Practical Steps to Implement an Ecosystem Approach in Great Lakes Management


Table 9


Activities and examples of their practical application for use of an ecosystem approach to develop a stewardship ethic.

Activity Examples of Application
Strategic analysis of messages
  • Understand stewardship ethics as a process, not a product
  • Make education inclusive in content and process
  • Understand connections within an ecosystem
  • Promote humility, understand delicateness/fragility
  • Define desired end product (What should paradigm shift look like?)
  • Offer a vision of what can be achieved
  • Demonstrate a trust in the vision
  • Demonstrate payoffs, show "what's in it for me to achieve a stewardship ethic"
Strategic analysis of audience-landscape
  • Recognize social-economic restraints when trying to achieve a stewardship ethic
  • People need to assess their own lifestyles
  • Understand history and present system in order to recognize barriers and necessary changes
  • Use present issues (i.e. gender issues to illustrate limitations of current ways of thinking)
  • Reach out to unconverted and apathetic
  • Target and identify the converted to work with as partners
  • Introduce ecosystem education in all organizations (i.e. business, schools, finance, government)
  • Focus on youth by affecting curriculum
Strategic development of shared actions - empower partnerships
  • Decentralize
  • Empower local decision-making to create ownership
  • Provide opportunities to participate in decision-making in actions that affect the environment
  • Encourage action - ask people to take action
  • Develop partnerships with others
  • Empower (train) trainers and outreach people
  • Build fun into process
  • Build on successes; build on strengths
Strategic development of shared actions - sample techniques and tools
  • Give funding for stewardship projects; give recognition or incentives for stewardship
  • Generate and distribute information (e.g. provide a lay- person's definition of "stewardship ethic" and "ecosystem approach"
  • Introduce interdisciplinary curricula/cross-curricula in schools
  • Employ multi-media techniques
  • Promote active learning/role modelling (peer taught and reinforced)
  • Ensure public consultation
Create appropriate communications out of the above activities as an alternative to status quo
  • In early phases of the process, tie key phrases to sense of place and grassroots local"ness"
  • Involve societal partners (e.g. utilities, banks, service organizations, etc.) in disseminating materials
  • Avoid mass media until end of process
  • Recognize the time it will take to achieve ecosystem thinking and understand the risk of trying to shift the paradigm
Evaluation and follow-up
  • Develop ecosystem approach to evaluation
  • Evaluate in realistic time frame using realistic criteria
  • Involve stakeholders in own evaluation
  • Celebrate successes
  • Acknowledge involvement


URL: www.ijc.org/rel/boards/wqb/tab0900.html