Divergent and Shared Understandings of Environmental Issues in Kenya

Environmental issues are also often political issues, and people have divergent views on the underlying problems and potential solutions. Without a common understanding of or agreement on these issues, collective environmental action cannot occur. In part due to its economically and politically diverse population, the Narok District in Kenya has experienced difficulties finding solutions for environmental issues. Within the District, the Mau Forest (MF) and the Massai Mara National Reserve (MMNR) provide both financial and ecological benefits to the community. Due to deforestation, insufficient water management, and water pollution, the community is experiencing extreme droughts. The focus of the study was to determine the shared and divergent views of environmental perspectives among teachers and community members within the Narok District, Kenya. This study investigated a collaborative strategy to engage and motivate the local stakeholders within the District to manage local environmental issues.

This region of Kenya in which the Narok District is located is important for species migration. An increase in conventional agriculture and other industries led to depleted resources for migrating and local wildlife, which resulted in deaths among these species. In order to mitigate these issues, the Kenyan government decided to no longer allow cattle grazing in the MF and MMNR. This directly impacted the indigenous group in the Narok District, because they relied on the land within the MF and MMNR for their cattle. Due to the lack of community involvement in decision making, the government's solution for these issues were not agreed upon by all members of the Narok District, which resulted in community members distrust in government involvement.

For this study, the researchers chose a social learning approach, which allows participants to discuss various insights and solutions together. The results of a social learning approach may often end in either complimentary schismogenesis (CS) or symmetrical schismogenesis (SS). CS refers to individuals who continue to disagree on a topic and there is no resolution. SS refers to individuals who, although they disagree, come to a respect and understanding of the other's viewpoints. The researchers believe the best outcome of a social learning approach is either full agreement among groups or SS, because this will allow for a greater chance to come to an agreeable solution.

The researchers selected specific teachers and community members of the Narok District to ensure diverse representation from various types of schools (public, private, boarding day schools) and local perspectives. Participants were selected from different locations, cultural/ethnic backgrounds, education levels, as well as teaching and life experience. The study attempted to balance gender, but due to a majority of female teachers in the District, this goal was not reached. This study consisted of two data collection phases. For Phase 1, a total of 39 participants (23 female, 16 male) produced photo vignettes. The participants were asked to take photos that showed their views of the local environment and include a brief description (1-3 sentences) of the photo. The results of this phase are not discussed in-depth in this study and were reported in another article (Quigley et al., 2014).

In this study, the results Phase 2 were the primary focus. The participants of Phase 2 consisted of the original 39 participants for Phase 1 as well as an additional 16 new participants. The researchers collected data from 55 participants (30 female, 25 male) using a technique called vignette interviews, which consisted of four mixed focus groups with individuals from varying geographic locations. During the focus groups, the facilitator shared a photograph and an associated narrative from Phase 1. The focus groups were then asked follow-up questions about the photograph and narrative with the intention of creating a discussion among participants. The goal was to understand any shared or divergent views about the different environmental issues from the interviews. This process was then repeated with eight to ten different vignettes per group. The researchers analyzed the transcripts for themes.

This study indicated that shared and divergent viewpoints among participants fell into 3 categories: positive impacts, negative cycles, and solutions. Overall, the participants had shared similar views regarding negative cycles of environmental degradation and economics, positive impacts of utilizing indigenous knowledge, and positive impacts of empowerment. Participants consistently diverged on themes related to solutions and innovations involving the government.

Participants showed moments of CS during Phase 2: many of the participants became increasingly agitated and defensive during certain divergent topics, such as innovations in energy technology, for example using renewable energy rather than coal. In order to avoid or deter from this behavior, the researchers engaged in different SS approaches, trying to bring the participants to an understanding of one another or agree on a central point. For example, although the participants disagreed that renewable energy would be able to take the place of coal, both groups agreed that a third fuel alternative was the worst option of the three, which allowed them to come to some agreement and avoided a continued CS.

This study has limitations. The research focused solely on a small district in Kenya, meaning that is results cannot be generalized to other locations. Another study undertaken in a different context would produce different results. Additionally, introducing new individuals for Phase 2 might have changed the overall results, because they did not receive the same initial experience as the Phase 1 participants.

Shared understandings or, ideally, shared perspectives are prerequisites for collaborative or collective action. Practitioners can work to promote shared understandings among participants using a social learning approach, and fostering discussions based on stewardship and solutions. For example, a social learning approach could help guide climate change conversations. Working to develop SS, or how to listen and understand one another's varying perspectives, can mitigate defensiveness and divergence while promoting collective action.