564
emerged, but questions remain as to how this new “frontier” will affect fish populations, sovereignty issues and the Law of the Sea, and human migration across this
landscape. Likewise, conflicting policy among nations regarding energy exploration
is already starting to develop, with Russia planting its flag on the bottom of the
Arctic Ocean and starting to conduct both oil and gas exploration and military
operations.
20.3 Toolkit to Address and Manage Conflicts
How to address and manage these types of challenges and conflicts is a critical question. Traditional sector-specific approaches to conflict resolution make it difficult to
develop solutions across the nexus. In many cases, regulations or court adjudications define who wins, focus on a specific problem, and often end with parties in
contentious positions.
In contrast, creativity in addressing and managing conflicts that address all elements of the food–energy–water nexus is possible using a range of tools. Methods
of collaborative governance and alternative dispute resolution (ADR, also called
“appropriate dispute resolution”) can provide ways forward (see, e.g., Moffitt and
Bordone 2005). ADR processes incorporate the human dimension of environmental
problems directly by designing problem-specific plans to help stakeholders arrive at
informed decisions in a way that can account for legal, scientific, and political ambiguity and risk (Fowler and Shi 2016).
Much as challenges to the FEW system come from many sources, ways to
address them also come from many sources. Managing issues within the nexus does
not revolve around one single method or solution. Instead, tools to manage conflict
range from an individual to international, informal to formal, legislative to judicial.
This section explores such tools and provides examples of how they have been used.
Because the relationship between the parts of the food, energy, and water nexus
is still developing, traditional practices of conflict resolution, negotiation, collaborative governance, the use of “serious games,” facilitation, mediation, and arbitration
can offer innovative ways to solve issues between sectors. Even judicial resolution
of conflicts—at local, national, and international levels—is important to consider.
Finally, international treaties can be important tools in helping manage potential
conflicts (see Chap. 6).
20.3.1 Traditional Dispute Resolution Practices
Traditional dispute resolution mechanisms are as old as human society. Village
elders, religious leaders, and others have historically been called on to help resolve
disputes between people (see, e.g., Barrett and Barrett 2004; Dempsey and Coburn
2010). Modern day usage of traditional dispute resolution mechanisms can be quite
L. B. Fowler and R. T. Caccese
emerged, but questions remain as to how this new “frontier” will affect fish populations, sovereignty issues and the Law of the Sea, and human migration across this
landscape. Likewise, conflicting policy among nations regarding energy exploration
is already starting to develop, with Russia planting its flag on the bottom of the
Arctic Ocean and starting to conduct both oil and gas exploration and military
operations.
20.3 Toolkit to Address and Manage Conflicts
How to address and manage these types of challenges and conflicts is a critical question. Traditional sector-specific approaches to conflict resolution make it difficult to
develop solutions across the nexus. In many cases, regulations or court adjudications define who wins, focus on a specific problem, and often end with parties in
contentious positions.
In contrast, creativity in addressing and managing conflicts that address all elements of the food–energy–water nexus is possible using a range of tools. Methods
of collaborative governance and alternative dispute resolution (ADR, also called
“appropriate dispute resolution”) can provide ways forward (see, e.g., Moffitt and
Bordone 2005). ADR processes incorporate the human dimension of environmental
problems directly by designing problem-specific plans to help stakeholders arrive at
informed decisions in a way that can account for legal, scientific, and political ambiguity and risk (Fowler and Shi 2016).
Much as challenges to the FEW system come from many sources, ways to
address them also come from many sources. Managing issues within the nexus does
not revolve around one single method or solution. Instead, tools to manage conflict
range from an individual to international, informal to formal, legislative to judicial.
This section explores such tools and provides examples of how they have been used.
Because the relationship between the parts of the food, energy, and water nexus
is still developing, traditional practices of conflict resolution, negotiation, collaborative governance, the use of “serious games,” facilitation, mediation, and arbitration
can offer innovative ways to solve issues between sectors. Even judicial resolution
of conflicts—at local, national, and international levels—is important to consider.
Finally, international treaties can be important tools in helping manage potential
conflicts (see Chap. 6).
20.3.1 Traditional Dispute Resolution Practices
Traditional dispute resolution mechanisms are as old as human society. Village
elders, religious leaders, and others have historically been called on to help resolve
disputes between people (see, e.g., Barrett and Barrett 2004; Dempsey and Coburn
2010). Modern day usage of traditional dispute resolution mechanisms can be quite
L. B. Fowler and R. T. Caccese