Assessing the relevance of stakeholder analysis for national ecological network governance: The case of the Green Network in Estonia

Ecological network planning and implementation touches upon different land use and policy sectors, thus, creating multiple interdependencies between the respective stakeholders associated to these spheres. Stakeholder analysis (SA) is a widely promoted approach to understand the interfaces between natural and social systems in environmental governance. Yet, the applications of SA in relation to ecological networks are scarce. This study explores the usefulness of SA for the planning and implementation of the national ecological network concept – Green Network – in Estonia. Based on an analysis of relevant documents and a set of semi-structured interviews, we have (i) revealed a set of various roles stakeholders can play in Green Network governance and (ii) highlighted stakeholders’ experiences with involvement practices, as well as traced certain cooperation and conflict trajectories between different parties. We conclude that encouraging the use of the stakeholder concept in the national ecological network governance could potentially make decision-makers more aware of different claims stakeholders might have in Green Network governance. We further suggest that for complex governance tools such as Green Network planning and implementation, schematic-analytical and descriptive approaches of SA could be integrated, to gain a more adequate overview of the concrete situation.