Farmers in water scarce landscapes adapt in response to the erratic weather conditions. Adaptation through irrigation, depend on water access, while impacting on downstream water availability. Competition for scarce water commons among multiple users defines a collective action problem. Farmer land-, and water-use decisions are based on both economic rationality of cost-benefit expectations, and relational rationality of reconciling conflicting opinions of important person(s) in a farmer’s social world, such as other water users, government, or spirits. Serious games that represent this duality of choices can help both players and interested others to analyze how social relations influence farmer decision-making.
Intervention
Here we describe the generic design and early experiences with specific use of the KILIMO NA MAJI game. The game is designed to analyse effect of social relations as farmers individually and/or collectively explore alternative options for crop production in scarce water commons.
Methods
We designed and applied the game in the Mt. Kenya region; a semi-arid region, ranging across a gradient of upstream water abundance to downstream water scarcity. The design of the game was informed by literature, and information from local stakeholders. We analyzed data from the pilot game sessions to assess quality and effectiveness of the game using Likert scale and a ‘solution space’ which defines a bandwidth around the mean where tradeoffs between farm-income and water-use can be partially managed.
Results
Playing the game with local stakeholders showed that social relations that participants had with traders, agro-export companies and other important persons determined where their game outcomes were positioned within the solution space.
Conclusion
Playing KILIMO NA MAJI can help assess influence of social relations and support collective exploration of alternatives to crops production in water scarce landscapes.
BarsM. LEGrusseP. LEAlbouchiL. (2014). AquaFej: A simulation game for planning water management - An experiment in central Tunisia. International Journal of Sustainable Development, 17(3), 242–260. https://doi.org/10.1504/IJSD.2014.064180
2.
BiggsR.de VosA.PreiserR.ClementsH.MaciejewskiK.SchlüterM. (2021). The Routledge Handbook of Research Methods for Social-Ecological Systems. Taylor & Francis.
3.
EdwardsP.Sharma-WallaceL.WrefordA.HoltL.Cradock-HenryN. A.FloodS.VelardeS. J. (2019). Tools for adaptive governance for complex social-ecological systems: A review of role-playing-games as serious games at the community-policy interface. Environmental Research Letters, 14(11). https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/ab4036
EtienneM. (2014). Companion Modelling: A participatory approach to support sustainable development. In Companion Modelling: A Participatory Approach to Support Sustainable Development (Vol. 9789401785570). SpringerNetherlands. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-8557-0
6.
EtienneM.Du ToitD. R.PollardS. (2011). ARDI: A Co-construction Method for Participatory Modeling in Natural Resources. 16(1). https://about.jstor.org/terms
7.
FalkT.ZhangW.Meinzen-DickR.BartelsL.SanilR.PriyadarshiniP.SolievI. (2023). Games for experiential learning: triggering collective changes in commons management. Ecology and Society, 28(1). https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-13862-280130
8.
FanadzoM.NcubeB. (2018). Challenges and opportunities for revitalising smallholder irrigation schemes in South Africa. In Water SA (Vol. 44, Issue 3, pp. 436–447). South African Water Research Commission. https://doi.org/10.4314/wsa.v44i3.11
9.
FerrandN.FarolfiS.AbramiG.Du ToitD. (2009, June). WAT-A-GAME: sharing water and policies in your own basin. In 40th Annual Conference, Int. Simulation and Gaming Association (pp. 17-p). https://hal.science/hal-01355501
10.
FjællingsdalK. S.KlöcknerC. A. (2020). Green Across the Board: Board Games as Tools for Dialogue and Simplified Environmental Communication. Simulation and Gaming, 51(5), 632–652. https://doi.org/10.1177/1046878120925133
11.
García-BarriosL. E.SpeelmanE. N.PimmM. S. (2008). An educational simulation tool for negotiating sustainable natural resource management strategies among stakeholders with conflicting interests. Ecological Modelling, 210(1–2), 115–126. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2007.07.009
12.
GithinjiM.van NoordwijkM.MuthuriC.SpeelmanE.HofstedeG. J. (2023). Farmer land-use decision-making from an instrumental and relational perspective. Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability.
13.
GithinjiM.van NoordwijkM.MuthuriC.SpeelmanE. N.KampenJ.HofstedeG. J. (2024). “You never farm alone”: farmer land-use decisions influenced by social relations. Journal of rural studies.
14.
HertzogT.PoussinJ. C.TangaraB.KouribaI.JaminJ. Y. (2014). A role-playing game to address future water management issues in a large irrigated system: Experience from Mali. Agricultural Water Management, 137, 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agwat.2014.02.003
15.
HofstedeG. J.de CaluwéL.PetersV. (2010). Why simulation games work-in search of the active substance: A synthesis. Simulation and Gaming, 41(6), 824–843. https://doi.org/10.1177/1046878110375596
16.
HofstedeG. J.JonkerC. M.VerwaartT.Yorke-SmithN. (2019). The lemon car game across cultures: Evidence of relational rationality. Group Decision and Negotiation, 28(5), 849–877.
17.
HofstedeG. J.LiuC. (2020). To Stay or Not to Stay? Artificial Sociality in GRASP World. Springer Proceedings in Complexity, 217–231. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-34127-5_20
18.
JanssenM. A.FalkT.Meinzen-DickR.VollanB. (2023). Using games for social learning to promote self-governance. In Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability (Vol. 62). Elsevier B.V. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cosust.2023.101289
19.
KandaE. K.LuttaV. O. (2022). The status and challenges of a modern irrigation system in Kenya: A systematic review. Irrigation and Drainage, 71(S1), 27–38. https://doi.org/10.1002/ird.2700
20.
KemperT. D. (1968). Reference groups, socialization, and achievement. American Sociological Review, 31–45.
21.
KemperT. D. (2006). Power and status and the power-status theory of emotions. In Handbook of the sociology of emotions (pp. 87–113). Springer.
22.
KemperT. D. (2011). Status, power, and ritual interaction: a relational reading of Durkheim, Goffman, and Collins. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd.
23.
KemperT. D. (2017). Elementary Forms of Social Relations: Status, power, and reference groups. Routledge.
24.
KimwatuD. M.MundiaC. N.MakokhaG. O. (2021). Developing a new socio-economic drought index for monitoring drought proliferation: a case study of Upper Ewaso Ngiro River Basin in Kenya. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 193(4). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-021-08989-0
25.
KitemeD. (2020). Hotspots of Water Scarcity and Conflicts in the Ewaso Ng’iro North Basin.
26.
KomZ.NethengweN. S.MpandeliN. S.ChikooreH. (2022). Determinants of small-scale farmers’ choice and adaptive strategies in response to climatic shocks in Vhembe District, South Africa. GeoJournal, 87(2), 677–700. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10708-020-10272-7
27.
KrizW. C. (2017). Historical Roots and New Fruits of Gaming and Simulation. In Simulation and Gaming (Vol. 48, Issue 5, pp. 583–587). SAGE Publications Inc. https://doi.org/10.1177/1046878117732845
28.
LairezJ.Lopez-RidauraS.JourdainD.FalconnierG. N.LienhardP.StrifflerB.SyfongxayC.AffholderF. (2020). Context matters: Agronomic field monitoring and participatory research to identify criteria of farming system sustainability in South-East Asia. Agricultural Systems, 182. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agsy.2020.102830
29.
LankfordB. A.SokileC. S.YawsonD. K.LeviteH. (2003). The River Basin Game: A water Dialogue Tool (75). International Water Management Institute.
30.
Le BarsM.Le GrusseP.AllayaM.AttonatyJ. M.MahjoubiR.Le GrusseP. (2004). NECC: un jeu de simulation pour l’aide à la décision collective. Application à une région méditerranéenne ‘virtuelle.’ https://hal.science/cirad-00189712
31.
LesrimaS.NyamasyoG.KiemoK. (2021). Unresolved Water Conflicts by Water Sector Institutions in Ewaso Ng’iro North River Sub-Basin, Kenya. Journal of Applied Sciences and Environmental Management, 25(2), 269–275. https://doi.org/10.4314/jasem.v25i2.21
32.
LoudinS. (2019). Can we use a social experiment to assess the impact of participatory processes for water management? Studying a generic method tackling the evaluation of capabilities. AgroParisTech.
33.
McConvilleJ. R.BillgerM.NiwagabaC. B.KainJ. H. (2023). Assessing the potential to use serious gaming in planning processes for sanitation designed for resource recovery. Environmental Science and Policy, 145, 262–274. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envsci.2023.04.002
34.
Ng’ang’aT. W.CoulibalyJ. Y.GacheneC. K. K.KironchiG. (2021). An oasis in the dryland of Kenya! The case of irrigation as an adaptation strategy among the transitioning pastoralists and agro-pastoralists of Laikipia County, Kenya. Journal of Cleaner Production, 303. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2021.126764
35.
NjinjuS. M.GweyiJ. O.MayoliR. N. (2022). Drought-Resilient Climate Smart Sorghum Varieties for Food and Industrial Use in Marginal Frontier Areas of Kenya. In Agriculture, Livestock Production and Aquaculture (pp. 33–44). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-93262-6_3
36.
NordmanE. (2021). The uncommon knowledge of Elinor Ostrom: Essential lessons for collective action. Island Press.
37.
OstromE. (1990). Governing the commons: The evolution of institutions for collective action. Cambridge university press.
38.
PeterE.ImatariO. (2019). 50 FOOD INSECURITY IN ARID AND SEMI-ARID LANDS (ASAL) IN AFRICA (PAID). Journal of African Studies and Sustainable Development, 2(8), 2630–7073. https://doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.27700.81281
39.
PilarovaT.KandakovA.BavorovaM. (2022). Adaptation of smallholder farmers to climate risks: Remittances and irrigation investment in the Republic of Moldova. Water Resources and Economics, 38. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wre.2022.100200
40.
RakotonarivoO. S.BellA.DillonB.DuthieA. B.KipchumbaA.RasolofosonR. A.RazafimanahakaJ.BunnefeldN. (2021). Experimental Evidence on the Impact of Payments and Property Rights on Forest User Decisions. Frontiers in Conservation Science, 2. https://doi.org/10.3389/fcosc.2021.661987
41.
RatemoC. M.OgendiG. M.HuangG.OndiekiR. N. (2020). Application of Traditional Ecological Knowledge in Food and Water Security in the Semi-Arid Turkana County, Kenya. Open Journal of Ecology, 10(06), 321–340. https://doi.org/10.4236/oje.2020.106020
42.
Rooney-VargaJ. N.KapmeierF.StermanJ. D.JonesA. P.PutkoM.RathK. (2020). The Climate Action Simulation. Simulation and Gaming, 51(2), 114–140. https://doi.org/10.1177/1046878119890643
43.
SariR.TanikaL.SpeelmanE.SaputraD.HakimA.RozendaalD.HairiahK.NoordwijkM. (2023). Farmer Options and Risks in Complex Ecological-Social systems: the FORCES game designed for agroforestry management of upper watersheds. Agricultural Systems.
44.
SindhuM.KumarA.YadavH.ChaudharyD.JaiwalR.JaiwalP. K. (2019). Current advances and future directions in genetic enhancement of a climate resilient food legume crop, cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L. Walp.). In Plant Cell, Tissue, and Organ Culture (Vol. 139, Issue 3, pp. 429–453). SpringerNetherlands. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11240-019-01695-3
45.
SmithM. (1992). CROPWAT: A computer program for irrigation planning and management (Issue 46). Food & Agriculture Org.
46.
Sollen-NorrlinM.GhaleyB. B.RintoulN. L. J. (2020). Agroforestry benefits and challenges for adoption in Europe and beyond. In Sustainability (Switzerland) (Vol. 12, Issue 17). MDPI. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12177001
47.
SpeelmanE. N.EscanoE.MarcosD.BecuN. (2023). Serious games and citizen science; from parallel pathways to greater synergies. In Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability (Vol. 64). Elsevier B.V. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cosust.2023.101320
StermanJ.FranckT.FiddamanT.JonesA.McCauleyS.RiceP.SawinE.SiegelL.Rooney-VargaJ. N. (2015). WORLD CLIMATE: A Role-Play Simulation of Climate Negotiations. Simulation and Gaming, 46(3–4), 348–382. https://doi.org/10.1177/1046878113514935
50.
TimothyS.LokinaR.James MgaleY.DimosoP. (2022). What matters in adoption of small-scale rainwater harvesting technologies at household level? Evidence from Charco-dam users in Nzega, Tanzania. Cogent Food and Agriculture, 8(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/23311932.2022.2112429
van NoordwijkM. (2019). Sustainable development through trees on farms: Agroforestry in its fifth decade. World Agroforestry (ICRAF).
53.
van NoordwijkM.LeimonaB.AmaruzamanS.PascualU.MinangP. A.PrabhuR. (2023a). Five levels of internalizing environmental externalities: decision-making based on instrumental and relational values of nature. Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, 63, 101299. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cosust.2023.101299
54.
van NoordwijkM.SpeelmanE.HofstedeG. J.FaridaA.AbdurrahimA. Y.MiccolisA.HakimA. L.WamuciiC. N.LagneauxE.AndreottiF.KimbowaG.AssogbaG. G. C.BestL.TanikaL.GithinjiM.RoseroP.SariR. R.SatnarainU.AdiwibowoS.TeulingA. J. (2020). Sustainable agroforestry landscape management: Changing the game. Land, 9(8). https://doi.org/10.3390/LAND9080243
55.
van NoordwijkM.VillamorG. B.HofstedeG. J.SpeelmanE. (2023b). Relational versus instrumental perspectives on values of nature and resource management decisions ☆. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cosust.2023.101374
56.
Villamayor-TomasS.García-LópezG. (2017). The influence of community-based resource management institutions on adaptation capacity: A large-n study of farmer responses to climate and global market disturbances. Global Environmental Change, 47, 153–166. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2017.10.002
57.
VillamorG. B.BadmosB. K. (2016). Grazing game: A learning tool for adaptive management in response to climate variability in semiarid areas of Ghana. Ecology and Society, 21(1). https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-08139-210139
58.
VillamorG. B.van NoordwijkM. (2011). Social role-play games Vs individual perceptions of conservation PES agreements for maintaining rubber agroforests in Jambi (Sumatra), Indonesia. Ecology and Society, 16(3), 27. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-04339-160327
Supplementary Material
Please find the following supplemental material available below.
For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.
For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.
