Shouldering the burden: social-ecological scale mismatches in wetland ecosystem management in Aotearoa New Zealand

Social-ecological mismatches in scale limit the recovery of ecosystems from environmental degradation, severely impacting the diverse groups who rely on them. Identifying scale mismatches across cultural groups provides insights into underlying social and structural inequities affecting the management, recovery, and use of natural ecosystems. It can also present pathways to remediate mismatches and inequities. Here, we investigated the nature of social-ecological scale mismatches reported by four actor groups (tangata tiaki (Māori environmental guardians), private landowners, Crown (i.e. State) agencies, and recreational gamebird hunters) associated with wetland ecosystems in Aotearoa New Zealand. We also sought to uncover the nature of burdens and benefits brought about by mismatches and whether these were reportedly shared by all groups. Spatial, temporal, and functional-conceptual scale mismatches enabled by Western-based governance (e.g. policies geared towards individual farm-scale rather than catchment-scale wetland management) were reported to undermine aspects of social, cultural, and environmental wellbeing (e.g. through reduced agency). Mismatches such as focus on short-term economic gain over long-term wetland ecosystem health were reported to hamper particularly Indigenous peoples’ rights and responsibilities towards natural ecosystems. Equitable partnerships and nested governance are mechanisms within biocultural frameworks that can support self-determination by Indigenous peoples. Fostering cultural diversity by embracing value plurality and weaving diverse knowledge systems can improve social-ecological outcomes for both Indigenous and other actor groups. Social justice through equitable management and use of resources can then cascade to promote social-ecological wellbeing, thus benefitting both humans and other elements of nature.