Land use change and hydrosocial transformations – the socionatural production of water, risk and vulnerability in Jambi, Indonesia

Land use transformation towards commercial tree crop plantations is rapidly transforming the waterscape of Jambi province in Sumatra, Indonesia. Alterations in the natural environment as well as rapidly changing socio-cultural and economic relations contribute to new contestations about natural resource governance. Local narratives suggest that land use transformation has contributed both, to an increase of flood occurrence in rainy season as well as an increasing problem of water scarcity in dry season. Local lines of arguments about causality and responsibility for these changes yet remain highly contested. Taking a problem-oriented research approach, this doctoral project aims to disentangle the complex causes, interactions and feedbacks between water, land use and a changing political economy.

Through the lens of the hydrosocial cycle (Linton & Budds 2014), Jennifer aims to identify major processes contributing to the production of new risks and vulnerabilities.

The project builds on extensive qualitative field research in two smaller watersheds in Jambi province. Through participative observation, qualitative interviews and expert interviews Jennifer aims to understand the perceptions of local people towards environmental change, newly arising challenges for their livelihoods as well as regional and social heterogeneities. The PhD project further aims to explore possibilities of combining qualitative social research with natural scientist methods to understand locally-specific complex interactions in the socionatural system.

More details about her work and publications see here