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30 April 2019 Sustainable Rangeland Management in Southwest Iran: Understanding Changes in Experts' Attitudes Toward Livelihood Alternatives
Hojatollah Khedrigharibvand, Hossein Azadi, Dereje Teklemariam, Ataollah Ebrahimi, Elham Omidzadeh Ardali, Veronique Van Acker, Veerle Van Eetvelde, Philippe De Maeyer, Frank Witlox
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Abstract

The importance of knowledge sharing, as an integral part of decision making, has been highly acknowledged by many authors. However, the process in which knowledge sharing should be conducted has remained a debatable issue. In this study, changes in experts' attitudes, as a result of the knowledge-sharing process, in the context of rangeland management were assessed. We demonstrated a three-step knowledge-sharing process while recognizing collaborative knowledge sharing systems, which involves knowledge-sharing tools including face-to-face and virtual approaches. The process was applied to explore experts' attitudes regarding livelihood alternatives in the Bazoft region of southwestern Iran. Sixty experts were selected from three groups categorized as key local stakeholders, practitioners, and scientists. First, the experts were independently given the task of ranking livelihood alternatives. Next, for a better understanding of alternatives and enhancing their view, additional knowledge and information were provided. Thereafter, their attitudes in the final step were assessed. According to the findings, change in the experts' attitudes could take place, which eventually resulted in the prioritization of livelihood alternatives to approach sustainable rangeland management (SRM). The synergy of experts' knowledge, which can be realized through a collaborative knowledge sharing process, can be further pursued by devising a workable policy framework to approach SRM.

© 2019 Published by Elsevier Inc. on behalf of The Society for Range Management.
Hojatollah Khedrigharibvand, Hossein Azadi, Dereje Teklemariam, Ataollah Ebrahimi, Elham Omidzadeh Ardali, Veronique Van Acker, Veerle Van Eetvelde, Philippe De Maeyer, and Frank Witlox "Sustainable Rangeland Management in Southwest Iran: Understanding Changes in Experts' Attitudes Toward Livelihood Alternatives," Rangeland Ecology and Management 72(3), 433-445, (30 April 2019). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rama.2019.01.005
Published: 30 April 2019
KEYWORDS
collaborative knowledge-sharing systems
collaborative research
participatory decision making
rangeland degradation
team knowledge
vulnerability
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