Understanding divergent perspectives in marine governance in Kenya

To understand the subtle institutional conditions that underlie marine governance, beyond broad conceptualisations of property rights or pre-defined institutional designs, it is necessary to situate governance structures and human interactions within their historical and current social and political context. A two-tiered stakeholder analysis was developed to facilitate this. This analytical tool illuminates divergent perspectives between actors in two marine social-ecological systems in Southern Kenya. Investigating these differences emphasises the variety of historical contexts, social geographies, and current power relations in which different groups are situated. These historical and contextual factors mediate how groups perceive and respond to governance. They, therefore, have important implications for how institutions function. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.