No abstract

The recent interest in the role of transport in social interactions has been partly motivated by the hope of achieving a better understanding of the role that transport plays in network capital, or the resources that people can gather from their social networks. Despite the relevancy of this question for policy, little empirical work has been done to elucidate this relationship. This paper illustrates a method of data collection and analysis, using the social networks approach to assess the role of transport in social support, both emotional and material. The personal networks of two neighbourhoods in Concepción, Chile, with different income levels, are compared, focusing on the role of car ownership in network capital, and the relevance of the time and space characteristics of social contacts. The results suggest that having a car at home does not lead to homogeneous access to network capital, which depends heavily on the kind of social resource studied and the income context (neighbourhood) in which the individuals are embedded. The findings also underscore the need to treat social capital as a truly multidimensional concept and the usefulness of the personal networks approach for assessing these complex relationships.

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We studied how the South American sea lion (SASL, Otaria flavescens) interacts with the operation of an artisanal fishery of Chinook salmon, a non-native species in Chile, using a combination of biological and social approaches, including a valuation by fishers about this interaction. During austral summer of 2019, an observer onboard artisanal fishing boats characterized the attack behavior of SASLs to gillnet-captured Chinook salmon during 33 hauls and analyzed which factors may affect the intensity of attacks. To analyze the relationship between fishers and SASLs, a Likert scale about the perception and views about nature was applied. A total of 23 interviews—including 35 open and 16 closed questions—with fishers were conducted to describe how they perceived the interactions with SASLs. Interactions with SASLs were recorded in 35% of the fishing events and varied depending on both operational factors, such as the number of boats, as well as environmental factors, such as moon’s luminosity. Even though SASL interactions resulted in seven fish (~ 70 kg) damaged of a total catch of 2815 kg (2.5%) during the survey, boats with a damaged catch by SASL lost up to 11% of their revenue. This is consistent with 87% of the interviewed fishers who considered that the conflict with the SASL negatively impacts their activity and results in economic losses. A negative perception towards SASLs likely results from personal experience and revenue loss, even though impacts of SASL interactions at the scale of the entire fishery may be less important. While older fishers with less formal education have a productivist and instrumental focus, younger fishers with a more sustainable and conservationist view of fishing offer an opportunity to lead an improved local understanding of the relationship between salmon, SASLs, and humans.