Examining governance change in wetland restoration. Case: Linnunsuo, Finland

Abstract: Collaborative governance approaches can advance resilience, equity and effectiveness in the restoration of degraded ecosystems. Often co-management arrangements are not static and should be understood as dynamic process between actors. Yet, management and governance dynamics in restoration are not fully understood. This thesis examines the governance development in a wetland restoration at Linnunsuo, Finland. Linnunsuo was degraded due to peat extraction by a state-owned energy company VAPO. Local fishers observed fish deaths in Jukajoki-river, that is connected to Linnunsuo, and VAPO lost its environmental permits. A co-management regime was founded in collaboration with the local community and VAPO to restore Linnunsuo. In 2017 VAPO decided to sell Linnunsuo, and an actor involved in co-management regime purchased the land to lead and continue the restoration work. The study applied a co-management framework to analyse stakeholder representative interviews to study the governance change. The results highlighted that the greatest change in governance since 2017 was self-determination which has led to greater adaptability in reacting to environmental changes, developing operating space that encourages experimenting and learning, some increase in networks and strengthening existing relationships, increased trust between actors, integration diverse knowledge systems and interests to the decision-making, development of mutual understanding and finding mechanisms to resolve conflicts. The study highlighted the importance of recognising the power dynamics of the actors that could hinder inclusive and transparent decision-making if not addressed. The outcomes indicate that the governance change at Linnunsuo has potentially increased resilience, but more studies and evidence should be presented in order to evaluate the socio-ecological resilience development after the governance change, as the study focused only on examining governance processes.