Commonground

In the Kumning-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework of 2022, there are ambitious targets for spatial planning and nature restoration. To be able to meet these goals, we need a reorientation of how we manage nature. In the project Commonground, we aim to contribute by reducing the impact of second home developments on both society and nature. To achieve minimal impact, we will work on identifying why this has not happened yet, and how to overcome the obstacles. Researchers in the fields of ecology, spatial planning, architecture, and social sciences will work together to find the best solutions. Ecological sustainability needs to be incorporated in people's everyday practices as well as in local management practices. Nearly 50 % of Norway's population has access to at least one second home. The land used to build second homes will occur in local settings that often have negative consequences and impact for local society, landscape values and biodiversity. The extensive second home development many places make high pressure on the relationship between the local residents and the visitors who own or rent a second home. At same time the second home development changes the local economy. To develop better solutions and tools to take care of a diversity of values associated with second home development, we also need to have insight in location of the areas, how second homes are designed and built, what kind of footprint the recreational activities have in the surrounding landscape and what kind of conflicts this behavior may have for other kind of land-use. In combination, we need to look at how ecosystems and biodiversity best can be maintained and restored in and around the development sites. Researchers cannot do this alone, and therefore, the project will be conducted as a cooperation between a multi-disciplinary team of researchers, representatives from the agricultural sector, second home developers, local authorities, and local businesses.

To meet ambitious targets for spatial planning and restoration in the Kumning-Montral protocol Global biodiversity framework, a reorientation of nature management is needed. Ecological sustainability needs to be incorporated in people’s everyday practices as well as in local management practices. Nearly 50% of Norway’s population has access to at least one second home (SH). The land upon which SHs are built put pressure on local nature and biodiversity, but the modern SHD trend also places pressure on the host-visitor relationships and land management systems, as well as altering local economies. This project aims to understand the cumulative effects of SHDs on environment and society. This will be achieved by looking at nature- , climate- and social effects and introducing new ways to combine disciplines and sectors. In order to avoid piece-by-piece development of areas we need both a national overview of how SHD is done today and local knowledge for the search for better solutions. We also need to have insight in how SHs are designed and built and how ecosystems and biodiversity best can be maintained and restored in and around the development sites. Interaction between SHDs and primary industries, and between SHDs and local communities, must be considered in order to reduce negative impact and conflict. Looking at all these facets of SHD requires an interdisciplinary approach. Commonground will include research in the fields of ecosystem restoration and ecological valuation for upgrading of ecological condition, GIS and planning to understand landscape effects, architecture for finding better ways to design SHDs, social science to assess effects on the local community and agriculture, and visitor studies to describe the use flow and develop visitor management strategies. To achieve understanding and make changes in SHD the researchers will interact and cooperate with a set of cross-sectorial stakeholders: farmers, local citizens, developers and local businesses.