Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
Maintaining core conservation areas with little management provides habitat for wildlife,
underpins key ecosystem services like climate regulation, and affords space for recreation,
contemplation, and the appreciation of nature.
Potential synergies between 'wilderness' conservation and local cultures abound, for
example, sacred groves and forests can provide spaces that fulfil both cultural and conserva-
tion aspirations (see Chapter 6) (Bhagwat 2009, de Groot et al. 2005). Furthermore, as agri-
cultural models change and economies industrialize, leading to rural land abandonment and
urbanisation (Weissteiner et al. 2011, Fischer et al. 2012, von Wehrden et al. 2014), there may
be opportunities for expanding wilderness areas and restoring ecosystem function and pro-
cess through re-wilding, at the same time satisfying the human longing for wild spaces inhab-
ited by creatures that cannot be tamed (see Chapter 3) (Navarro and Pereira 2012, Monbiot
2013a, b). In these cases, long-term data will be critical in restoring ecological functions that
were previously disrupted by extinctions, agriculture and other anthropogenic land-use
(Vera 2000, Zimov et al. 2012).
The success of landscape conservation depends on the ability to integrate a wide range of
stakeholder perspectives and to embed conservation measures into local context in ways
that are culturally appropriate (Stirzaker et al. 2010, Opdam et al. 2013, Rogers et al. 2013).
Thus, adaptive management needs to begin with the negotiation of shared vision for a land-
scapes and a willingness to recognize that science is only one of many narratives (see Chap-
ter 7). Collaboration and knowledge co-production have been identified as vital aspects of
successful adaptive management, and researchers need not only to communicate their find-
ings, but also to engage more actively with managers and other stakeholder groups who can
help to define the research agenda in terms of their needs for ecosystem services and liveli-
hoods (Moore et al. 2011, Susskind et al. 2012, Sutherland et al. 2012, Rogers et al. 2013). Mak-
ing information available to all relevant stakeholders maximizes opportunity for effective
management, and for collaborative learning that includes stakeholder perspectives and val-
ues (Roux et al. 2006, McLoughlin et al. 2011). Building on and reinvigorating traditional con-
servation mechanisms can also help in developing conservation strategies that are locally
appropriate and based on fair and accountable governance (Virah-Sawmy et al. 2014). Hold-
ing strong opinions lightly, respecting a diversity of opinions and being open to change are
all essential in co-learning (Rogers et al. 2013).
Including peoples' values but also nurturing a willingness to adapt will be essential in let-
ting go of inappropriate conservation baselines and targets, and in developing the opportuni-
ties presented by novel communities, while still respecting the intrinsic limits of ecological
resilience (Rogers et al. 2013, Gillson and Marchant 2014). Long-term perspectives have a vital
role in this process, because short-term societal memories can skew perceptions of how
landscapes should look (Wolfe et al. 2007, 2012). In a world of shifting baselines, it is essential
that stakeholders are aware of the long-term and multiscaled perspectives that allow them to
contextualize the changes that they have observed in their own lifetimes, thus fostering
Search WWH ::
Custom Search