Socio-ecological resilience in water systems: a literature review

Abstract

The world faces challenges with regard to water resources, including pollution and governance related to access and use. In this perspective, the study of socio-ecological resilience contributes to minimizing the problems inherent to water resources, as it offers an adaptive, participatory, and innovative approach. The aim of this article was to analyze current topics related to socio-ecological resilience in water resources (SERWR) in order to better understand the approaches used, investigate the potentialities of the topic, and identify the challenges of SERWR evaluation methods. The study is a systematic review of literature carried out by means of searches in the databases ScienceDirect and Scopus, comprising research between the years 2010 and 2022. The 30 scientific papers analyzed were classified into four topics and the results were divided into quantitative and qualitative analyses. The quantitative outcomes describe bibliometric computer analysis, and the qualitative outcomes show that involving the community and managers (stakeholders) is crucial for improving the capacity of the SERWR. Most studies reveal the multiplicity of methods and method combinations used in SERWR evaluation. Future research should focus on the creation of a comprehensive evaluation methodology capable of assessing SERWR in degradation and vulnerability scenarios, as well as preventing subsequent damage.