Natural Resources Governance

Natural Resources Governance

Modeling the Role of Stakeholder Interactions and Corporate Social Responsibility in Promoting Natural Resource Governance: A Social Capital-Based Approach

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
Saba Goli 1
Iman Eslami 2
Masoud Bijani 3
Hossein Azadi 4
1 Department of Rangeland Management, Faculty of Natural Resources, Tarbiat Modares University, Noor. Iran.
2 , Department of Rangeland Management, Faculty of Natural Resources and Marine Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Noor. Iran.
3 Department of Agricultural Extension and Education, Faculty of Agriculture, Tarbiat Modares University, Karaj. Iran.
4 Department of Development, Faculty of Biotechnology and Agriculture, University of Liège, Belgium.
10.22059/jnrg.2025.401811.1051
Abstract
Effective natural resource governance requires moving beyond state-centered approaches to embrace interactive frameworks that involve diverse stakeholders in decision-making. Despite growing global attention to good governance, the mediating role of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in linking stakeholder interactions to governance effectiveness remains understudied, especially in resource-dependent regions. This applied, descriptive-analytical study examines the impact of stakeholder interactions on good natural resource governance efficiency, with CSR as a mediating variable. The population includes employees of government organizations and active mining units in Takab County, West Azerbaijan Province. Data were collected via structured questionnaires and analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM) with Smart PLS software. Reliability and validity indicators confirmed the adequacy of the instrument, and the model exhibited strong explanatory power. Findings reveal that stakeholder interactions significantly and positively affect CSR and governance efficiency. CSR also positively influences governance and moderately mediates the relationship between stakeholder interactions and governance outcomes. Specifically, the standardized path coefficient between stakeholder interactions and CSR was 0.673, with a t-value of 14.413, indicating a highly significant effect at the 99% confidence level. The results suggest that sustainable natural resource governance requires multi-actor collaboration, strengthened organizational responsibility, and enhanced social capital beyond governmental mechanisms. Policymakers can promote effective governance and sustainable development by designing participatory strategies and improving institutional accountability.
Keywords
Effectiveness
Mediation
Structural Equation Model
Takab
انصاری ف. (1399). مسئولیت پذیری اجتماعی سازمانها و بهره‌وری سازمانی (مطالعه موردی: شرکت نفت نورآباد ممسنی). نشریه علمی رویکردهای پژوهشی نوین مدیریت و حسابداری، 4(13)، 133-142.
حیدری ساربان, وکیل . (1398). ارزیابی الگوی مدیریت محلی روستایی مبتنی‌بر شاخص‌‌های حکمروایی خوب مطالعۀ موردی: شهرستان مشگین‌شهر. مجله جغرافیا و توسعه, 17(57), 133-154.
طبرسا,غلامعلی , قوچانی,فرخ و بادین دهش,مهران . (1394). بررسی تأثیر حکمرانی خوب بر سرمایۀ اجتماعی. مجله علمی "مدیریت سرمایه اجتماعی", 2(2), 177-198.
قربانی, هاله , حاجی علی اوغلی, رباب و مؤذن, محسن . (1402). بررسی شرایط فیزیکی تشکیل بلورهای پلاژیوکلاز با استفاده از پراکندگی اندازه بلور در میگماتیت‌ های مافیک شمال‌ شرق تکاب. زمین شناسی اقتصادی, 15(2), 57-81.
کشاورز,لقمان , فراهانی,ابوالفضل و اصغری,زهرا . (1397). نقش میانجی هوش سازمانی در ارتباط خودکارآمدی شغلی و سرمایه اجتماعی وزارت ورزش و جوانان. نشریه مدیریت ورزشی, 10(2), 219-205.
کیانی,محمدعلی و زارعی,بهادر . (1401). تحلیل مقایسه‌ای نقش سازمان‌های مردم‌نهاد و حکومت‌های محلی در تحقق حکمرانی خوب منابع طبیعی. نشریه علمی - پژوهشی مرتع و آبخیزداری, 75(2), 245-262.
محمودی, ابوالقاسم , حبیبی, علی و جمراسی, داوود . (1401). نقش مشارکت مردم در تحول حکمرانی. فصلنامه علمی حکمرانی متعالی, 2(4), 31-46.
 
Agrawal, A., & Gibson, C. C. (1999). Enchantment and disenchantment: The role of community in natural resource conservation. World Development, 27(4), 629–649. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0305-750X(98)00161-2
Aguinis, H., & Glavas, A. (2012). What we know and don’t know about corporate social responsibility: A review and research agenda. Journal of Management, 38(4), 932–968. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206311436079
Ansari, F. (2020). Social responsibility of organizations and organizational productivity: A case study of Nourabad Mamasani Oil Company. Scientific Journal of New Research Approaches in Management and Accounting, 4(13), 133–142. (In Persian). https://majournal.ir/index.php/ma/article/view/479
Anser, M. K., Yousaf, Z., Majid, A., & Yasir, M. (2020). Does corporate social responsibility commitment and participation predict environmental and social performance?. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, 27(6), 2578-2587. https://doi.org/10.1002/csr.1977
Bäckstrand, K. (2006). Multi‐stakeholder partnerships for sustainable development: Rethinking legitimacy, accountability and effectiveness. European Environment, 16(5), 290–306. https://doi.org/10.1002/eet.425
Ballet, J., Sirven, N., & Requiers-Desjardins, M. (2007). Social capital and natural resource management: A critical perspective. The Journal of Environment & Development, 16(4), 355–374. https://doi.org/10.1177/1070496507310740
Bennett, N. J., & Dearden, P. (2014). Why local people do not support conservation: Community perceptions of marine protected area livelihood impacts, governance and management in Thailand. Marine Policy, 44, 107–116. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpol.2013.08.017
Bennett, N. J., et al. (2019). Local support for conservation is associated with perceptions of good governance, social impacts, and ecological effectiveness. Conservation Letters, 12(4), e12640. https://doi.org/10.1111/conl.12640
Biermann, F., Pattberg, P., Van Asselt, H., & Zelli, F. (2009). The fragmentation of global governance architectures: A framework for analysis. Global Environmental Politics, 9(4), 14–40. https://doi.org/10.1162/glep.2009.9.4.14
Bodin, Ö. (2017). Collaborative environmental governance: Achieving collective action in social-ecological systems. Science, 357(6352), eaan1114. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aan1114
Bodin, Ö., & Crona, B. I. (2009). The role of social networks in natural resource governance: What relational patterns make a difference? Global Environmental Change, 19(3), 366–374. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2009.05.002
Bringezu, S., Potočnik, J., Schandl, H., Lu, Y., Ramaswami, A., Swilling, M., & Suh, S. (2016). Multi-scale governance of sustainable natural resource use—Challenges and opportunities for monitoring and institutional development at the national and global level. Sustainability, 8(8), 778. https://doi.org/10.3390/su8080778
Carroll, A. B. (1999). Corporate social responsibility: Evolution of a definitional construct. Business & Society, 38(3), 268–295. https://doi.org/10.1177/000765039903800303
Coleman, J. S. (1988). Social capital in the creation of human capital. American Journal of Sociology, 94(Suppl.), S95–S120. https://doi.org/10.1086/228943
Dahlsrud, A. (2008). How corporate social responsibility is defined: An analysis of 37 definitions. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, 15(1), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1002/csr.132
Davari, A., & Rezazadeh, A. (2016). Structural equation modeling using PLS software (2nd ed.). Academic Publishing Organization of Jahad-e-Daneshgahi. (In Persian). https://agahbookshop.com/p-22489--pls.aspx
Dietz, T., Ostrom, E. and Stern, P. C. 2003. The struggle to govern the commons. science, 302 (5652), 1907-1912.
Dietz, T., Ostrom, E., & Stern, P. C. (2003). The struggle to govern the commons. Science, 302(5652), 1907–1912. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1091015
Elkington, J., & Rowlands, I. H. (1999). Cannibals with forks: The triple bottom line of 21st century business. Alternatives Journal, 25(4), 42. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1006129603978
Ghanbari, F., Islami, I., & Azadi, H. (2024). The collaborative governance system of rangelands and social networks analysis: Explaining the challenges of multi-level communication of organizational stakeholders in Semnan Province. Rangeland, 17(4), 665–683. https://dor.isc.ac/dor/20.1001.1.20080891.1402.17.4.10.5
Ghorbani, H., Hajialioghli, R. and Moazzen, M., 2023. Physical Conditions of the Formation of Plagioclase Crystals Using Crystal Size Dispersion (CSD) in the Mafic Migmatites of Northeastern Takab. Journal of Economic Geology, 15(2): 57–81. (in Persian with English abstract) https://doi.org/10.22067/ECONG.2023.80119.1061
Graham, J., Amos, B., & Plumptre, T. W. (2003). Governance principles for protected areas in the 21st century (pp. 1–2). Institute on Governance. https://www.files.ethz.ch/isn/122197/pa_governance2.pdf
Heydari Sarban, V. (2019). Evaluation of rural local management pattern with respect to good governance indicators: A case study of Ardabil County. Geography and Development, 17(57), 133–154. (In Persian). https://doi.org/10.22111/gdij.2019.4985
Islami, I., Azadi, H., Flores Díaz, A. C., & Sarvi Sadrabad, H. (2024). Collaborative water management through revitalizing social power relationships: A social network analysis of Qanat stakeholders in Iran. Irrigation Science, 42(1), 135–148. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00271-023-00856-9
Islami, I., Farajollahi, A., & Ghasemi Aryan, Y. (2021). Improving rural livelihood based on natural resources potentials in Najafabad region, Kurdistan Province, Iran. ECOPERSIA, 9(4), 251–263. http://dorl.net/dor/20.1001.1.23222700.2021.9.4.3.5
Islami, I., Ghanbari, F., & Azadi, H. (2024). Polycentric governance systems: Addressing the power gap centered on climate entrepreneurs in Semnan Province of Iran. Climate and Development, 16(5), 410–425. https://doi.org/10.1080/17565529.2023.2229776
Jamali, D., & Mirshak, R. (2007). Corporate social responsibility (CSR): Theory and practice in a developing country context. Journal of Business Ethics, 72(3), 243–262. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-006-9168-4
Keshavarz, L., Farahani, A., & Asghari, A. (2018). The mediating role of organizational intelligence in the relationship between job self-efficacy and social capital in the Ministry of Sport and Youth. Sport Management Journal, 10(2), 205–219. (In Persian). https://doi.org/10.22059/jsm.2019.119204.1326
Keyani, M., Zarei, A., & Bahador, A. (2022). Comparative analysis of the role of NGOs and local governments in achieving good governance of natural resources. Scientific-Research Journal of Rangeland and Watershed Management, 75(2), 245–262. (In Persian). https://doi.org/10.22059/jrwm.2022.318505.1569
Leach, M., Scoones, I., & Wynne, B. (Eds.). (2005). Science and citizens: Globalization and the challenge of engagement (Vol. 2). Zed Books. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-7660.2006.00516_6.x
Mahmoudi, M., Habibi, H., Jamrasi, M., & Davoud, D. (2021). The role of public participation in governance transformation. Exalted Governance, 8(2), 31–46. (In Persian). https://hm.sndu.ac.ir/article_1984.html?lang=en
Majdi, H., Ghaibi, L., & Soltani, T. (2013). Investigation of microbial and physicochemical quality of drinking water in rural areas of Takab County, West Azarbaijan Province.
Makiyan, S. N., Bibak, M., & Mozhdeh, M. (2015). The impact of good governance on human development: A cross-country analysis. Economic Modeling, 9(30), 131–147. (In Persian). https://journals.iau.ir/article_557912.html
Newig, J., Challies, E., Jager, N. W., Kochskaemper, E., & Adzersen, A. (2018). The environmental performance of participatory and collaborative governance: A framework of causal mechanisms. Policy Studies Journal, 46(2), 269–297. https://doi.org/10.1111/psj.12209
Ostrom, E. (2005). Understanding institutional diversity. Princeton University Press. https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctt7s7wm
Pretty, J., & Ward, H. (2001). Social capital and the environment. World Development, 29(2), 209–227. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0305-750X(00)00098-X
Putnam, R. D. (2000). Bowling alone: The collapse and revival of American community. Simon & Schuster. https://doi.org/10.15365/joce.0602122013
Springer, J., Campese, J., & Nakangu, B. (2021). The natural resource governance framework–Improving governance for equitable and effective conservation. IUCN. https://doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.CH.2021.16.en
Tabarsa, G., Ghouchani, F., & Badin Dahesh, M. (2015). The impact of good governance on social capital. Social Capital Management, 2(2), 177–198. (In Persian). https://doi.org/10.22059/jscm.2015.54975
Vosburgh, R. M. (2022). Closing the academic-practitioner gap: Research must answer the “so what” question. Human Resource Management Review, 32(1), 100633. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hrmr.2017.11.006
Zarandian, A., & Ramezani, M. M. (2021). Assessment the effects of vegetation degradation on runoff changes and water pollution potential in the sub-watersheds of the Eastern Azerbaijan province.‏ Journal of Water and Soil Resources Conservation, 11(1), 95-111. SID. https://sid.ir/paper/414311/en
Zhang, S., & Gu, Z. (2021). Impact of social capital on environmental governance efficiency—Behavior of Guangdong. Frontiers in Energy Research, 9, 781657. https://doi.org/10.3389/fenrg.2021.781657