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The theory of cross-scale interactions: an illustration from remote villages in Sikkim, India

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  • Radhika Gupta

    (Stockholm University)

  • L. Jamila Haider

    (Stockholm University)

  • Henrik Österblom

    (Stockholm University)

Abstract

Interdependence of social-ecological systems (SES) across the globe is rapidly increasing through increased connectivity, for example, through flow of information and trade. This case study of highly remote Himalayan villages in West Sikkim, India, explores how cross-scale interactions can shape the development of a local SES. In-depth interviews across four different institutional scales—state, district, gram panchayat unit and ward, show a rapid shift from subsistence farming to commercial monocultures of large cardamom in the lowland villages of the region. This, alongside a failure to address diverse needs within the policy implementation context, has resulted in economic inequality between lowland and upland villages. The interaction between state policies for conservation, national agriculture and food subsidies, and the effects of globalization are reducing the diversity of foods for the communities, as they become dependent on external markets and government subsidies for income and food. The case study is an example of how imposing uniform institutions can threaten SES to become increasingly homogenized and vulnerable to shocks.

Suggested Citation

  • Radhika Gupta & L. Jamila Haider & Henrik Österblom, 2020. "The theory of cross-scale interactions: an illustration from remote villages in Sikkim, India," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 22(4), pages 3777-3804, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:endesu:v:22:y:2020:i:4:d:10.1007_s10668-019-00329-0
    DOI: 10.1007/s10668-019-00329-0
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. United Nations UN, 2015. "Transforming our World: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development," Working Papers id:7559, eSocialSciences.
    2. Prabhu L. Pingali, 1997. "From Subsistence to Commercial Production Systems: The Transformation of Asian Agriculture," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 79(2), pages 628-634.
    3. R. K. Maikhuri & K. S. Rao & R. L. Semwal, 2001. "Changing scenario of Himalayan agroecosystems: loss of agrobiodiversity, an indicator of environmental change in Central Himalaya, India," Environment Systems and Decisions, Springer, vol. 21(1), pages 23-39, March.
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