The Social-Ecological Keystone Concept: A Quantifiable Metaphor for Understanding the Structure, Function, and Resilience of a Biocultural System

Kawika B. Winter, Noa Kekuewa Lincoln and Fikret Berkes
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Kawika B. Winter: Hawai‘i Institute of Marine Biology, University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, Kāne‘ohe, HI 96744, USA
Noa Kekuewa Lincoln: Department of Tropical Plant and Soil Sciences, University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA
Fikret Berkes: Natural Resources Institute, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB R3T 2N2, Canada

Sustainability, 2018, vol. 10, issue 9, 1-19

Abstract: Social-ecological system theory draws upon concepts established within the discipline of ecology, and applies them to a more holistic view of a human-in-nature system. We incorporated the keystone concept into social-ecological system theory, and used the quantum co-evolution unit (QCU) to quantify biocultural elements as either keystone components or redundant components of social-ecological systems. This is done by identifying specific elements of biocultural diversity, and then determining dominance within biocultural functional groups. The “Hawaiian social-ecological system” was selected as the model of study to test this concept because it has been recognized as a model of human biocomplexity and social-ecological systems. Based on both quantified and qualified assessments, the conclusions of this research support the notion that taro cultivation is a keystone component of the Hawaiian social-ecological system. It further indicates that sweet potato cultivation was a successional social-ecological keystone in regions too arid to sustain large-scale taro cultivation, and thus facilitated the existence of an “alternative regime state” in the same social-ecological system. Such conclusions suggest that these biocultural practices should be a focal point of biocultural restoration efforts in the 21st century, many of which aim to restore cultural landscapes.

Keywords: alternative regime state; portable biocultural toolkit; social-ecological system theory; Hawaii; Colocasia esculenta (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (14)

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