Sociocultural and educational factors in the sustainability of coastal zones : ...

• Author(s): Carvalho, Sara C. ; Alves, Fátima ; Azeiteiro, Ulisses ; Meira-Cartea, Pablo ; Pardal, Miguel
• Date: 2012
• Persistent ID: http://hdl.handle.net/10400.2/3158
• Origin: Repositório Aberto da Universidade Aberta
• Subject(s): Educação ambiental; Participação; Cidadania; Movimentos sociais; Riscos; Sustentabilidade; Coastal zones; Sustainability; Local knowledge; Environmental education; Citizenship; Participatory democracy; Coastal disasters
• Document Type: Article
• Language: English

Description

Purpose - Environmental threats of immediate risk in areas such as coastal zones (CZ) have aroused new trends of citizenship and participatory democracy. This article intends to analyse elements within those trends, such as environmental culture; socio-political context; dynamics of social associative movement and integration of local knowledge. It also aims to contribute to an overview of the opportunities and barriers found in considering sociocultural and educational challenges in CZ. Design/methodology/approach - In this analysis, case studies of integrated coastal management occurring worldwide were selected and reviewed, considering several nuances of socio-economic and political contexts of CZ. Experiences of public response to coastal catastrophes such the Prestige oil spill in Spain, are also described. Findings – Whether implementing sustainable coastal management through either balanced systems (between large and small-scale strategies) or through largely bottom-up approaches, participation is detected as one of the main factors for a successul integrated approach. Principles such as participatory governance and social justice should be adopted in initial phases of sustainable management processes and preferably involve all of the implied actors of CZ. Originality/value - The literature reviewed provides specific highlights on factors that have empirically contributed to participatory sustainability of CZ, integrating three dimensions of citizenship: education, society’s dynamics and culture.