I teach courses within the field of Development Studies at both undergraduate and graduate level. The courses fall into two main categories: “State, Civil society and Democratization” and “Globalization, Imperialism and Resistance”.  I also supervise at undergraduate, masters and doctoral levels.

Research interests

Politics of development. State and class formation, civil society and democratisation in Asia and Latin America, with a special focus on workers’ movements. I contributed with colleagues at the department to the development of the Politics of Development profile in teaching and research, in 1995 was formally constituted in the Politics of Development Group at Stockholm University (PODSU), of which I am a member.

Poverty and coastal natural resources. I work together with a group of marine biologists/system ecologists based in East Africa and Scandinavia on the links between coastal natural resources and poverty alleviation/sustainable livelihoods in East Africa.

Small scale-fisheries. I’m a member of a global research network with the goal to enhance the understanding of the real contribution of small-scale fisheries to food security, nutrition, sustaining livelihoods, poverty alleviation, wealth generation and trade, as well as the impacts and implications of global change processes such as urbanization, globalization, migration, climate change, aquaculture, and communication technology on small-scale fisheries. Another goal is to create an innovative and interactive web platform, a Small-scale Fisheries Information System (SFIS), for global and local analysis of small-scale fisheries and their contributions to the broader society. www.toobigtoignore.net

Environment, democratization and strategies of the poor. I belong to a trans-disciplinary network of researchers looking at the poor as natural resource users with complex and sometimes conflicting interests and how democratization as a means to equalize unequal structures of power become part of strategies for sustainable development. www.csduppsala.uu.se/devnet/index.html

A selection from Stockholm University publication database

• Fine-Tuning Climate Resilience in Marine Socio-Ecological Systems

  2021. Romeo Saldívar-Lucio (et al.). Frontiers in Marine Science 7

  Article

  Climate change triggers a wide mosaic of regional and local responses, often different to the large-scale variability in magnitude and direction. Because of the psychological connections (cognitive and emotional) with the frequency, intensity and age of a climatic event, people may have the capacity to recognize key variations at lower scales, especially those from which they perceive risk. Yet, the anticipatory actions and social engagement to respond or adapt to climate change are difficult to achieve, mostly when there exists a long psychological distance to climatic phenomena. Research about climate change communication provides clues about the relevance of place based discussion to gauge risk perception and improve response protocols, their design and prioritization. It argues that strategies and actions required to face climate risks may widely differ depending on the scale and accuracy of the local representations displayed during discussions of climate impacts. This work examines how local attributes (from climate to social) operate and control place-specific risks and priorities, by comparing coastal communities in two locations, Cabo Pulmo, Mexico and Zanzibar, Tanzania, which are subject to different climate dynamics. This paper discusses the need to identify relevant climate risks/responses at the local level and how psycho-social factors (e.g., psychological distance, collective memory, and social engagement) may operate positively for building climate resilience. We also illustrate a workflow to increase and enhance collaboration between researchers and local people by promoting dialogue, participation and narratives that rigorously consider the local knowledge.

  Read more about Fine-Tuning Climate Resilience in Marine Socio-Ecological Systems

• Gender and Blue Justice in small-scale fisheries governance

  2021. Madeleine Gustavsson (et al.). Marine Policy 133

  Article

  This paper examines the need to embed gender in an empirical examination or conceptual use of Blue Justice. In developing the Blue Justice concept, there is a need to avoid reproducing ongoing and historical omissions of gender issues in small-scale fisheries governance and research. By drawing on the concepts of procedural and distributive justice, this paper explores how gender equity and equality and Blue Justice concerns interrelate, inform and shape each other in fisheries governance. These issues are explored through an analysis of four cases: Zanzibar (Tanzania), Chile, France and the United Kingdom (UK). We find that gendered power inequities in fisheries and women’s marginalised participation in fisheries governance are associated with procedural injustices. These further shape the distributive outcomes in fisheries governance. We argue that any effort to integrate gender into Blue Justice has to address the way that power relations are gendered in a particular fishery – extending the focus beyond the sea and including issues and concerns that are not always included in traditional fisheries governance arrangements revolving around fish resource management.

  Read more about Gender and Blue Justice in small-scale fisheries governance

• Tuna or Tasi? Fishing for Policy Coherence in Zanzibar’s Small-Scale Fisheries Sector

  2017. Lars Lindström, Maricela de la Torre-Castro. The Small-Scale Fisheries Guidelines, 79-94

  Chapter

  Read more about Tuna or Tasi? Fishing for Policy Coherence in Zanzibar’s Small-Scale Fisheries Sector

Show all publications by Lars Lindström at Stockholm University