Abstract:
The ways in which multi-level participation contributes to adaptive capacity helps formulate a theory of participation based on resilience thinking. This paper argues there are three keys to meaningful multi-level participation: an institutional environment where the various levels of institutions are linked, inclusivity in decision-making at these various levels, and deliberation. Since much of research literature on pastoralists extols their flexibility, coping capacity, and ability to adapt, this case study among Gabra pastoralists of Kenya details ways in which traditional institutions for governing commons are adapted to the unique biophysical realities of environment, describing their social-ecological system in terms of resilience and adaptive capacity.
