The notions of social wellbeing are so specific to a particular society or culture that adopting a unidimensional approach for assessment is not feasible. What is most critical here is not to assume a single or universal approach but to investigate how the research subjects themselves identify and relate to the concept of wellbeing. Therefore, the principal objective of this research is to uncover the intrinsic rhythms of social wellbeing in small-scale fishery and dried fish production systems by drawing on qualitative data. The case study area of this chapter—Sagar Island—is located on the southwest edge of the Indian Sundarbans. Hence, it is highly exposed to coastal flooding, storm surges, and cyclones. The research methods employed to tease out the impacts of specific and individual facets of social wellbeing include participant observations, semi-structured interviews, and FGDs. The review suggests that changes in social-ecological rhythms affect the values that exist among the fishing communities and eventually disturb the rhythm of their social wellbeing. The results of our study indicate that exploring the rhythms of the fishing community’s social wellbeing could provide valuable insights to achieve improved management of fisheries resources. It can also help identify the present threat to small-scale fishery and dried fish production systems, which will bolster the community’s social wellbeing and their positive response to social-ecological changes.

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Exploring the Rhythms of Social Wellbeing in a Complex Coastal Social-Ecological System: A Case of Small-Scale Fishery in Sagar Island, Indian Sundarbans

  • Sevil Berenji,
  • Ankur Shukla

摘要

The notions of social wellbeing are so specific to a particular society or culture that adopting a unidimensional approach for assessment is not feasible. What is most critical here is not to assume a single or universal approach but to investigate how the research subjects themselves identify and relate to the concept of wellbeing. Therefore, the principal objective of this research is to uncover the intrinsic rhythms of social wellbeing in small-scale fishery and dried fish production systems by drawing on qualitative data. The case study area of this chapter—Sagar Island—is located on the southwest edge of the Indian Sundarbans. Hence, it is highly exposed to coastal flooding, storm surges, and cyclones. The research methods employed to tease out the impacts of specific and individual facets of social wellbeing include participant observations, semi-structured interviews, and FGDs. The review suggests that changes in social-ecological rhythms affect the values that exist among the fishing communities and eventually disturb the rhythm of their social wellbeing. The results of our study indicate that exploring the rhythms of the fishing community’s social wellbeing could provide valuable insights to achieve improved management of fisheries resources. It can also help identify the present threat to small-scale fishery and dried fish production systems, which will bolster the community’s social wellbeing and their positive response to social-ecological changes.