This thesis explores the relationship between place attachment and pro-environmental behaviour expressed by visitors to Point Pelee National Park. Place attachment, the functional, cognitive and emotional bond with a place, may play a role in promoting environmentally responsible behaviours. This may be especially true of place-specific pro-environmental behaviours; however place attachment may also have a "carry-over" effect in that its impact on individuals' self identity may also foster pro-environmental behaviour in individuals' every day lives. <br /><br /> An exploration of these relationships was achieved, first by measuring the intensity of place attachment and pro-environment behavioural intentions expressed by visitors to Point Pelee National Park. This was followed by an examination of the relationship between these two constructs using correlation analysis and structural equation modeling. Data was collected with a mail-based self-completed questionnaire. A quota sample of visitors to Point Pelee National Park was utilized. A response rate of 32% (<em>n</em> = 355) was achieved. <br /><br /> The relationship between place attachment and pro-environmental intentions was explored further through the measurement of several related variables. These factors include place satisfaction (based on an appraisal of nature, social and activity-based environments), motivation for visiting the park (related to social interaction and nature observation, as well as activity-based and learning opportunities), distance between the park and visitors' residences, membership in environmental organizations, and visitation patterns including visitation to the park during childhood, length of affiliation with the park, length of visit to the park, and frequency of visitation to the park. Theoretical and empirical research suggests that these factors may affect place attachment, pro-environment behavioural intentions, and/or the relationship between these two constructs. <br /><br /> Study results found positive associations between place attachment and all of these variables with the exception of visitation motives associated with learning and engaging in a favourite activity. The strongest predictive relationships were observed with anti-substitution (the inability of an individual to substitute the park for another destination because of a lack of resources such as time or money or a lack of awareness of comparable sites) followed by frequency of visits to the park; park commitment (based on Friends group membership and donations of time and money to the Friends group); Friends of Point Pelee (FoPP) membership; and park relationship (which was based on visitation to the park as a child and length of affiliation); and, satisfaction with the park. <br /><br /> Results support the proposition that place attachment has a strong positive association with both park-specific pro-environment behavioural intentions (e. g. , Write letters in support of Point Pelee N. P. and similar protected areas) as well as general pro-environment behavioural intentions (e. g. , Pay extra for transportation if it is environmentally-friendly). Place attachment strongly predicted park-specific, and moderately predicted general pro-environmental intentions. A number of other variables had an indirect effect on park-specific intentions; notable effects were demonstrated by frequency of visits; park relationship; visitation to the park as a child; place satisfaction; social satisfaction; FoPP membership; and, park commitment; anti-substitution. These affects were mediated by place attachment. After place attachment the strongest predictors of park-specific intentions were anti-substitution; frequency of visits; park commitment; and, general environmental commitment (which was based on membership in an environmental organization and donations of time and money to that organization). <br /><br /> Place attachment was not the only direct predicator of general pro-environmental intentions; general environmental commitment and membership in an environmental organization also directly predicted general pro-environmental intentions. Notable indirect effects, mediated by place attachment were produced by frequency of visits; park relationship; FoPP membership; park commitment; and anti-substitution. The strongest predictors of general pro-environmental intentions were general environmental commitment, followed by place attachment, membership in an environmental organization, and frequency of park visitation. <br /><br /> These findings correspond with much of the literature published on place attachment formation and the development of pro-environmental behaviours. The most notable contribution of this study is its comparison of place attachment's impact on general versus place-specific behaviours, and the role that several related variables play in this relationship.

The economic modernization of the Amazon fostered by the Brazilian military government during the 1960s and 1970s was largely realized without taking into consideration the presence of local households which lived from the extraction of forest products (mainly non-timber). When they began to be expulsed, a political resistance, often guided by the Catholic Church, appeared as well as the creation of unions based on traditional identities, especially that of rubber tappers. During the 1980s, these unions made a strategic alliance with the ecologist movement which started to consider traditional populations, whose lifestyle depended on the forest, as allies for the protection of the Amazon rainforest. The movement gained a decisive momentum at the end of the decade by putting forward new proposals of land tenure for traditional populations, grounded on collective land rights. This strategy has been very efficient during the 1990s and 2000s, during which about 1,300,000 km(2) of rainforest were set apart and reserved for the use of "traditional communities" under a variety of legal status. But it has also led to mix under the same "collective" etiquette and principles a number of different ways of using and managing land and natural resources. This assumption however should be nuanced by a careful analysis of the resource management systems existing in each case, for they are in general complex and mix varying proportions of individual and collective decisions. The aim of this paper is to explore this question using the example of the Chico Mendes agroextractive settlement (PAE-CM), inhabited by about 100 rubber tapper families and symbolic of the political struggle of traditional populations in the Amazon for being the home of the rubber tapper leader Chico Mendes assassinated in 1988. Applying Ostrom "design principles", we try to catch what are the local institutional arrangements and to see if they suggest collective or individual management, and what the boundaries between both categories are. As a conclusion, we find that the PAE-CM's system is much less collective than expected, and also very much controlled by external authorities, in a logic pretty much away from the idea of a CPR system. This finding is useful to understand the shortcomings in the actual management of the PAE but also to foresee difficulties which will probably arise in the management of many of the areas which have gained collective land rights or collective management statutes in the Amazon.

The destruction of tropical forests is the most concerning current threat to biodiversity. Although protected areas have long been used as the primary tool for biodiversity conservation, there is an increasing need to find suitable conservation strategies for the growing area of human-modified land. This thesis addresses three themes that have been identified as the most pressing areas for research in human-modified landscapes: biodiversity conservation beyond protected areas, forest restoration, and the human–environment relationship. By studying the interactions between birds, plants, and people with isolated Ficus (Moraceae) trees in Assam, India, this thesis reports several important findings: 1) isolated Ficus trees are extraordinarily important to frugivorous bird communities that inhabit human-modified landscapes; 2) the frugivores visiting these isolated trees still sustained the majority of ecological function found in trees close to the forest edge; 3) isolated Ficus trees are also exceptionally important feeding sites for insectivorous birds in human-modified landscapes, compared to other trees; 4) Ficus trees are better restoration nuclei than other isolated trees; 5) although the sacred status of Ficus trees in Assam has a major influence on their abundance and distribution, faith-based values are insufficient in ensuring their conservation. In conclusion, this thesis finds that isolated Ficus trees are critically important micro-sites for conservation in human-modified landscapes, the loss of which may lead to avifaunal collapse and a reduction in restoration potential. However, by stressing their ecological and cultural properties, it may be possible to build a strong case for the conservation of isolated Ficus trees in Assam and elsewhere.

Thèse numérisée par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal.

The thesis presents results of a qualitative research conducted in The Giant Mountains National Park (Czech Republic). The research objective was to assess effects of various behaviour modification strategies on rule acceptance among Park visitors. Using a particular group of visitors (i.e. skialpinists) as an example, the conflict relationship between Park authorities and the public is described, as well as its sources and consequences for conservation efforts. Moreover, effectivity of six psychological strategies (participation, modelling, feedback providing, information providing, social norms highlighting and prompts) aimed at enhancing rule acceptance is discussed, based on focus group, as well as "real life test" data.

The diploma thesis deals with a legal regulation of National Parks in the Czech Republic. The National parks are declared within territorial nature conservation in places with unaffected ecosystems or ecosystems little influenced by people. The thesis is composed of ten chapters dealing with declaring of National Parks, protective conditions, visitor rules, management plans, zoning systems and buffer zones. The separate parts focus on the possibility of establishing fees in National Park areas and reaching a compromise between nature conservation and tourism. The closing part looks at the imperfections of institutions of National Parks. The aim of the thesis is to analyze an effective legal regulation and then to propose its modification in order to protect nature more efficiently in the area of National Parks.

The diploma thesis deals with legal regime of practicing tourism and sports in specially protected areas of the Czech Republic. Specially protected areas are areas with stricter protection regime of nature on specific accurately assessed flat territory. The thesis is composed of five chapters dealing with mutual relationship between sports and environmental protection, general definition of law of specially protected areas of the Czech Republic with a focus on protection tools and sports and tourism activities. Last two chapters are devoted to the pursuit of climbing in the Protected Landscape Area Jizerské hory and the National Park České Švýcarsko. The aim of the thesis is to summarize and to assess the existing legal regulation and to identify of problematic issues. Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org)

The designation of protected areas is currently the most widely adopted means of conserving natural ecosystems. Whilst the conservation of nature is the primary concern in protected areas, it is also recognized that meeting the needs and priorities of participants (e. g. local residents, visitors) is vital to the long-term survival of such areas. Studies dealing with attitudes of participants may improve protected area management, and help to identify the problems in the area. The Ph.D. thesis "Sustainable tourism in selected protected areas in the Czech Republic" was carried out in Krkonose National Park (KPNAP), Sumava National Park (NP) and Protected Landscape Area (PLA) in the Czech Republic and in Karkonoski Park Narodowy (KPN) in Poland. Many socioenvironmental research studies have been done focusing on the problems of tourism in these areas. The results of these studies could be affected by the timing and location of the survey. The main objective of the research is to compare characteristics and attitudes of visitors and local people in protected areas in different seasons (winter and summer) and in different types of protected areas (national parks and protected landscape area). The first part of the results finds the differences between perceptions and attitudes of visitors of the...

This thesis deals with the legal regime of the protected areas and zones designed to protect the soil.The thesis is divided into seven chapters. The first chapter is devoted to a general definition of the environment and describes the reasons why to protect them. The second chapter deals with soil protection in general, and mainly focuses on the problems they are currently facing with the land protection. The third chapter is devoted to the sources of legislation on the soil protection. Chapter four and five of the thesis includes a central and legal analysis of soil conservation in protected areas and zones in the laws on nature protection and landscape in the Water Act. Each institute is described, defined, and especially emphasize the special legal regime consisting mainly of the bans and restrictions on certain activities in the area through which the soil is being protected. Fifth and sixth chapter focuses on soil protection contained in the Act on spas and mining.

This qualitative field study is conducted on the Andaman Islands in India and focuses on the sustainable destination development and SCUBA diving tourism. The island in focus, Havelock, is an emerging tourist destination and an international airport is scheduled to open in the Andamans in 2021. The topic is approached through observation and interviews with people involved with the SCUBA diving industry, selected informants, and diving tourists. Different scales that operate with the island’s development - global, national, regional and local - are investigated. Global warming poses a threat to the coral reefs that is the main resource for tourism at the location and the longterm residents’ education in the subject is absent. The communication between state and nation is a problem as laws are passed without participation or awareness from the local community which makes it difficult for businessowners to invest. Furthermore, diver motivation and satisfaction are investigated. The main motivation of beginner level diving tourists from India are not educated in how the underwater world looks like, but are motivated to see what they already know through movies like “Finding Nemo”. The study reveals that a degraded coral reef does not affect diver satisfaction where the divers are not educated in how a healthy reef looks like. The local Marine Protected Area - Rani Jhansi Marine National Park - is in 2019 funded by the government and there are currently no entrance fees for diving tourists. However, this has been proved successful in other destinations. The Marine Protected Area is perceived as positive by the local SCUBA industry, but it is not interacting with its regulation and governing.