Realizing collective action in agency-constrained contexts: the case of the Community Fish Refuges in Cambodia

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cg.contributor.affiliationHumboldt University of Berlinen_US
cg.contributor.affiliationLeibniz Center for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF)en_US
cg.contributor.affiliationJAINA Studies Community, Tarija, Boliviaen_US
cg.contributor.affiliationInternational Water Management Instituteen_US
cg.contributor.affiliationVila Velha Universityen_US
cg.contributor.donorAcademy for International Agricultural Researchen_US
cg.contributor.donorFederal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, Germanyen_US
cg.contributor.donorLeibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Researchen_US
cg.contributor.donorCGIAR Trust Funden_US
cg.contributor.initiativeAquatic Foodsen_US
cg.contributor.initiativeAsian Mega-Deltasen_US
cg.coverage.countryCambodiaen_US
cg.coverage.iso3166-alpha2KHen_US
cg.coverage.subregionKampong Thomen_US
cg.creator.identifierSanjiv de Silva: 0000-0001-8852-800Xen_US
cg.creator.identifiermark dubois: 0000-0002-8092-6465en_US
cg.identifier.doihttps://doi.org/10.3389/fenvs.2024.1417971en_US
cg.identifier.iwmilibraryH053462en_US
cg.isijournalISI Journalen_US
cg.issn2296-665Xen_US
cg.journalFrontiers in Environmental Scienceen_US
cg.reviewStatusPeer Reviewen_US
cg.volume12en_US
dc.contributor.authorBaldivieso Soruco, C. R.en_US
dc.contributor.authorDe Silva, Sanjiven_US
dc.contributor.authorGleich, P.en_US
dc.contributor.authorYan, Y.en_US
dc.contributor.authorDubois, Marken_US
dc.contributor.authorSieber, S.en_US
dc.contributor.authorBonatti, M.en_US
dc.date.accessioned2025-01-28T23:40:47Zen_US
dc.date.available2025-01-28T23:40:47Zen_US
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10568/170280en_US
dc.titleRealizing collective action in agency-constrained contexts: the case of the Community Fish Refuges in Cambodiaen_US
dcterms.abstractIn rural Cambodia, inland freshwater and rice field fisheries are key sources of income, animal protein, and important ecosystem services. As the flood pulse in the Tonlé Sap floodplain recedes post-monsoon, leaving rice fields and local water bodies dry, Community Fish Refuges (CFRs) offer a promising path to sustain dry season fish stocks, aquatic biodiversity, and secure water for agriculture and husbandry. Their sustained physical integrity and productivity as multiple-use systems hinge on communities’ ability to manage these systems collectively. To explore whether the studied communities have been able to respond to the challenge of collectively governing CFR, we investigate two CFR sites that were established in 2016 by local and international organizations alongside State authorities. Our aim is to investigate two key aspects: 1) the presence, extent, and efficacy of community-level collective action (CA) for managing CFRs; and 2) the factors that either facilitate or inhibit CA regarding CFRs. We conducted a qualitative case study between March and May 2023 at two sites in Kampong Thom Province. These were selected because while they have similar ecological features, they show different management results according to the implementing international organization WorldFish. This paper delves into a process guided by external agents seeking to reshape local behavior and existing institutional frameworks. Results show how centralized power structures and entrenched rural patronage politics in villages limit villagers’ participation and agency in CFRs management. Villagers encounter constraints hindering their capacity to instigate change, prompting a re-evaluation of the CFR Committee’s composition and operation to ensure broader legitimacy among actors. While emphasizing extended project funding and informed external intervention strategies, the study underscores doubts about short-term CA feasibility. It highlights the critical influence of contextual factors and policymakers’ assumptions in achieving effective collective governance. Structural factors and the deeply human process of pulling together a plurality of stakeholders pose challenges to establishing community-based projects prioritizing diverse voices.en_US
dcterms.accessRightsOpen Accessen_US
dcterms.available2025-01-23en_US
dcterms.bibliographicCitationBaldivieso Soruco, C. R.; De Silva, Sanjiv; Gleich, P.; Yan, Y.; Dubois, Mark; Sieber, S.; Bonatti, M. 2025. Realizing collective action in agency-constrained contexts: the case of the Community Fish Refuges in Cambodia. Frontiers in Environmental Science, 12:1417971. [doi: https://doi.org/10.3389/fenvs.2024.1417971]en_US
dcterms.extent1417971.en_US
dcterms.issued2025-01en_US
dcterms.languageenen_US
dcterms.licenseCC-BY-4.0en_US
dcterms.publisherFrontiers Mediaen_US
dcterms.subjectcommunity fish refugesen_US
dcterms.subjectcollective actionen_US
dcterms.subjectrural areasen_US
dcterms.subjectsocioecological systemsen_US
dcterms.subjectsustainable livelihoodsen_US
dcterms.subjectvillagesen_US
dcterms.typeJournal Articleen_US

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