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Earlier research suggests social identity's association with environmental attitudes and behaviors and identifies several social-identity-based strategies that can potentially foster pro-environment behaviors. This paper examines whether and how social identities are associated with support for pro-environment policies. Using our survey of 1,804 randomly selected respondents, we seek to analyze how group identities are associated with demographic characteristics and value orientations of citizens in the American West, and how these group identities are associated with support for policies aimed at resource development (supply expansion) versus conservation (demand reduction) of energy and water resources. Findings from cluster analysis and binary logistic regression models indicate a significant association between social identity and policy preferences. Respondents who strongly identify themselves as environmentalists, conservationists, and wildlife advocates are more likely to support conservation policies and less likely to support resource development policies compared to those who strongly identify as hunters, fishers, and property rights activists. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: The Yunnan snub-nosed monkey is one of the most endangered species on the IUCN Red List. The study of its population and habitat quality is important in identifying opportunities for balancing socio-economic development against species conservation in the area's villages. Such balances are important to protecting and improving habitat diversity and biodiversity. Our habitat quality analysis indicates that increases in socio-economic developments in the villages around the habitat area have decreased both the habitat area and the habitat quality over time. This has resulted in a decline in biodiversity persistence, resilience, and breadth. It also has exacerbated the risk of declining species populations, potentially to extinction. Though focused on the Yunnan snub-nosed monkey, our approach toward the assessment of habitat quality based on species habitat suitability introduces a new perspective for assessing village development impacts on the habitat quality for the conservation of other species. The habitats of the already endangered Yunnan snub-nosed monkey (Rhinopithecus bieti) are degrading as village economies develop in and around these habitat areas, increasing the depopulation and biodiversity risk of the monkey. The paper aims to show the areas of these monkeys' high-quality habitats that are at highest risk of degradation by continued village development and hence be the focus of conservation efforts. Our analysis leveraged multiple tools, including primary component analysis, the InVEST Habitat-Quality model, and GIS spatial analysis. We enhanced our analysis by looking at habitat quality as it relates to the habitat suitability for the monkey specifically, instead of general habitat quality. We also focused on the impact of the smallest administrative scale in China—the village. These foci produced a clearer picture of the monkeys' and villages' situations, allowing for more targeted discussions on win–win solutions for both the monkeys and the village inhabitants. The results show that the northern habitat for the monkey is currently higher quality than the southern habitat, and correspondingly, the village development in the north is lower than in the south. Hence, we recommend conservation efforts be focused on the northern areas, though we also encourage the southern habitats to be protected from further degradation lest they degrade beyond the point of supporting any monkeys. We encourage developing a strategy that balances ecological protection and economic development in the northern region, a long-term plan for the southern region to reduce human disturbance, increase effective habitat restoration, and improve corridor design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a comparative study of conservation planning practice between Chester, England and Qingyan, China. It examines conservation policies and plans in the two cities, and aims to contribute to current international debates surrounding heritage management. Three key dimensions of conservation planning are identified and applied to the cases: the planning tools delivering conservation; the recognition of heritage; and conservation objectives and principles pursued. The analysis reveals that enduring socio-cultural and institutional specificities contribute to moulding approaches to conservation planning. Understanding such contextual specificities and distinctiveness is essential for international exchanges of experience around conservation planning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The critical analysis of conservation conflicts in Protected Areas (PAs) raises interesting questions about the redefinition of human-environment relations in the current ecological crisis. In recent years these debates have unveiled that, in the attempt to define the ‘proper’ place of humans in nature, PAs have embodied modern dualistic worldviews, which understand nature as a realm different from society, culture and ‘civilisation’. This paper suggests that the utilisation of these worldviews should be understood as part of the conceptual apparatus that enables a transition in management roles in Protected Areas, through which new empowered groups are granted the right to control and use natural resources. By analysing the practices and discourses of conservation stakeholders at the Cabo de Gata-Níjar Natural Park, in southern Spain, this paper shows that modern ideas of nature are essential to the collective appropriation of Cabo de Gata by new empowered groups because these ideas justify a new way of managing local resources in accordance with their own interests and desires. This has deep implications for the study of people-park conflicts and the problems associated to the promotion of more environmentally friendly ways of mastering the environment, which must be approached in the light of the power relations associated to the appropriation of territory and natural resources. The paper also concludes that, in order to understand how the nature-society dualism still dictates the way we should relate to the environment, we must trace the practices of those who bear this worldview and unveil the strategies and mechanisms that are used. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The era of blue growth, underpinned by neoliberal policy discourses, has been pervasive in the promulgation of European marine governance and policies in the past decade, with little or no regard for the sustainability of small-scale fisheries. In this paper, we engage with theoretical and empirical observations to reflect on how the promise of sustainable economic growth arising from the convergence of international conservation policies and the blue growth paradigm, has failed to materialise and caused huge social and economic inequities among local fishing communities and the catastrophic disruption of the socio-ecological system of fisheries. Drawing on various interventions in Malta, we illustrate how neoliberal policies, lauded and promoted as part of a national blue growth strategy, are suffocating and marginalising small-scale fishing communities by concentrating fishing opportunities into fewer, larger corporate hands, and by a hegemonic anti-small scale fishing narrative that seeks to replace traditional fishing with the 'darlings of the new blue economy', aquaculture and coastal tourism. With artisanal-commercial fishing in Malta on the verge of extinction, we call for reversal of neo-liberal policy measures to re-create a more resilient and stable fisheries economy through specific blue degrowth measures including improved access to fisheries resources and markets, and the establishment of marine protected areas that recognize the value of small-scale fisheries to conservation. This could be achieved through equity-based governance systems, including improved profit distribution systems within community economies, that grant small-scale fisheries the possibility of re-institutionalizing their sector and promoting their existence and viability into the future. Ultimately, we demonstrate that through a blue economy roadmap for small-scale fisheries, small-islands states like Malta, can rescue an important component of their maritime traditions, and be better placed to reach the obligations set out within the United Nations sustainable development goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the influence of Local Ecological Culture (LEC) on the pursuit of a meaningful life among communities residing adjacent to Mabira Forest in Uganda. Employing a mixed-method approach, the research explores the interplay between these communities and their environment, focusing on whether forest conservation practices are driven by immediate utilitarian benefits (shallow happiness) or by deeper ecological values (deep happiness). The study introduces key concepts such as "deep happiness" and Ubuntu to analyze how these communities conceptualize a meaningful life in relation to their ecological context. A principal components analysis (PCA) of the field data reveals three core dimensions of LEC: functional relationships with nature, environmental stewardship, and the notion of an embedded life. The findings indicate that both men and women, across various age groups, uphold strong commitments to ecological sustainability and community well-being, although distinct patterns of engagement emerge according to gender and age. This research highlights the pivotal role of local cultural practices in supporting environmental conservation and emphasizes the potential for community-based approaches to sustainability. By integrating LEC with broader conservation frameworks and sustainable livelihood strategies, the study contributes to a deeper understanding of how cultural values can inform environmental management in forest-dependent communities. The results offer critical insights for developing conservation policies that incorporate local ecological knowledge, promoting both environmental resilience and socio-economic sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biogenetic resources are the foundation of biodiversity and are of great significance to the sustainability of human society. The effective promotion of biogenetic resource conservation depends on the scientific formulation and implementation of relevant policies, so the quantitative evaluation of biogenetic resource conservation policies can provide decision support for the next step of policy formulation. Based on text analysis, social network analysis, and the construction of the PMC index model, this study selected 132 policy samples issued by the Chinese government in the field of biogenetic resources, established an evaluation system for China's biogenetic resources policies, which contains 10 first-level indicators and 55 s-level indicators, and drew the PMC curve diagram accordingly to quantitatively evaluate China's biogenetic resources policies. The results show that China's biogenetic resources policies are generally at a good level, which can meet the current practical needs of biogenetic resources conservation, but there are problems such as the lack of policy forecasts in the relevant policy texts, the lack of flexible planning in the short and medium term, the lack of co-operation among the policy issuers, and the insufficient guidance of innovation. Based on the results, this article puts forward suggestions for improving China's biogenetic resource conservation policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The Israeli attack on cultural heritage sites have intensified and becoming a platform for the urbicide of cities and erasing people identity. • Conservation efforts undertaken for preservation of cultural heritage in Palestine have become the crux of resistance against identity suppression. • International aids play a crucial role in protecting global cultural heritage and should be accountable for the preservation of global authenticity of historical narrative. War is often an amalgamation of various objectives and occupation a realization of one core aim, that is, the suppression of the identity of an occupied population. Thus, warfare not only affects people but also the collective narrative of their environments, history, culture, and identity. Consequently, deliberate destruction of cultural heritage becomes part of any political struggle. Once political struggles infringe on a nation's history, both local and global institutions and entities must take responsibility for preserving the authenticity of the global narrative. Deprioritizing urban conservation policies, especially during times of war, is known to inflict sheer, and sometimes irreversible, damage on a national and global scale. Despite the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization's (UNESCO) regulations on protecting cultural heritage during war, the enforcement of such responsibilities on the ground remains questionable. The Palestinian experience is among the rare existing narratives of cultural heritage and architectural conservation becoming the crux of resistance against loss of land and identity. Lacking a central authority and having only been operational for the last three decades, the conservation movement has nonetheless succeeded in conserving a considerable part of Palestinian architectural heritage. The quality of work produced by these efforts has received international recognition and various accolades, despite ongoing difficulties faced under occupation. This paper highlights the role of non-governmental organizations in Palestine, particularly of Riwaq , and details their internationally recognized conservation efforts in several locations, such as Jerusalem and Hebron. These examples are presented to foster the argument that architecture is intrinsic to preserving historical authenticity and local identity. A dependable future rests on preserving the cultural heritage of all places, requiring universal compliance among nations that transcends physical borders and boundaries to promote the continuity of shared legacy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aims of this paper are to describe the state of the environmental knowledge of the terrestrial National Parks (NPs) in Italy and to assess their conservation status and their efficacy to deal with the pressures of land changes. We collected and analysed data regarding land units, vegetation series, old-growth forests, Important Plant Areas (IPAs) and changes in landscape conservation status, to provide a systemic overview of the condition of the NPs and to verify their effectiveness against pressures and impacts induced by human activities. Moreover, NPs were organised according to the ecoregional setting for a multi-scale interpretation of biodiversity baselines and indicators. The results highlight the essential role of NP system for biodiversity conservation in Italy. The long-term protection regime proved to be particularly effective as a means of conserving ageing forest communities, threatened vascular plants and contrasting threats posed by human-induced changes. However, this work points out the need for more detailed scientific data for a comprehensive assessment of the representativeness and effectiveness of the NP system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • This article compares conservation guidelines and Protected Areas created in Brazil. • The analysis was performed for the whole country and at a single State (São Paulo). • Federal Protected Areas were created mainly in areas of high biological importance. • Other factors than science guide the creation of State Protected Areas in São Paulo. • Misallocation of public funds for conservation occurs largely in São Paulo. Abstract The current rates of biodiversity loss are amongst the major global environmental problems, especially in the tropics. The creation of Protected Areas (PAs) is the most widespread strategy adopted for the minimization of such problem. However, official studies that guide the creation of PAs frequently do not convert their outcomes into conservation. This problem is not expected in Brazil, because scientific studies for the definition of priority areas for conservation were ordered by the same institutions in charge of the creation and management of PAs. In this paper, we compared the spatial distribution of PAs created in Brazil in the past decade with studies of priority areas for the protection of biodiversity. At a federal level of analysis, 19.44% of federal PAs are located in non-priority sites, which represents 0.47% of the total land area of federal PAs created. At a state level, 71.05% of state PAs are located in non-priority sites, which represents 60.68% of the total land area of state PAs created. In 2015, the total cost for the preservation of PAs in non-priority classes was US$ 17,539.30 (3.28% of the annual budget for federal PAs created after 2007) at federal level and US$ 541,745.02 (55.98% of the annual budget for state PAs created after 2008) at state level. The findings contribute to the development of strategies for the creation of new PAs in Brazil. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diversity is a complex term that includes taxonomic, functional, spatial and temporal aspects of organisms variety. Conservation policies must be supported by holistic studies of ecosystem function, must aim to transform scientific knowledge into social responsibility creating a culture of respect towards nature and should also include economic components. Mediterranean ecosystems will likely experience the greatest proportional changes in biodiversity due to the substantial influence of land use and climate change as major drivers. Land use includes not only rural abandonment but also intensive exploitation of native forests (cork oak woodlands) or shrublands for animal or crop production. These last two are dependent on large Nitrogen (N) inputs. In this paper we intend to show the responses of Mediterranean ecosystems to increased N availability in terms of biodiversity and ecosystem functionality. We present two case studies: 1) a gradient of N availability due to a N point source; and 2) N manipulative field experiment (doses and forms). With these results our aim is to pinpoint the importance of improving scientific knowledge at a local level before we establish conservation policies at global level. The two case studies reflect a strong influence of the N source on ecosystem function. Finally, we use the SWOT (Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities and Threats) analysis approach to underpin the complexities of human intervention in the N cycle and the problem it poses for policies of plant conservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vicuna (Vicugna vicugna) fibre is produced by extremely low-income communities that inhabit the harsh environment of the Andes in Argentina, Chile, Peru and Bolivia. At the other end of the social scale, affluent consumers are willing to pay high prices for vicuna-made accessories and clothes. Vicuna management projects follow the logic of community-based wildlife management. The rationale for seeking to conserve vicuñas through sustainable use is that commercial utilization of the fibre (obtained from live-shorn animals) will generate sufficient economic benefits to outweigh the costs of conservation, and contribute to community development and poverty alleviation. However, although conservation efforts have been extremely successful with vicuñas having recovered from the brink of extinction, the socio-economic achievements have thus far proved modest. This paper explores multiple-objective projects that address vicuña conservation and poverty alleviation in Andean countries. In doing so, it analyses the tensions that exist between these objectives, as well as the factors that limit a more equitable distribution of benefits among stakeholders. Examples are drawn from vicuna management under common-property in Peru and Bolivia, and vicuna captive management under private property in Argentina. These case studies enable us to illustrate the complex relationship between local communities and the global market, and the importance of community enterprises and supportive government policy in managing a common pool resource. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The attitudes of neighbouring communities towards protected areas are increasingly being considered in the establishment and management of national parks. In South Africa, more inclusive policies have been introduced which seek to involve neighbouring communities in policy formulation and management of Kruger National Park (KNP). This paper examines the attitudes of 38 communities towards KNP along its western border. A random survey of 240 households was conducted to assess attitudes towards the Park, and what factors might influence them. Attitudes were measured by responses to 12 related questions, which were transformed to construct an attitude index. Attitudes are more varied than previously reported. Notwithstanding KNP outreach programmes, many respondents had had no interaction with KNP, 72.9% had never been in the Park, and only 32.1% claimed they knew of KNP's activities. Having a household member employed by KNP, age and de jure Traditional Authority affiliation influenced more positive attitudes toward KNP. Negative attitudes were primarily linked with problems associated with damage-causing animals, including inadequate maintenance of the KNP border fence, poor animal control outside KNP and lack of compensation for affected farmers. These findings on relationships between KNP and its neighbours are relevant for many protected areas in similar contexts elsewhere. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Urban water managers and policymakers have adopted demand management strategies to reduce water use and buffer against short‐term water supply shortfalls. This article provides a systematic review of publications from 1978‐2022 that examine the effectiveness of residential water use restrictions as the primary demand‐side management tool. Our results indicate the significant overall effect of restrictions on reducing water consumption, with an average reduction of 12.3% from the 23 studies reviewed in this article. When evaluating effect strength by restriction type (mandatory versus voluntary), voluntary restrictions have a significantly lower effect than mandatory restrictions on water use. We also find an inverse correlation between the number of irrigation days allowed and the estimated effect strength. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urbanization is a major driver of environmental change and is closely linked to the future of biodiversity. Cities can host a high richness of plants and animals, and this urban biodiversity supports multiple regulating, provisioning and cultural ecosystem services. Developing biodiversity-friendly cities is thus inextricably linked to sustainable urban development and human wellbeing. The contributions to this Special Issue on "Biodiversity Conservation and Sustainable Urban Development" in the journal Sustainability illustrate the role of urban environments as pressures on biodiversity, and envision pathways towards developing more biodiverse urban environments that are accepted and supported by people. Contributions reveal promising opportunities for conserving biodiversity within many urban landscapes. The insights from this Special Issue can support urban conservation policies and their implementation in the development of sustainable cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Relationships with carbon mainly positive; with timber and NTFPs inconclusive. • Myriad of little used plant diversity indicators limits comparisons. • Positive pan-tropical relationship between tree species richness and carbon stock. • Geographical extent of study area moderates plant diversity-ES relationships. • Synergies between local to regional carbon and conservation policies are possible. This paper sheds light on the state of our knowledge of relationships between plant diversity and tropical forests ecosystem services. We systematically reviewed the empirical evidence of relationships between three ecosystem services: carbon stock and sequestration, timber provisioning and non-timber forest product (NTFP) provisioning, and three dimensions of plant diversity: taxonomic, functional and structural. We carried out meta-analyses to assess their validity across spatial scales and plot sizes. We found that indicators of all three dimensions of plant diversity have reported relationships with at least two of the studied ecosystem services, but there has been limited and inconsistent use of plant diversity indicators and little attention for relationships with timber and NTFP services. Nevertheless, we found that tree species richness showed robust significant positive correlations with carbon stock across the tropics, and that the geographical extent of the study area had a significant negative effect on the strength of this relationship, where the strength of the relationship decreased with increasing geographical extent. This paper reveals a knowledge gap for services other than carbon stock and shows that at local to regional spatial scales, synergies can be achieved between policies focused on biodiversity conservation and maintenance of carbon stocks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to examine the challenges of the policies and regulatory framework and strategies for the sustainable mangrove management in Zanzibar, from 1890 to present. The study collected both primary and secondary data. The secondary data were collected through the a review of previous policies, legal documents, by laws, ministry/department reports, research reports, newspapers and articles. The primary data were mainly collected through focus group discussions (FGDs) and semi-structured interviews. The study found that, before Zanzibar became a British protectorate in 1890, the forests were communally managed with the guidance of forest guardians, chiefs and elders. The colonial government enacted a number of land administration laws, policies, and arrangements aimed at conserving the natural resources, including the mangrove forests. From 1930 to the end of the Second World War (WWII), mangrove forests were severely degraded because the colonial government paid little attention to their conservation and management. The policy arrangements put in place after independence, such as the National Forest Conservation and Management Act of 1996, laid the legal groundwork for the introduction of the participation of the local communities in the conservation of mangroves. However, they were not sufficient enough to promote the sustainable use of mangrove forests. This study proposes that there is a need for more inclusive and diverse regulations. Furthermore, for the effective conservation and management of mangroves, conflicting laws and responsibilities between government departments should be harmonized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While most of the literature on park management and nature conservation has focused on the negative implications for local people's livelihoods, fewer studies have empirically analysed local people's strategies in responding to these policies and renegotiating their position to continue their traditional livelihoods using their traditional knowledge and legal systems. This study contributes to the current literature on nature conservation by focusing on the impacts of nationally and internationally driven nature conservation policies on indigenous people and local communities (IPLCs) and collective strategies and responses to such policies and initiatives to continue their livelihood and cultural practices. We employ a qualitative research approach, using the convivial conservation theoretical lens to analyse the data collected. We conclude that conservation policies have worsened existing livelihoods and constrained the improvement of indigenous people's livelihoods and local communities. Yet, IPLCs have devised coping mechanisms to deal with the negative effects of these conservation interventions, which include resistance to some conservation policies, agricultural intensification, and involvement in commercial activities. We argue that the convivial conservation approach may offer viable solutions to existing conflicts by promoting human and non-human coexistence, based on indigenous and local people's knowledge and practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The expansion of nature reserves is an important public policy strategy for the protection of biological diversity. In this paper, the authors use integer programming model structures derived from Location Set Covering Problem and Maximal Covering Location Problem approaches of location science as tools for selectively augmenting nature reserve sites for special status species protection. The linear programming models presented incorporate the following: biological constraints in the form of species'' area needs; economic constraints in the form of opportunity costs of converting smaller administrative districts into nature reserves; and spatial constraints in the form of required connectivity among districts in site selection. The construction of a taxonomic data set for Thailand enables the implementation of the models, the comparison of results and evaluation of the differences in outcomes. The models build upon the existing nature reserve network in Thailand and suggest various public policy options that would augment the reserves for enhancing species protection and for possibly improving national conservation efforts at lowest costs. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The preservation of species diversity generally suggests protection of either the greatest number of species possible or all species. Requiring representation of each species in at least one parcel in the system and seeking the minimum number of parcels in the reserve system to achieve this requirement is termed the Species Set Covering Problem (SSCP). Nonetheless, it is important, as well, to consider the rarest of species, as their populations are the most in need of protection to assure their survival. This paper uses 0–1 programming models and an existing data set to study species protection, rarity, species abundance and species diversity. We employ for this purpose an integer programming model that uses the SSCP format to require at least one representation of each and every species, but that seeks in addition protection of the rarest species. This is achieved by maximizing redundant coverage of those species designated as rare. Results are then compared to those of the SSCP. Recognizing that resources available for conservation purchases could well be insufficient to represent all species at least once, we structure a model comparing coverage of the greatest number of species and redundant coverage of rare species. We develop a trade-off curve for this multi-objective problem in order to evaluate the opportunity cost of covering more species as redundant coverage of rare species decreases—and vice versa. Finally, various possible rarity sets and various budget proxies are considered along with their impacts on conservation policies, Pareto optimality and species diversity. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper considers the economics of conserving a species with mainly non-use value, the endangered mahogany glider. Three serial surveys of Brisbane residents provide data on the knowledge of respondents about the mahogany glider. The results supply information about the attitudes of respondents to the mahogany glider, to its conservation and relevant public policies, and about variations in these factors as the knowledge of participants of the mahogany glider alters. Similarly, data are provided and analysed about the willingness to pay of respondents to conserve the mahogany glider and how it changes. Population viability analysis is applied to estimate the required habitat area for a minimum viable population of the mahogany glider to ensure at least a 95% probability of its survival for 100 years. Places are identified in Queensland where the requisite minimum area of critical habitat can be conserved. Using the survey results as a basis, the likely willingness of groups of Australians to pay for the conservation of the mahogany glider is estimated and consequently their willingness to pay for the minimum required area of its habitat. Methods for estimating the cost of protecting this habitat are outlined. Australia-wide benefits are estimated to exceed the costs. Establishing a national park containing the minimum viable population of the mahogany glider is an appealing management option. This would also be beneficial in conserving other endangered wildlife species and ecosystems. Therefore, additional economic benefits to those estimated on account of the mahogany glider itself can be obtained. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Conservation efforts to reduce residential water use have a long history in California. This article examines residential water use changes, measured by gallons per capita per day (GPCD), using a comprehensive monthly panel dataset of California's public water agencies during 1994–2019. We find that, on average, GPCD was reduced by 34% in 2019 when compared to 1994 levels. Controlling for the region, water source, and water agency characteristics suggest significant differences in policy performance. The differential effectiveness of conservation policies indicates a need to consider policy differentiation based on the agencies' objective and subjective conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The internationally recognized levels of conservation, namely ecosystems, species, and genes, have thus far served as important guidelines to determine how national and international laws should protect nature. However, a far ignored aspect of a species' life history in the legislation is its tendency to form social groups. Group members greatly depend on each other for survival and reproduction, and when the persistence of groups is threatened, so may the population as a whole. Humans affect groups through indirect activities, such as tourism, or directly by removing individuals through poaching, for example. These activities disturb groups in both predictable and unpredictable ways: destabilizing dominance hierarchies, changing the strength of social relationships, modifying cooperative interactions, reducing alloparental care, and altering social skills, among others. We propose that greater efforts must be undertaken first, to more thoroughly understand how our actions are affecting group dynamics in as many species as possible, and second, to adapt policies to reduce the negative effects of direct and indirect anthropogenic activities on group and population persistence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Across contemporary East Africa, fencing is spreading with incredible speed over hundreds of thousands of hectares of rangelands, fundamentally reconfiguring land tenure dynamics. But why is this happening now, what are the precursors, and what will happen in the years to come? In this article, we ask how pre- and post-colonial landscape gridding perpetuate a slow violence across the landscape through processes of de-/fencing. Fencing, we argue, is embedded in a landscape logic that favours exclusive rights and conditioned access. In two case studies from grazing lands in Kenya, we explore how people engage with the tension of an imposed landscape logic of fencing by either asserting or challenging its very physicality. We propose that de-/fencing are ways of anticipating long-standing land tenure uncertainties. Moreover, we use our cases to explore different points of reference along the mattering of land tenure boundaries as well as the sort of horizons to which fencing leads. We also use this knowledge to improve our understanding of parallel prehistoric cases of large-scale landscape enclosure. By unfolding the intertwined socio-political and material nature of gridded landscapes, we seek to bring the study of fencing out of conservation literature and into its wider culture-historical context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biodiversity Offsets (BO) and Payments for Environmental Services (PES) are sometimes used interchangeably to characterize innovative economic tools to conserve or restore biodiversity, ecosystems, or their services. We assume that a confusion between PES and BO can have negative implications for biodiversity conservation. In this paper, we argue that these two tools follow different targets and have different founding principles, and thus, their basic mode of functioning would only coincide under special circumstances and institutional contexts. Here, we propose a new definition of BO, delimiting them more clearly from PES, and use practical examples to underscore conceptual differences. Both tools require specific policy framework conditions, in terms of rights, responsibilities, and enforcement. If unmet, however, the implications for biodiversity conservation outcomes are stronger for BO than for PES since BO are explicitly linked to biodiversity losses, while PES typically are not. PES experiences can certainly inform BO implementation vis-à-vis contract design and enforcement, but these PES lessons need to be enacted vis-à-vis BO specific requirements, in order not to underestimate generic risks in their implementation: if a PES scheme fails, payments can be stopped; if a BO fails, biodiversity losses remain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents results of a qualitative study on the opinions and attitudes of stakeholders of the areas affected by the moratorium on European eel (Anguilla anguilla) fishing (declared in 2010) in the Guadalquivir River marshlands of southern Spain. Results suggest that the stakeholders were sustaining different principles, criterions, and proposals that frequently conflicted because problems with mutual understanding. The usefulness of these results to manage this conflict is also discussed. This research allowed for improving communication, channeling demands of the different stakeholders, and searching for negotiated solutions to reduce the tensions that arose after the moratorium. Results have been shown to be especially relevant in this case where some stakeholders held strong and conflicting positions that made the dialogue almost impossible given that eel fishing was being carried out illegally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study,we integrate data fromfield investigations, spatial analysis, genetic analysis, and Generalized LinearModels (GLMs) to evaluate the effects of habitat fragmentation on the population dynamics, genetic diversity, and range shifts in the endangered Yunnan snub-nosed monkey (Rhinopithecus bieti). The results indicate that from 1994 to 2016, R. bieti population size increased from less than 2,000 to approximately 3,000 individuals. A primary factor promoting population recovery was the establishment of protected nature reserves.We also found that subpopulation growth rates were uneven, with the groups in some areas, and the formation of newgroups. Both the fragmentation index, defined as the ratio of the number of forest patches to the total area of forest patches (e.g., increased fragmentation), and increasing human population size had a negative effect on population growth in R. bieti. We recommend that government conservation plans prioritize the protection of particular R. bieti populations, such as the Baimei and Jisichang populations, which have uncommon haplotypes. In addition, effective conservation strategies need to include an expansion ofmigration corridors to enable individuals from larger populations such as Guyoulong (Guilong) to serve as a source population to increase the genetic diversity of smaller R. bieti subpopulations. We argue that policies designed to protect endangered primates should not focus solely on total population size but also need to determine the amount of genetic diversity present across different subpopulations and use this information as a measure of the effectiveness of current conservation policies and the basis for newconservation policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

More than half of the natural vegetation in Mexico is managed collectively within common property systems. The appropriation and continuity of government programs related to the conservation of land that is communally used is proposed to depend on the level of organization of the communities and the interaction between the local and governmental institutions, as well as the benefits derived from conservation projects. Patterns of what drives the conservation of common natural resources were analyzed in order to propose improvements to conservation policy. Changes in primary and secondary vegetation cover in common and private properties were identified by performing a historical spatial analysis. Questionnaires were used to survey 32 populations of seven states of the Mexican Republic to determine the conservation status of common property resources, as well as the ability of the community to continue conservation activities initially undertaken by government programs. Some 53% of the primary and secondary vegetation in Mexico is found in common property areas, but the change from primary and secondary vegetation to other uses is the same for common and private property. Communities with a high level of conservation of communal areas and with the ability to continue conservation projects were those that had dedicated the areas to recreation and conservation, had stronger community organization and were less marginalized. A recognition of the heterogeneity of the socioeconomic and cultural context of communities with common property is necessary to design governmental conservation programs that achieve long-term conservation. To meet the needs of a region that is both degraded and marginalized, the creation of synergies between programs that combat poverty and programs that promote conservation is needed. In addition, the continuation of payments with public funds for work that preserves or rehabilitates natural areas is needed, thereby acknowledging the environmental services that these areas generate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Increasing abundance of geese in North America and Europe constitutes a major conservation success, but has caused increasing conflicts with economic, health and safety interests, as well as ecosystem impacts. Potential conflict resolution through a single, 'one size fits all' policy is hindered by differences in species' ecology, behaviour, abundance and population status, and in contrasting political and socio-economic environments across the flyways. Effective goose management requires coordinated application of a suite of tools from the local level to strategic flyway management actions. The European Goose Management Platform, established under the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds, aims to harmonise and prioritise management, monitoring and conservation efforts, sharing best practice internationally by facilitating agreed policies, coordinating flyway efforts, and sharing and exchanging experiences and information. This depends crucially upon adequate government financing, the collection of necessary monitoring data (e.g., on distribution, abundance, hunting bags, demography, ecosystem and agricultural damage), the collation and effective use of such data and information, as well as the evaluation of outcomes of existing management measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vicuna (Vicugna vicugna) fiber is produced by extremely low-income communities that inhabit the harsh environment of the Andes in Argentina, Chile, Peru and Bolivia. At the other end of the social scale, affluent consumers are willing to pay high prices for vicuna-made accessories and clothes. Vicuna management projects follow the logic of community-based wildlife management. The rationale for seeking to conserve vicuñas through sustainable use is that commercial utilization of the fiber (obtained from live-shorn animals) will generate sufficient economic benefits to outweigh the costs of conservation, and contribute to community development and poverty alleviation. However, although conservation efforts have been extremely successful with vicuñas having recovered from the brink of extinction, the socio-economic achievements have thus far proved modest. This paper explores multiple-objective projects that address vicuña conservation and poverty alleviation in Andean countries. In doing so it analyses the tensions that exist between these objectives, as well as the factors that limit a more equitable distribution of benefits among stakeholders. Examples are drawn from vicuna management under common-property in Peru and Bolivia, and vicuna captive management under private property in Argentina. These case studies enable us to illustrate the complex relationship between local communities and the global market, and the importance of community enterprises and supportive government policy in managing a common pool resource.

The goal of this article is to understand the contemporary transformations of indigenous territories in relation to several factors, including urbanisation, population growth, economic development and conservation policies. Using socio-economic, governance and land use data, we explain the current territorial reorganisations of the Wayãpi and Teko indigenous peoples. We demonstrate the existence of an emerging 'multi-sited' land use system that allows these indigenous peoples to benefit from resources in both urban and forest areas and ensures sovereignty over the territory. We emphasise the role of the delimitation of protected areas in catalysing identity claims and the process of land use reformulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Our aim was to identify elements useful in designing policies and programmes for conservation of farm animal genetic resources, taking as case study a group of European local cattle breeds. We first investigated the implications of differences among countries in the policies and programmes to be developed. Secondly, we analysed key elements common to countries, which may affect local breed viability. We used the herd size trend expected by the farmer in the near future as an indicator of breed viability. Fifteen breeds, for a total of 355 farms, were surveyed. To take into account the multiple factors influencing breeds' demographic trends, the questionnaire included economical, technical and social aspects. Among the major differences across countries was the perception of the farmer on the value attributed to the local breed by society. Concerning the elements common to countries and their association to breed viability, the greater the collaboration among farmers and the stakeholders' appreciation as perceived by the farmer, the greater the viability of the farm. An opposite trend was observed for the age of the farmer. Older farmers generally planned to soon cease farming or decrease herd size, whereas young farmers planned to increase the size of their herds. Implications of including these elements in conservation polices are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The coercive, top-down approach to managing protected areas has created socio-cultural disruption and often even failed to conserve biodiversity. This top-down conservation approach has led to management decisions seriously threatening the livelihood and cultural heritage of local people, such as the resettlement programme established to move people from villages inside the park, and the reduction of access to resources and traditional rights. This article presents findings from an analysis of the resettlement program, documenting the consequences of the relocation process on people's livelihood in the Sariska Tiger Reserve, Rajasthan, India. The results show that local people have had little infl uence on the relocation process, and hardly any say on the limitations of access and use of resources linked to the constitution of this protected area. The article challenges the existing conservation paradigm practiced currently by the authorities in most protected areas in India, and calls for park management to rethink their vision of conservation, by adopting new approaches toward a more collaborative paradigm integrating conservation and development needs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Those concerned with issues of environmental sustainability typically harbor a deep ambivalence with respect to markets and related institutions of the capitalist system of production and distribution. Perhaps most troubling is the way that market practices-standardization, commodification, and monetization-tend to facilitate erasure of the complex ecological as well as social connections linking production and consumption. But despite this tendency, the global spread of markets-and methodologies for their analysis-has also permitted us to learn much about the status of natural resources and populations. Drawing on two examples from the history of ecology and environmental protection, this article explores what markets permit us to know about populations and how this is integrated with other kinds of environmental knowledge in the context of a 'civic epistemology', the set of methods and processes by which communities identify policy issues and make knowledge to address them. Seen in this light, markets are not simply causes of environmental problems: they simultaneously define these problems and shape the knowledge base upon which their solution depends. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Pyrenees are becoming an environmental reservoir. The acute human depopulation experienced during the twentieth century and the progressive appropriation of large parts of the mountainous territory by the state in order to implement conservation policies have resulted in the return, via reintroduction or natural regeneration, of bears, wolves, beavers, river otters, marmots, mouflon, feral goats, and deer, among other species. This development, however, has not occurred without social and scientific controversy and leads to questions about territorialization and governmentality. Herders perceive wild animals as unregulated public property subsidized by the work of the local populace. Agriculturalists see their fields trespassed on a daily basis by animals they cannot kill because of their protected status. Ranchers, under extremely strict sanitation regulations, see their animals coming into contact with these unchecked wild populations. The work and living space of the mountain communities has fallen under the jurisdiction of external institutions and constituencies that value conservation and ecotourism above local subsistence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examine the ways both deforestation and conservation are viewed by people of two villages with different ethnic composition located within the biosphere reserve of Los Tuxtlas, Mexico. The rain forest is considered to be important, since it provides many resources and environmental benefits. Residents do notice forest degradation, although deforestation is not one of their major concerns. In the mestizo village, 65% of interviewees indicated they felt responsible for deforestation, while only 30% of indigenous villagers felt the same. In both communities, nearly half the respondents see themselves as powerless to take actions to preserve the forest. We analyzed the management plan for the reserve in light of our results, and found authorities’ perceptions differ from that of local communities. This study emphasizes the lack of factual data and common goals for biodiversity conservation. Our work points to the urgency to build conservation efforts that involve the different social actors, who diverge in interests and views, particularly in countries like Mexico, where rich biodiversity regions are also broadly inhabited. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]