Fuzzy cognitive mapping of stakeholders’ perception of Nature-based Solutions for soil and water resources management

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Günaçtı M. C., Yeşilyurt S. N., Barbaros F., Çetinkaya C. P., Pana E., Takavakoglou V., ...Daha Fazla

Centennial Celebration and Congress of the International Union of Soil Sciences, Florence, İtalya, 19 - 21 Mayıs 2024, ss.771, (Özet Bildiri)

  • Yayın Türü: Bildiri / Özet Bildiri
  • Basıldığı Şehir: Florence
  • Basıldığı Ülke: İtalya
  • Sayfa Sayıları: ss.771
  • Açık Arşiv Koleksiyonu: AVESİS Açık Erişim Koleksiyonu
  • Dokuz Eylül Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet

Özet

Soil and water degradation is one of the key challenges in the Mediterranean region as well as around the

globe. Sectors depending on water resources, most notably rural communities are facing water scarcity

mainly aggravated by natural and anthropogenic effects such as climate change, population, and pollution

increase, among others. One of the solutions to mitigate the effects of water scarcity is to use water

efficiently such as through the use of agro-ecological methods including Nature-based Solutions (NbSs). To

ensure the wider uptake and application of NbSs, both the awareness and the capacity of rural communities

have to be increased.

Thus, we investigated the current perception of NbSs among the rural communities in five hotspots of land

and water degradation in, respectively, Algeria, Egypt, Greece, Lebanon, and Turkey. This was achieved

through a Value-Attitude-Perception (VAP) survey which was organized in the context of the PRIMA funded

project entitled “Safeguarding the Livelihood of Rural Communities and the Environment in the

Mediterranean Through Nature-based Solutions (Mara-Mediterra)” (Grant Agreement No:2121).

To map and evaluate stakeholder perceptions of NbSs, a well-known mapping technique entitled Fuzzy

Cognitive Mapping (FCM) is employed. Essentially, FCM is a qualitative soft computing method, introduced

in the field of cognitive maps (CM). FCM is a graph-based technique that, like any conventional CM, is made

up of concepts and causal connections. The distinction is that in FCM, the relationships between concepts

are defined by fuzzy connections and their models are fuzzy sets.

The results of the FCM are based on an aggregate of 467 replies collected to the VAP survey that was

conducted across 5 countries, capturing the viewpoint of farmers as end-users of NbSs. The findings bring a

valuable means to increase awareness and build capacity towards the wider uptake of NbSs both among

farmers, and local water managers, as well as policy- and decision-makers in the agricultural and water

sectors.