License (noun)
li·cense: a right or permission granted by a competent authority (as of a government or a business) to engage in some business or occupation, do some act, or engage in some transaction which would be unlawful without such right or permission. Also: a document, plate, or tag evidencing a license granted (Merriam-Webster Dictionary).
When you hear the term license, what do you think of? Probably something like the Merriam-Webster definition – formal, tied to positions of authority, and granting permission for something. If I put the word ‘social’ at the front – turning it into ‘social license’ – that’s a little confusing. The term ‘social’ is tied to society, to the people impacted by (and sometimes opposed to) government plans and actions. So, what is a social license? Who grants social licenses? And how?
Social license, or more formally ‘social license to operate’ (SLO), is an informal contract between public or private organizations or the government that begins with public acceptance and must be sustained based on communities’ trust in the legitimacy, credibility, effectiveness, and fairness of a proposed plan or project. The term social license to operate originated in the mining industry and was used to describe communities’ ability to influence oil and gas projects. When communities of people don’t support a proposed project or plan, or the impacts it will have on them, they can come together to resist the action, often disrupting or halting development. In Columbia, local communities recently blockaded oilfields operated by an energy company that, for years, has excluded rural and Indigenous people from decision making and damaged several ecologically sensitive areas.
SLO is not specific to terrestrial contexts, and has been used to help us understand the blue economy, farming (i.e. seaweed), aquaculture, fisheries, renewable energy, and offshore oil and gas. What is the common thread binding these sectors? Primarily, that they’re extractive and industrial – disrupting natural environments and communities of people – sometimes irreversibly.
But people are also impacted by a lot of projects and plans that aren’t extractive or industrial. Projects and plans that include nature-based solutions (see previous posts describing nature-based approaches here – Part 1, Part 2), managed retreat, and conservation plans. Is social license still relevant and helpful for understanding these projects and plans? Resoundingly YES, social license is still relevant. And beyond being relevant, understanding social license may help us understand why people reject these coastal marine projects and plans, despite evidence that such approaches are socially, economically, and ecologically beneficial. How, you ask? Tune in next month and we’ll find out!