Social capital and self-organised collective action: Lessons and insights from a South African community project

Figures & data

Figure 1. A conceptual model showing how forms of social capital generate collective action, viewing trust as an intermediate variable.

Note: A problematic aspect of social capital research has been the delineation of the sources, forms, and consequences of social capital (see Claridge 2004 for a review). Here, we adopt the perspective offered by Ostrom & Ahn (2009) in which trust is an intermediate variable.

Table 1. Perceived success factors for the Umgano Project (Key Informants’ survey).

Success factor	Description (as evidenced in the case study)	Manifestations of social capital
Strong leadership and integrity of the Council	Integrity of the Council Well-visioned and ethical leadership of the Inkosi Importance of the Inkosi in leveraging linking social capital through willingness to collaborate and building of long-term trusting relationships with important partners in the project	Structural social capital (in terms of the social networks associated with the Council); Linking social capital which facilitated the building of interpersonal trust between key role-players in the project
Support of the Council	Support of Council in overseeing the Trust to ensure that they are fulfilling their mandates as representatives of the community in the Umgano Project Importance of Council in enforcement of rules-in-use and in rallying the support of the community in the initial stages of the project when there were few direct benefits visible	Structural social capital (structure and processes associated with the Council and the Trust); institution-based and interpersonal trust in the traditional leadership as an outcome of social capital
Willingness to collaborate with external advisors	Again, this relates to the vision of the traditional leadership Has been essential in the successful establishment and growth of the Umgano Project because of imported expertise	Linking social capital
Long-standing partnerships with external agents built on relationships of trust	Key role-players have been crucial in helping the community develop the financial capital and the capacity to own and manage the project Importance of trust between trustees, the Council and management	Linking social capital; Importance of interpersonal trust as a result of long-standing interactions
Sound management and organisational structure	Basis for ‘calculus-based’ and ‘institution-based’ trust that has enabled the project to attract continued support from donor and support organisations Strength of the balance sheet & sound experts’ advice allows the Umgano Project to be relatively self-reliant which has enabled the project to survive the short-term funding cycles, and occasional unreliability of government & donor organisations Resulted in sustainable resource use, which will ultimately be beneficial to the sustainable income base for the Project the Mabandla community at large Organisational structure allows role-players to coordinate; clear idea of different actors’ roles Organisational structure is also flexible which has enabled the project to grow and reinforce financial independence of the project	Both linking and structural social capital which has stemmed from the networking of key individuals and the reputation of the Umgano Project (which, in turn, has underpinned ‘calculus-based’ and ‘institution-based’ trust)
Organisation of the Trust	Mandate and procedures of the Trust are stipulated clearly in the Trust Deed Trust Deed includes features that facilitate the legitimacy, accountability and transparency of the Trust Essential in the collective action component of the Umgano Project in that it allows the community to own, manage and benefit from the project	Effective organisational structures a result of collaboration with legal advisors (an outcome of linking social capital); the Trust Deed represents a form of structural social capital as it stipulates the roles, rules and procedures; and also facilitates bridging social capital between villages regarding the Umgano project

Table

Role-Player	Role	Primary Source(s)
NGO
Land Bank	Financing and investment	Bainbridge & Alletson (2012)
Private consultants (veterinary services; livestock management; conservation; tourism)	Various advisory services	Umsonti (2013)
The Nature Conservancy	Research on the benefits of land use zoning on the UPA	Leisher et al. (2011)
Vumelana Advisory Fund	Financing and investment	SA Forestry Magazine (2014)
Wildlands Trust	Funding towards mentoring field rangers	Bainbridge & Alletson (2012)
Government
Department of Agriculture, Environmental Affairs and Rural Development	Funding for fencing, alien/invasive species control and land restoration; assessments and recommendations regarding biodiversity management plan for the UPA	Bainbridge & Alletson (2012)
Department of Economic Development	Funding	Umsonti Director, pers. comm. 31 July 2014
Department of Land Affairs	Initial support for land acquisition, funding, monitoring and networking with other government departments	Sisitka (2000)
Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife (EKZNW)	Key long-standing partner who has been intricately involved in the biodiversity conservation component of the Umgano Project via their Biodiversity Stewardship programme. Some of their specific roles have been: mentoring of field rangers for the conservation area; environmental awareness and education in the community; assistance towards conservation-related research on the UPA; general assistance on conservation matters	Bainbridge & Alletson (2012); Umsonti (2013)
Industrial Development Corporation	Financing	Umsonti Director, pers. comm. 31 July 2014
South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI)- Grasslands programme	Research; assessments and recommendations regarding biodiversity management plan for the UPA	Bainbridge & Alletson (2012); Umsonti (2013)
Umzimkhulu local municipality	Various; not specified	Bainbridge & Alletson (2012)

^aDue to the frequent name changes of the South African national and provincial government departments in the last two decades, all government agents concerned have been referred to as they were by the source(s).

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