The aim of this thesis is to evaluate how stakeholder participation should be implemented to improve societal acceptance for mega projects. Thereby societal acceptance is seen as a major contributor to project success in this context and involving society in decision-making and two-way dialogue is recognized as the most  effective to achieve this. Based on this research area, a theoretical framework was proposed for the mega project context including prerequisite, process and outcome criteria for stakeholder participation. In this sense, a critical realist ontology stance was assumed to develop the knowledge base and the research was carried out with a qualitative, deductive approach. The case of the coal-power plant “Datteln 4” project and its stakeholder participation forum were used as a unit of analysis for evaluating the proposed framework. From the case, data was collected from interviews with participants as well as forum documents and then analyzed using the template analysis. Based on this evidence, the proposed theoretical framework was adapted to a new case-based framework. The research had three objectives at the outset which were fulfilled in the discussion of the data findings. For the first of these, it was shown that the general link of stakeholder participation and societal acceptance is applicable to the mega project context. A second major finding was that the theoretical framework proposed in literature is relevant, however only to a certain extent. Contextual challenges pertaining to mega projects such as the nature of conflict, long duration and stakeholder positions, however, require more attention to these criteria. Lastly, the necessary further developments for the new case-based framework were discussed including that for mega projects underlying issues of transparency, expectations, power and atmosphere must constantly be considered in stakeholder participation. In conclusion, a stakeholder participation framework is presented that matches the context of mega projects and their need for societal acceptance. Therefore this thesis developed the theoretical knowledge on this underexplored area of project management, and for practitioners it offers criteria to consider during stakeholder participation in mega projects.

Water governance worldwide is going through a shift towards more holistic and participatory approaches. In Europe, the EU Water Framework Directive (WFD) adopted in 2000, aims at protecting surface water and groundwater. The WFD emphasizes the importance of stakeholder participation in planning and implementation of the directive, and in order to reach environmental objectives. However, the empirical findings are insufficient regarding how stakeholder participation can lead to improved decisions and implemented plans. In Sweden, a major water quality problem is eutrophication caused to a large extend by diffuse nutrient leakage from agriculture. Therefore, it is important to involve farmers in water management, since their participation can lead the commitment of mitigation measures for reduced nutrient leakage. The overall aim of this study is to contribute the knowledge and understanding of active stakeholder participation in water management, in particular how it can lead to implementation of water quality objectives. The thesis addresses stakeholder participation in eutrophication management in local Swedish catchments, with a particular focus on farmers’ participation in the commitment of mitigation measures. The results are based on case study research, involving four catchment areas in Sweden with severe eutrophication problems. The thesis identified socio-demographic factors, farmers’ knowledge, and the level of existing information and economic support for wetland creation, as factors affecting farmers’ willingness to participate in wetland creation to mitigate nutrient leakage. In the local catchment groups studied, farmers and other local stakeholders participated to discuss potential mitigation activities. In these, farmers emphasized other emitting actors’ responsibility and commitment in local action plans. Where this was realized, social capital within the group increased and led to further collaboration. The thesis also analyzed large-scale wetland programmes at catchment scale, where the organizational and institutional arrangements were central to realize farmers’ participation: inter-municipal agreements entailed sufficient resources, the organization involved the most relevant actors; and leadership resources were important. The thesis argues that organizing water management at a catchment level can be important to cope with challenges related to stake-holder participation for mitigating diffuse nutrient leakage. In particular for dissemination and collection of information, suggesting potential measures for all concerned actors, provide resources needed to realize actions, and to build trust and collaboration. The thesis also emphasized that stakeholder participation has to be underpinned by a genuine meaning, both for the initiators and the participants. / <p>QC 20150506</p>

This thesis explores potential participatory approaches suitable for a municipal energy planning context. It also analyses the possibility of using those approaches in energy planning processes in ten Swedish municipalities. Swedish municipal energy plans display differences in terms of quality, comprehensiveness and implementation. According to participation literature, planning processes can be improved by stakeholder participation. This study was carried out in four steps: creation of a theoretical framework, survey investigating the municipal energy planners’ views on participation, relating the planners’ views with the theoretical framework and creating suggestions for which participatory approaches to use in the municipalities. Participatory approaches found in literature were categorised into: democracy based, social learning and policy driven participation. Literature states that stakeholder participation should be done as early as possible in a process, but findings from the survey show that those municipalities that have come furthest in their planning process are the ones most interested in stakeholder participation. Indicating that energy planning processes need to gain a sense of maturity before it is even possible to think about involving other stakeholders. Another result shows differences in objectives, central values and targeted stakeholders between the different municipalities. One conclusion from this thesis is the importance for municipalities to understand their objectives for stakeholder participation, since objectives partly determines what kind of participatory approach that will be suitable to use in a given situation.

Discussions about the significance of the social license phenomenon have been increasing over the last two decades, yet the trend has been to approach it from a company perspective. Over the same period, there have been increasing challenges in mine-community relations, and company interventions have not led to the desired outcomes. A credible process for achieving a social licence within a complex and historically sensitive context is currently not in place, which has perpetuated the feelings of dissatisfaction and has led to serious conflict between mining communities and companies. The literature revealed a lack of clarity on the role of the community in the process, necessitating an interrogation of the phenomenon from a community perspective. Legitimacy theory was used as the basis of the study. The multi-dimensional and dynamic nature of the study necessitated the use of qualitative methods and an inductive approach, based upon a case study within two South African mining communities. The results of the study demonstrated that communities are limited in influencing the social licence, and this highlighted the need to incorporate community specific legitimacy, which more closely reflects the reality within communities (their diversity, informality, broad representation, and dynamic nature). The lack of agreement (emanating from communities, government and industry) on legitimate community leadership significantly also impacts on the social licence process. Communities are unable to articulate their expectations to mining companies, and the requirements for a social licence are not being satisfied. The study also highlighted the deep and complex nature of discourse transition, and that mining companies must concentrate on understanding context and produce context-specific interventions. This research contributes by extending the theorisation of legitimacy, as it relates to the social licence, by adding the concept of community legitimacy and proposes a community leadership framework, to incorporate this aspect. A conceptual model, which integrates the context-specific nuances, is therefore proposed for sectors which are dependent upon achieving accord with stakeholders via a social contract, and are experiencing increasing complexity and social tensions relating to their operations. Such a framework would facilitate engagement through representative structures and result in a more robust social licence outcome. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2018. / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / PhD / Unrestricted

Stakeholder participation and perceptions by urban practitioners is a study area that requires further research, particularly in socially innovative living concepts where quality of life and social sustainability are key considerations for end-user stakeholders. The aim of this paper is to contribute to knowledge of these innovations by focusing on urban practitioners’ perception of end-user participation in innovations of living such as co-housing, sharing communities and cooperatives that have been built recently responding to societal needs and growing concerns over social sustainability in urban areas. This study answers research questions of perception of urban practitioners towards the participation of end-user stakeholders, practitioners’ perception in its use of organisational learning, and their interpretation regarding the distribution of power between all stakeholders. Through the lens of a theoretical background based on stakeholder theory and shared value creation, power, empowerment and sharing of power, adaptive and resilient organisations concepts; and adaptive organisational learning processes. Semi-structured interviews with practitioners, employed in the cities of Malmö and Copenhagen, were conducted, transcribed and then interpreted by the authors through an Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis methodology that was used to interpret data. Findings suggest that most perceive a value in stakeholder participation and those practitioners exposed to end-user stakeholder participation have a higher comprehension of its potential value. Respondents agreed that the municipality remains a key stakeholder in the shaping process, even though this was not part of initial questioning. Finally, there is a notion of an interplay between power and financial resources that still controls the development process. The paper concludes while there is a perceived value of the processes and knowledge sharing on the process of end-user stakeholders not all perceive the benefits. The authors recommend further development in this area to increase comprehension, knowledge sharing of the possibilities and barriers to innovations of living.

School principalship has evolved over the years. The dawn of democracy in South Africa has brought with it a myriad of changes which are demanding to both novice and experienced principal. The study is based on the premise that there are challenges facing school principals within the current democratic milieu. The research study aimed at arriving at an exploration of the demands posed by democracy in schools. The study adopted a Qualitative approach based on an interpretivism paradigm. A lacuna of literature was reviewed to gain insight on the concept: democracy in education. The population of the study is school principals within the Rustenburg Area Project Office structured interviews were used to collect audio – taped data. The data was analysed and collapsed in categories which subsequently themes were indentified. The identified themes with literature reviewed were condensed into findings. The findings had a direct link to literature renewed in previous chapters. Recommendations and suggestions for further research finalised the study. Principals are facing challenges in their leadership roles within a democratic milieu. / MEd (Education Management), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

School principalship has evolved over the years. The dawn of democracy in South Africa has brought with it a myriad of changes which are demanding to both novice and experienced principal. The study is based on the premise that there are challenges facing school principals within the current democratic milieu. The research study aimed at arriving at an exploration of the demands posed by democracy in schools. The study adopted a Qualitative approach based on an interpretivism paradigm. A lacuna of literature was reviewed to gain insight on the concept: democracy in education. The population of the study is school principals within the Rustenburg Area Project Office structured interviews were used to collect audio – taped data. The data was analysed and collapsed in categories which subsequently themes were indentified. The identified themes with literature reviewed were condensed into findings. The findings had a direct link to literature renewed in previous chapters. Recommendations and suggestions for further research finalised the study. Principals are facing challenges in their leadership roles within a democratic milieu. / MEd (Education Management), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

Humanity is facing challenges of sustainably producing enough food for a growing population without further eroding the world’s ecosystems. Transformation of natural habitats into agriculture has resulted in opportunities for civilization, but has also led to land degradation and loss of biodiversity, threatening the generation of ecosystem services. A better understanding of interlinkages and trade-offs among ecosystem services, and the spatial scales at which services are generated, used and interact, is needed in order to successfully inform land use policies. This includes the need to develop transdisciplinary tools that can disentangle the relationships between the supply of and demand for ecosystem services. This thesis investigates agricultural landscapes as complex social-ecological systems, and uses a multi-method approach to assess ecosystem service generation from different types of agricultural landscapes and to examine the social-ecological nature of these services. More specifically, the thesis discusses the importance of appropriate spatial scales, explores landscape change, integrates stakeholder knowledge and develops tools to investigate supply and demand of multiple ecosystem services.  Paper I reviews the literature on ecosystem service mapping, revealing that services were mostly mapped at intermediate spatial scales (municipality and province), and rarely at local scales (farm/village). Although most of the reviewed studies used a resolution of 1 hectare or less, more case-specific local scale mapping is required to unravel the fine-scale dynamics of ecosystem service generation that are needed to inform landscape planning. To explore future uncertainties and identify relevant ecosystem services in a study area, paper II builds alternative scenarios using participatory scenario planning in the Upper Thukela region, South Africa. The paper compares methods to select services for an ecosystem service assessment showing that scenario planning added limited value for identifying ecosystem services, although it improved knowledge of the study area and availed useful discussions with stakeholders. Papers III and IV combines social and biophysical data to study the supply and demand of ecosystem services at farm- and landscape level, through participatory mapping and expert assessments in the Upper Thukela region, South Africa (paper III), and through in-depth interviews and biophysical surveys in Uppsala County, Sweden (paper IV), including small-scale and large-scale farmers. Both papers find apparent differences between the farmer groups in terms of the supply and the demand of services, and also the capacity of the farmers to influence the generation of services (paper III). Paper IV further establishes the importance of using multiple indicators combining social and biophysical data to quantify and investigate the complex social-ecological nature of ecosystem services. A cross-case comparison of ecosystem service bundles, using data from papers III and IV, finds similarities in bundles generated in the large-scale systems, while the small-scale agriculture bundles varied. This thesis provides new insights into the social-ecological generation of ecosystem services at fine scales such as farm and landscape levels, and shows the importance of including the knowledge of various stakeholders, combining different methods and tools to increase the understanding of supply and demand of ecosystem services. / <p>At the time of the doctoral defense, the following paper was unpublished and had a status as follows: Paper 3: Manuscript.</p>

Due to degrading marine environments and loss of biological diversity, marine protected areas (MPAs) are increasingly utilized to protect living marine resources. Unfortunately, effective management of these areas is often held back by conflicts between conservation and user interests, together with the limited knowledge on the functioning of marine ecosystems. As a way of reducing tensions and closing knowledge-gaps, collaborative arrangements between stakeholders and decision-makers are increasingly sought and comprised into policy guiding the establishment of MPAs. Despite the rising scholarly interest in these matters, little has been written about whether the commitments to collaboration expressed in policy are fulfilled in practice. Pursuing this question, the purpose of this thesis is to examine the resemblance between policy and practice in the context of collaboration between decision-makers and stakeholders during the establishment of MPAs. A case study of the Swedish Skånska Kattegatt, a marine protected area on the west coast of Sweden, reveals a discrepancy between policy and practice during the early stages of the process, regarding the construction of the knowledge base of the decision. The study identifies a possible cause to be lacking resources at the County administrative board responsible for the establishment, a crucial aspect to which more attention needs to be directed in similar, future settings.

The loss of ecosystem resilience and rangeland (often referred to as veld in South Africa) productivity is a major problem in the semi-arid Savanna environments of southern Africa. The over-utilization of rangelands in the Molopo region of the North- West Province in South Africa has resulted in profound habitat transformations. A common regional indicator of rangeland degradation is the imbalance in the grasswoody ratio, characterized by a loss of grass cover and density with increased shrub or tree density. This can result in major reductions of rangeland productivity for the grazing animal, forcing land users to apply active or passive restoration actions to improve rangeland condition, control the thickening of woody species (bush thickening), mitigate economic losses and restoring the aesthetical value of the Savanna environment for ecotourism and game hunting aspects. This study formed part of the multinational EU-funded PRACTICE project (“Prevention and restoration actions to combat desertification: an integrated assessment”). The first aim of the study was to evaluate locally applied restoration actions using a participatory approach, followed by interviews with certain stakeholders that formed part of a multi-stakeholder platform (MSP) related to the livestock and game farming community in the Molopo. Participants of the MSP ranked indicators according to their relative importance regarding the restoration actions on an individual basis. The individual ranking results were combined with quantitative bio-physical and qualitative socio-economic measurements for each indicator in a multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA), whereby the alternative actions were ranked according to their relevancy and performance. The results were then shared with members of the MSP in order to stimulate discussion among the members and contribute to the social learning of the project outcome. The overall positive response and acceptance of results by members of the MSP changed the perceptions and objectives of the land users regarding rangeland management. This type of participatory assessment was therefore found to be very promising in helping to identify more sustainable actions to mitigate rangeland degradation in the Molopo Savanna region. There is, however, still an urgent need to create legal policy frameworks and institution-building, to support local-level implementation in all socio-ecological and economic settings, particularly in communal areas. The second aim was to evaluate the effect of two chemical bush control actions (chemical hand- (HC) and aeroplane control (AC)) as well as rotational grazing (RGM) on the Molopo Savanna vegetation. Results show that rangeland productivity, i.e. forage production and grazing capacity, was found to be negatively related to the woody phytomass in the savanna system studied. Bush thickening influenced grass species composition which was commonly associated with a decline in the abundance of sub-climax to climax grasses, respectively. All three actions (HC, AC & RGM) significantly reduced the woody phytomass and increased forage production and grazing capacity. Although AC resulted in the highest reduction of woody phytomass, the highest forage production and grazing capacity was found under RGM. The second highest grazing capacity was found in HC sites, which was due to a high abundance of perennial, palatable climax grass species. Results from this study also show that the patterns and compositions of grass species, grass functional groups (GFGs) and woody densities indicated by RGM and chemical HC, best resemble a productive and stable savanna system that provides important key resources to support both grazing and browsing herbivores. / MSc (Environmental Sciences), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014