The cooperation of developing countries is commonly assumed to be essential for the establishment of effective regimes to manage global environmental interdependence. Yet their policies and perceptions have been inadequately studied. This thesis seeks to partially fill this gap in the literature with a detailed analysis of Indian policy on global environmental issues. It examines the cases of ozone depletion, climate change, and loss of biodiversity, and discusses developments up to the 1992 Earth Summit. The study addresses four broad questions about Indian policy: the process of policy making; the character of Indian interests and preferences; the nature and evolution of India's bargaining strategy; and the outcome of international negotiations for India. It reveals a complex picture of continuity and change in Indian policy. It demonstrates the enduring importance of traditions and values such as the "poverty is the greatest polluter" orthodoxy and the concepts of sovereignty, equity and Third World solidarity. It also highlights the impact of perceptions of vulnerability in relation to the North. It argues that Indian policy did not reflect purely powermaximising goals; policy makers were sometimes uncertain about where India's interests precisely lay, and felt constrained both by economic weakness and by the recognition of the mutual interest of all states in global environmental protection. This was reflected in the moderation in India's bargaining strategy. The Indian case suggests that developing countries did not regard their cooperation in the resolution of global environmental issues purely as a bargaining chip with which to extract concessions from the North. Still less did they perceive these issues as providing an opportunity to pose a macro-challenge to the North, linking agendas across issue areas. Instead, their goals reflected perceptions of constraints and mutual interests in bargaining with the North. Their bargaining strategy thus tended to be moderate and flexible, unlike the confrontational approach of the 1970s.

Agricultural expansion has transformed and fragmented natural forest habitats at an alarming rate, and dramatic increases in agricultural intensification have since taken place in order to keep pace with human population growth and food demands. This simultaneously poses a considerable threat to biodiversity in agricultural landscapes, as production land is now one of the largest terrestrial biomes on the planet. Therefore, its contribution to biodiversity conservation is critical. Links between the intensification of agricultural systems and ‘in situ’ declines of biodiversity on farmland have been well documented. However, despite growing recognition that system inputs such as fertiliser and livestock can move or ‘spillover’ into adjacent natural habitats, there has been no direct quantification of the extent of impacts in recipient ecosystems. These abiotic and biotic pathways can cause dramatic impacts on the diversity, composition, and functioning of remaining natural ecosystems, and on their ability to provide a variety of essential ecosystem services. Due to concerns regarding future food security, balancing trade-offs between agriculture and conservation has subsequently become a hot topic in ecological research. However, without any direct quantification of the off-site ecological impacts of agricultural intensification in mosaic landscapes, it is inherently difficult to fully evaluate strategies aimed at balancing production and conservation. Using New Zealand farming systems as a case study, this thesis aims to address gaps in our current understanding of how increasing agricultural intensification impacts biodiversity in native forest remnants embedded within production landscapes. The first main chapter explores whether the magnitude of ecological impact in forest remnants (for a suite of 26 response measures) and severity of edge effects, scale with the degree of land-use intensity in surrounding agricultural pastures. This chapter also examines whether ecological responses differ in remnants ‘spared’ for conservation purposes (i.e. where livestock are excluded by fencing). The second chapter uses a model food-chain approach native to New Zealand, to test whether nutrient spillover from agricultural pastures influences plant-herbivore and herbivore-parasitoid interactions in forest remnants. This chapter also includes a large-scale common garden fertilisation experiment using the same tri-trophic system, which was established to examine bottom-up multi-trophic responses to the independent and combined effects of Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P) and cow dung and urine. The third main chapter uses a novel stable isotope approach for quantifying community-wide incorporation of resources into trophic structure. I test for the first time whether increasing intensity of farming systems drives greater nutrient spillover spatially into adjacent forest remnant soils and examine scaling effects of 15N (as a marker for anthropogenic N) through multiple trophic levels. Beyond finding that agricultural land-use intensity generally has negative off-site effects on biodiversity, the key findings of this thesis were (i) spillover of nitrogen and phosphorus from agricultural systems into adjacent remnant soils is exacerbated by increases in land-use intensity, with (ii) percolating bottom-up effects on plant and insect community dynamics. (iii) The magnitude of ecological impacts in forest remnants scales linearly with increasing land-use intensity, as does (iv) direct anthropogenic N enrichment across multiple trophic levels, which has the potential to severely jeopardise the stability of ecologically important remnant habitats. (v) Although there were stark structural differences in remnants with and without livestock exclusion, impacts of land-use intensity on ecological response metrics were actually comparable across all sites. (vi) Livestock exclusion should be a priority first step towards conserving native forest remnants, however it should be recognised that fencing does not prevent abiotic channels of nutrient spillover (fertiliser drift, overland flow, leaching) in land characteristic of land spared for nature. (vii) Consequently, increasing land-use intensity compromises the effectiveness of the land-sparing trajectory for conserving native biodiversity, which is currently undertaken in New Zealand production systems. Given the overall strength of these findings and the novel, ecosystem-wide and landscape-scale approaches taken to address fundamental questions, the work in this thesis greatly enhances our knowledge of the relationships between agricultural productivity and ecological impacts in spatially-coupled ecosystems. This is highly important, not only in New Zealand but worldwide, as it is anticipated that unstoppable human population growth and food security pressures will cause ecological impacts both on the farm and in adjacent natural ecosystems to become even more severe. Therefore, determining the relationship between land-use intensification and biodiversity loss represents the cornerstone of sustainable agricultural development in the future.

My dissertation research investigates the impacts of biodiversity conservation on the local population living in the Sundarban Biosphere Reserve (SBR). More specifically, the research examines the impacts of conservation on local fishing communities living on the edge of the Sundarban Reserve Forest. In addition, it examines the causes and characteristics of conflicts between the biosphere reserve managers and the local fishing communities over the resource use of the biosphere reserve. The research project also explores the impacts of ecotourism on the local population that lives on the edge of the Sundarban Tiger Reserve (STR). STR is one of the important components of the larger biosphere reserve and the core area of the STR overlaps with the core area of the SBR. Findings from research indicate that the current management of the SBR in many ways replicates a fortress conservation model in which local fishermen are denied access to the fishing grounds in the core and sanctuary areas of the STR. Furthermore, the regulation of number of boats through the Boat Licensing Certificate (BLC) creates an avenue for illegal fishing in the STR. Illegal fishing makes fishermen more vulnerable to tiger attacks as the fishermen try to avoid the patrolling forest guards and hide themselves deep in the forest. Fishermen also pay frequent fine for illegal fishing and face harassments from the biosphere resource managers. The confiscation of BLCs and fishing implements also leads to significant loss of fishing time. Additionally, the research shows how the characteristics of a fortress conservation model continue to live on despite there was no instances of eviction during the formation of the SundarbanTiger Reserve in 1973. In sum, this dissertation transforms our overall understanding of a fortress conservation model and suggests that we need to consider broader environmental and political history of a region to understand conservation in a given territory.

Cape Town is a unique city. It has a global biodiversity hotspot, in the midst of an urban area. Historically, nature conservation practice excluded and marginalized certain groups of people based on their race and class. This has led to peoples‘ disconnection from nature. Rapid biodiversity loss is a major concern for conservators. In the last three decades, there has been a paradigm shift in conservation practice in certain parts of the world. The Cape Flats Nature programme based in Cape Town followed suit and aimed to stimulate a bottom-up participatory approach to conservation and replace the traditional top-down management strategy. The programme was tasked to reconcile the challenges of complex and conflicting relationships between urban poverty, unequal access to resources and biodiversity conservation. This study was aimed at investigating the relationships between conservation management, community partners and urban conservation areas. These relationships are vital for the progression of new conservation practice in places where people live and work. In addition, the transformative aspects of conservation in relation to social inclusion and the shift in conservation approaches was investigated. The study was conducted at five of Cape Town‘s nature reserves, Edith Stephens Wetland Park, Macassar Dunes, Harmony Flats, Wolfgat and Witzands Aquifer Nature Reserves. Data collection included in depth interviews with key informants from various conservation organizations, the Cape Flats Nature Programme team, the managers of the selected reserves and community partners. Others included observational methods and analysis of secondary data. It was found that relationships between conservators and local communities are not easily created and maintained but relationships regardless of its depth are equally beneficial to communities and the conservators. Balancing social needs with conservation needs is a struggle for conservators but many successes came in cases where this balance was realized. In addition, the transformation of conservators‘ identity has changed community perceptions of conservation practice holistically. Although, many informants feel that transformation continues to remain unequal. / Magister Artium - MA

No abstract available. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2010.

Traditionally the approach to nature conservation in South Africa was a colonialist one, which centred on the notion that the exclusion of rural people from protected areas would result in the best possible protection of fauna and flora and their habitats. This protectionist approach resulted in the creation of ad hoc wildlife sanctuaries, mostly national parks and game reserves which excluded local communities. The notion of a more inclusive approach to communities surrounding conservation areas is a hallmark of modern conservationist thinking and has gained much favour in recent times. The involvement of communities in biodiversity conservation initiatives is especially important when considered within the context of effective environmental governance (EG). This coupled with South Africa's anthropocentric approach to environmental governance serves to lay the theoretical foundation for the proper involvement of communities in the conservation of biodiversity. Central to the notion of sustainability, is the preservation of the integrity of ecosystems, while simultaneously acknowledging the integral part that humans play in these ecosystems. This notion of sustainability, coupled with the much–favoured bottom–up approach to conservation, highlights the importance of community involvement in the formation of biodiversity conservation areas. In order to ensure effective community involvement in biodiversity conservation initiatives, it is imperative that a coherent policy and legal framework exists so as to properly facilitate community involvement in biodiversity conservation initiatives and in so doing to properly implement such projects. It is against this background that this study seeks to explore and analyse the relevant and applicable regional, sub–regional and national legal frameworks applicable to community involvement with regard to biodiversity conservation. / Thesis (LL.M. (Environmental Law))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2011.

Traditionally the approach to nature conservation in South Africa was a colonialist one, which centred on the notion that the exclusion of rural people from protected areas would result in the best possible protection of fauna and flora and their habitats. This protectionist approach resulted in the creation of ad hoc wildlife sanctuaries, mostly national parks and game reserves which excluded local communities. The notion of a more inclusive approach to communities surrounding conservation areas is a hallmark of modern conservationist thinking and has gained much favour in recent times. The involvement of communities in biodiversity conservation initiatives is especially important when considered within the context of effective environmental governance (EG). This coupled with South Africa's anthropocentric approach to environmental governance serves to lay the theoretical foundation for the proper involvement of communities in the conservation of biodiversity. Central to the notion of sustainability, is the preservation of the integrity of ecosystems, while simultaneously acknowledging the integral part that humans play in these ecosystems. This notion of sustainability, coupled with the much–favoured bottom–up approach to conservation, highlights the importance of community involvement in the formation of biodiversity conservation areas. In order to ensure effective community involvement in biodiversity conservation initiatives, it is imperative that a coherent policy and legal framework exists so as to properly facilitate community involvement in biodiversity conservation initiatives and in so doing to properly implement such projects. It is against this background that this study seeks to explore and analyse the relevant and applicable regional, sub–regional and national legal frameworks applicable to community involvement with regard to biodiversity conservation. / Thesis (LL.M. (Environmental Law))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2011.

Conservation of biodiversity is a major issue in ancient temperate rainforests of British Columbia. While significant efforts have been made to document species of birds and mammals, little is known about canopy arthropod communities in British Columbia. Microhabitats (suspended soils) within canopy systems of temperate rainforests support diverse microarthropod communities, dominated by mites of the suborder Oribatida. These oribatid mite communities are distinct from forest floor communities, contribute significantly to overall forest biodiversity, and are functionally important components of forest ecosystems. I used the suspended soil system in western redcedar trees in the Walbran Valley to study the relative importance of local environmental factors versus regional spatial factors contributing to the structure of arboreal oribatid mite communities. and compare these patterns to forest floor oribatid mite communities at the same study location. An array of sampling methods was used to complete these objectives: substrate core samples. bark scrapings, colonisation of litterbags, litterfall collection, and colonisation of artificial canopy habitats. This study identified 138 species of oribatid mites associated with ancient western redcedar trees of the Walbran Valley on Vancouver Island. The documented patterns of oribatid mite diversity in this rainforest demonstrated higher local species richness (alpha diversity) in terrestrial (forest floor) habitats, and greater beta diversity in arboreal (suspended soil) habitats. The oribatid mite community within suspended soils are formed primarily by dispersal patterns and colonisation within the canopy system. with limited colonisation from the forest floor. The factors, which shape canopy oribatid mite communities within suspended soils, are related to habitat availability, moisture limitation and random dispersal events of individual species. My results suggest the arboreal oribatid mite community experiences regional dispersal limitation associated with physical tree-to-tree dispersal barriers. However, factors other than physical dispersal barriers. such as aggregation and niche partitioning, likely also limit the local distribution of species in both arboreal and terrestrial habitats. Stochastic dispersal dynamics within the canopy are crucial to understanding oribatid mite community structure in suspended soils. yet the relative importance of regional dispersal processes is dependent on deterministic factors relating to the environmental tolerances of individual species at the local scale.

An analysis of the impact of incomplete species distribution information on our capacity to identify minimum size protected area networks was performed. Using bird distribution data for southern Quebec it was found that efficient protected area networks could be established using incomplete distribution information, as little as 30%. The results also revealed that reserve networks encompassing the majority of the biodiversity could be established using as little as 10% of the information. The key to producing efficient networks is the ability of the selection algorithm to identify complementary sets of sites in terms of species composition. The results reveal that the algorithm can best accomplish this when the data set used is produced using a geographically intensive site-based survey approach. The results were consistent over three data sets, the original and two modified, indicating that they are transferable to geographic areas and species groups with differing species distribution characteristics.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hawaii at Manoa, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references. / Also available by subscription via World Wide Web / ix, 202 leaves, bound ill., map 29 cm