Despite a growing interest in interdisciplinary research, systematic ways of how to integrate data from different disciplines are still scarce. We argue that successful resource management relies on two key data sources: natural science data, which represents ecosystem structure and processes, and social science data, which describes people's perceptions and understanding. Both are vital, mutually complementing information sources that can underpin the development of feasible and effective policies and management interventions. To harvest the added value of combined knowledge, a uniform scaling system is needed. In this paper, we propose a standardized methodology to connect and explore different types of quantitative data from the natural and social sciences reflecting temporal trends in ecosystem quality. We demonstrate this methodology with different types of data such as fisheries stocks and mangrove cover on the one hand and community's perceptions on the other. The example data are collected from three United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Biosphere reserves and one marine park in Southeast Asia. To easily identify patterns of convergence or divergence among the datasets, we propose heat maps using colour codes and icons for language- and education-independent understandability. Finally, we discuss the limitations as well as potential implications for resource management and the accompanying communication strategies. This article is part of the theme issue 'Nurturing resilient marine ecosystems'.

The 2015-2016 El Niño had large impacts globally. The effects were not as great as anticipated in Kenya, however, leading some commentators to call it a 'non-event'. Our study uses a novel combination of participatory Climate Vulnerability and Capacity Analysis tools, and new and existing social and biophysical data, to analyse vulnerability to, and the multidimensional impacts of, the 2015-2016 El Niño episode in southern coastal Kenya. Using a social-ecological systems lens and a unique dataset, our study reveals impacts overlooked by conventional analysis. We show how El Niño stressors interact with and amplify existing vulnerabilities to differentially impact local ecosystems and people. The policy significance of this finding is that the development of specific national capacities to deal with El Niño events is insufficient; it will be necessary to also address local vulnerabilities to everyday and recurrent stressors and shocks to build resilience to the effects of El Niño and other extremes in climate and weather.

Moving toward new ways of governing ecosystems in varied contexts worldwide is likely to be a critical part of achieving the global Sustainable Development Goals, yet understanding of the tensions between forces driving and opposing such sustainability transformations is very limited. Here, I shed light on this critical research and policy domain by applying participatory actor and influence mapping (Net-Map) and innovation histories methods to understand the power relations and social processes involved in enabling and blocking the institutionalization of an ecosystem approach to fisheries management (EAFM) in the Philippines. Drawing upon a case study of an intermunicipal alliance in Lanuza Bay, the results highlight how challenges such as vested and divergent interests, corruption, weak coordination between levels of government, and the particular contingencies of place conspire to weaken and undermine initial EAFM successes. I conclude that agents of resistance, the role of power and agency, and socio-political realities need to be central to resilience conceptualizations of sustainability transformations.

This article assesses the extent to which our conceptualisation, understanding and empirical analysis of ecosystem services are inherently gendered; in other words, how they might be biased and unbalanced in terms of their appreciation of gender differences. We do this by empirically investigating how women and men are able to benefit from ecosystem services across eight communities in coastal Kenya and Mozambique. Our results highlight different dimensions of wellbeing affected by ecosystem services, and how these are valued differently by men and women. However, it is not just the division of costs and benefits of ecosystem services that is gendered. Using a heuristic device of the ‘ecosystem-wellbeing chain’ we explain patterns within our primary data as an outcome of gendered knowledge systems, gendered behavioural expectations, gendered access to resources and gendered institutions. We conclude that this holistic, gendered understanding of ecosystem services is important not just for how ecosystem services are conceptualised, but also for the development and implementation of sustainable and equitable policy and interventions.

The residents of informal settlements face a diverse range of urban risks, from climate and economic shocks to local pollution and the threat of eviction. This article explores these risks by conducting Participatory Hazard Vulnerability and Capacity Assessments (PHVCA) in three informal settlements in the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh. The assessment uncovers a variety of risks, which interact with each other and local vulnerabilities to produce complex risk profiles for residents. In this way, we highlight the importance of a holistic assessment of urban risk rather than focusing on single risks or specific sectors. The participatory approach also reveals household and community-level processes through which risks are experienced, negotiated and in some cases addressed, providing valuable insights into the ways vulnerable urban populations can be best supported.