Where is the coastline?

Interdependence and scale

Abstract

Understanding the concept of interdependence means acknowledging myriad variables that assemble, separate, and redistribute in a virtual infinitude of relations. These interdependent variables, and the relations between them, can be seen as becoming perceptibly more abundant and volatile when viewed at finer, local, levels of scale. Conversely, they become simpler and more stable when viewed at cruder or macro-levels of scale. The question for policy and other practical applications, then, is which level of scale is most appropriate when dealing with any given interdependent phenomenon? Is it necessary to proceed with less "true" pictures at a cruder scale in order to foster more pragmatic results? These issues are explored through an analysis of the formulation and implementation of human wildlife conflict (HWC) policy in Bhutan. This exploration demonstrates that while HWC policy formulated at the macro-level contains an explicit focus on interdependence, when the policy is implemented at local levels of scale, much more complex tangles of interdependence emerge. These tangles obfuscate perceptions of the cause of HWC and, for some, drive opposition to a key value that is a foundation of the HWC policy. Drawing on the Bhutanese case, we advance ideas on how public policy and educational contexts can practically respond to the challenge of interdependence at different levels of scale.