor, they strive to contribute to a governance process that provides
more equal benefits. As such, researchers become part of the governing process they
are studying.
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