Interactions of Polycentricism and Frugality in Biodiversity Conservation Governance: Empirical Studies from North-east India

Abstract

Literature on polycentric governance has recognized the importance of bottom-up approaches and innovations in governance where non-nation states actors across countries exercise their authority and autonomy to come up with feasible solutions and partnerships in response to relevant problems. In settings that display institutional diversity in management of socio-ecological systems, interests are often manifested in the technological choices, and instances have been observed where frugal solutions are often preferred in polycentric governance arrangements. Concurrently, polycentric arrangements have a very unique element of being built around and/or promoting frugal technological solutions to contextual socio-ecological problems. This brings up the question of whether frugality in technology is linked with polycentricism in governance. The geographical scope of this study is limited to Northeast India- that is often associated with endowment of rich biodiversity and, yet, plagued with the notoriety of being in a state of economical deprivation. The biodiversity conservation governance of this region is observed to be highly complex and shows an overarching presence of pluralism. In this study, we attempt to illustrate, with examples of biodiversity conservation practices, how the intersections of two theoretical approaches- polycentricism and frugality, can enhance our understanding of nuances within the larger concept of polycentric governance.