Crossing borders: two contrasting approaches to interactions between natural and human ecosystems

Abstract

The interaction between natural and human ecosystems has a long history, often with adverse impacts on both sides, which can be a result of managing crises. Ecosystems are complex and management by a single agency is often not feasible. The situation becomes more complex when multiple agencies, at different levels of governance and with different mandates are responsible for management. There is added complexity when the system crosses administrative and cultural borders. This chapter describes and compares two examples of management across borders. One is the large inland Lake Urmia in Iran and the other is intertidal coastal wetland in eastern Australia. The chapter analyses the management approaches in these case studies and concludes that collaboration, based on communication, trust, commitment and shared understanding, is a key component to achieving sustainable socio-ecological outcomes. However, scale and complexity of the system and of the management issues complicates the collaborative process.