Wetlands are complex social-ecological systems, which provide both important habitat for species, and multiple tangible and intangible benefits for people. Sustaining long-term benefits through restoration, conservation, and sustainable use is often linked to integrative and adaptive approaches to wetlands management. Such approaches assume democratic ideals, and require multilevel, multisector, and multiactor participation in governance and management arrangements. How then can functional wetlands be restored and sustainably managed as social-ecological systems in strongly state-centric, top-down governance contexts, such as in former Soviet republics? Using three case studies of wetland restoration and management for ecosystem functionality, biodiversity conservation, and human livelihoods, we employ a complex systems approach to analyze key governance and management dynamics underpinning initiatives toward sustainable wetlands in Belarus. We identified five core processes, namely, planning, garnering stakeholder support, obtaining key inputs (financial, human, material, technological, fixed capital), implementing core activities, and integrating learning and knowledge cycles. Key constraints concerned institutional hierarchies, onerous regulations, “negativism,” and financing difficulties. Strategies relating to perception management, risk mitigation, and learning are identified as key to enabling beneficial feedback loops relating to core processes. Although path-dependent societal dynamics of the Soviet era continue to influence wetland systems, combinations of social and ecological crises created windows of opportunity for active participation among nongovernmental actors. Major opportunities for enabling emergent management approaches included identification of confluences of interest amongst stakeholders, as well as the continued mutual integration of Belarus with the international community.

中文翻译：

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白俄罗斯的沼泽，鸟类和浆果：以国家为中心，自上而下的环境中湿地恢复的治理和管理动态

湿地是复杂的社会生态系统，既为物种提供了重要的栖息地，又为人们提供了多种有形和无形的利益。通过恢复，保护和可持续利用来维持长期利益通常与湿地管理的综合和适应性方法联系在一起。这种方法具有民主理想，需要多层次，多部门和多参与者参与治理和管理安排。那么，如何在以国家为中心，自上而下的高度治理环境中，例如在前苏联共和国中，将功能性湿地作为社会生态系统进行恢复和可持续管理？使用湿地恢复和管理的三个案例研究来研究生态系统功能，生物多样性保护和人类生计，我们采用复杂的系统方法来分析关键的治理和管理动态，从而为白俄罗斯的可持续湿地倡议提供支持。我们确定了五个核心流程，即计划，获得利益相关者的支持，获取关键投入（财务，人力，物力，技术，固定资本），实施核心活动以及整合学习和知识周期。关键制约因素涉及机构等级制度，繁重的法规，“否定主义”和融资困难。与感知管理，风险缓解和学习有关的策略被认为是实现与核心过程相关的有益反馈循环的关键。尽管苏联时代的路径依赖型社会动力继续影响着湿地系统，社会和生态危机的结合创造了非政府行为者积极参与的机会之窗。启用紧急管理方法的主要机会包括确定利益相关者之间的利益融合，以及白俄罗斯与国际社会的持续相互融合。