Thesis (M.E.S.)--York University, 2002. Graduate Programme in Environmental Studies. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 121-128). Also available on the Internet. MODE OF ACCESS via web browser by entering the following URL: http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/yorku/fullcit?pMQ71600.

This thesis investigates the past extent, structure and dynamics of Mar Lodge Caledonian pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) woodland, near Braemar in the south-eastern Cairngorms. The geographical extent and Holocene history of the Scottish pinewoods are generally understood, but the Mar pinewoods are relatively obscure. This thesis is concerned with the Holocene history of the Mar pinewoods; the timing and reasons for first appearance, the increase in abundance of Pinus to become a dominant species, the spatial extent of the woodland and its structure and form. The investigation includes changes to the woodland assemblage during its fragmentation and disappearance in the late Holocene and possible influences on the woodland from people living in the area. At the heart of this thesis is an understanding of the factors underpinning the ecology of Pinus and the response of the species to competition with other taxa. This is related to the spatial and temporal changes in climate that contribute to the location and development of Pinus in Scotland and Mar Lodge. Areas comparable to Mar Lodge are defined as ‘core areas’ of pine woodland rather than ‘native areas’. This avoids the necessity of considering every short period of colonisation by Pinus in areas distal to large populations. The location, extent, form and behaviour of woodland according to macro sub-fossils and micro sub-fossils is used to define core woodland as those with a long presence of Pinus, often continuing to the present day. Areas with a long history but no extant population are regarded as peripheral areas. This thesis consists of extensive palaeoecological investigations of three peat sequences: from within extant pine woodland (Doire Bhraghad), from just beyond its edge (White Bridge) and from peat with sub-fossil pine stumps located 10km west of the modern range of Pinus (Geldie Lodge). A range of techniques, including loss of mass on ignition and colorimetric light transmission analysis are applied to the peat, but palynological techniques form the basis of the investigation. Stomatal counts are used in conjunction with pollen counts to explore the process of Pinus colonisation, and its increase in abundance to form woodland. Pinus percentage and influx, together with the ratio of arboreal to non-arboreal pollen and the percentage of Empetrum are used to define the density of the woodland canopy. The stability of the Doire Bhraghad assemblage confirms the area as core Pinus woodland. Pinus is present from c. 9600 cal BP and dominates woodland from c. 9150 cal BP. Woodland here is a closed, solely Pinus canopy from c. 8600 until 4000 cal BP. Arrival of Pinus at Geldie Lodge is undated but occurs before c. 7550 cal BP. Woodland is always more open; Pinus is co-dominant with Betula, showing affinity with other peripheral areas. Pinus woodland fragments at all Mar Lodge sites from c. 3900 cal BP, disappearing from Geldie Lodge by c. 2800 cal BP and White Bridge by c. 1900 cal BP. Calluna replaces Pinus as the dominant species at all three sites. The disappearance of Pinus is thought to relate to regional climatic change toward wetter conditions. At Geldie Lodge a prior Coleopteran study suggests Pinus growing on the mire surface to be small and short lived. These may not have been the only trees growing in the area but they perhaps contributed to the major fluctuations in arboreal and non-arboreal pollen. Early canopy fluctuations (c. 7550 to 6000 cal BP) at Geldie Lodge may be related to Mesolithic human activity; there is stronger evidence of human presence from c. 4000 cal BP, possibly including cereal cultivation. Evidence from Doire Bhraghad and White Bridge is indicative only of low intensity grazing activity. It is unlikely that human activity instigated the fragmentation and disappearance of woodland, but may have contributed to the process.

The abundance of wealth and technology in the North, and biological diversity and poverty in the South provokes an inquiry into an appropriate modality for the equitable harnessing and allocation of biodiversity dividends. Over the years, the traditional knowledge relating to biological diversity has been regarded as part of the "global intellectual commons", open to exploitation by all, and subject to validation by formal methods. That knowledge has remained the source of both increasing knowledge and critical discoveries of the therapeutic values of most components of biological diversity. There is a consensus between the North and the South that an effective biodiversity conservation strategy should be one capable of providing incentives to the traditional custodians of wild habitat. Intellectual property is generally recognised as an appropriate framework to implement this objective. However, as a perennial subject of North-South disagreement, there is no consensus on the relevant details or mechanisms for deploying intellectual property rights to effectuate the objective. The United Nations Framework Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) signifies a global regime embodying the ideals of incentivising the traditional custodians of the wild habitat as well as equitable sharing of the benefits of biodiversity. Arguably, it marks an end to the idea of regarding traditional knowledge as part of the global intellectual commons. This thesis contends that the CBD regime carries with it the burden of unresolved North-South perspectives on intellectual property rights. It argues that the heart of the conflict is the reluctance of the North to accord intellectual property status to traditional knowledge. This is partly because of the latter's informal nature but most importantly it derives from an inherent geo-political ideological conflict on the subject of intellectual property rights. Presently, the recognition of rights over traditional knowledge is approached on a sui generis basis. This thesis takes the position that the approach with its several limitations is not persuasive. It contends that on the merits, traditional knowledge is, and ought to be recognised as a subject matter of intellectual property rights. The recent elevation of intellectual property (a traditional subject matter of national law) to the international level under the WTO/TRIPs Agreement further undermines traditional knowledge. This has posed a setback not only to the global biodiversity conservation initiative, but also to the quest for equitable allocation of its dividends. It is my thesis that a national approach offers a better option for accommodating the intellectual property status of traditional knowledge and consequentially for advancing the quest for biodiversity conservation as well as equitable allocation of the dividends arising therefrom.

Magistro darbe tiriama paliktų biologinės įvairovės medžių atsparumas neigiamiems aplinkos veiksniams. Darbo objektas – pušies biologinės įvairovės medžiai paliekami kirtavietėse, Veisiejų miškų urėdijos miškuose. Darbo tikslas – ištirti kirtavietėje paliekamų pušies biologinės įvairovės medžių atsparumą neigiamiems aplinkos veiksniams ir jų išlikimo priklausomybę nuo medžių ir aplinkos sąvybių. Darbo metodika – Lauko tyrimų metu surinkta informacija apie Veisiejų miškų urėdijose plynas kirtavietes ir jose biologinei įvairovei paliktus medžius. Iš kiekvienų plynais kirtimais kirstų kirtaviečių buvo pasirinktos 42 kirtavietės. Atliekant tyrimą buvo bandyta išaiškinti atskirų medžių atsparumą aplinkos poveikiui, priklausomai nuo jų individualių ir aplinkos savybių. Buvo mėginama apskaičiuoti žuvusių medžių dalį, priklausomai nuo kirtavietės reljefo, augavietės sąlygų ir dirvos įdirbimo. Darbo rezultatai – Per tiriamą 2003-2005 metų laikotarpį vidutinis paliktų medžių skaičius plynose kirtavietėse viename hektare išaugo 1,1 karto, bet jų vidutinis skersmuo sumažėjo. Vadinasi su kiekvienais metais buvo paliekama vis daugiau, bet smulkesnių medžių. Tačiau geriausiai – išlieka stambios 51-60 cm skersmens pušys. Daugiausia pušų žuvo 20- 30 cm skersmens. Geriau išlieka grupėmis paliekami medžiai nei medžiai paliekami pavieniui. Didelę reikšmę medžių išlikimui turi vėjas – apie trekštadalį žuvusių medžių žuvo dėl vėjo, buvo nulaužti, juos galima vadinti potencialų negyvos medienos... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / The Master thesis analyzes the resistance of the trees reserved for biodiversity to the negative environmental factors. Object of the work: the pine trees which are reserved for biodiversity in the clear-cut areas of the forestry of Veisiejai. Aim of the work: to research the resistance to the negative environmental factors of the pine trees left in the stalls for biological diversity and to determine their dependence on the trees and environmental conditions. Methods of work: The data about the clear-cut areas of the forestry of Veisiejai and the trees left in those stalls for biological diversity were collected during the field research. Out of the numerous clear-cut areas 42 were selected to participate in the research. The attempt was made to evaluate the resistance of particular trees to the environmental factors depending on the individual characteristics of the trees and the environmental conditions. An effort was made to count the perished trees depending on the conformation of the stall, the conditions of the setting and the preparation of the land. Result of the work: The average number of reserved trees in the clear-cut areas increased 1.1 times per hectare during the researched period of 2003-2005, but the average tree trunk diameter decreased. This signifies that each year more trees were reserved, but the reserved trees were thinner. However, the most resistant are the thick pine trees, with the trunk diameter of 51-60 cm. Most of the pine trees which... [to full text]

Discourse used in the field of conservation, be it of animals, land masses or marine zones, matters in that discourse and practice are mutually constitutive and discourse will therefore ultimately influence how conservation is practiced. Conservation discourses have shifted over time depending on the broader political economic climate. At present, neoliberal conservation discourse is gaining traction amongst terrestrial conservationists and has both proponents and detractors; however, it is less clear whether marine conservationists have similarly adopted the discourse of property rights, markets and incentives. Marine conservation is a newer pursuit, and has tended to follow in the path of its terrestrial counterpart. It is therefore of consequence whether and how the neoliberal discourse is beginning to impact marine conservation. While some academic literature has focused on neoliberal discourse in marine environments, to date it has been narrow in scope, mostly focusing on the privatization of fisheries and the role of neoliberalism in the privatization of marine protected areas (MPAs). However, the versatility of neoliberal approaches to conservation suggests that the impact may be much more widespread than this. With the potential to align itself with previously dominant discourses such as fortress conservation and community-based conservation, neoliberal conservation stands to gain traction. This thesis addresses the lack of attention given to neoliberal conservation in marine environments by conducting a collaborative event ethnography (CEE) of the Tenth Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD-COP10). The CBD-COP10 is a forum where a diverse array of actors from the public, private and civil society sectors come together to discuss the future of the field of conservation. It is here that ideas about conservation are both conceptualized and contested, and those that become dominant discourses can ultimately influence how conservation is undertaken in practice. The research finds that as with terrestrial conservation, a wide range of marine actors are indeed invoking neoliberal conservation discourse. At the CBD-COP10, neoliberal discourse and its related practices were rarely challenged and often lauded, from NGO and government partnerships with the private sector, to economic valuation, to the drive towards a ‘green economy’. By revealing this usage, this thesis contributes to scholarship by addressing the lack of attention to the impact of neoliberal conservation discourses in the marine realm. It also shows that the study of discourse can be a useful mode of understanding how marine conservation is conceptualized. It helps to illuminate the power channels through which discourse travels and how a particular discourse can become dominant, which is important to understand because dominant discourses can ultimately impact how conservation is practiced. / SSHRC; Research supported by the US National Science Foundation (award nos. 1027194 and 1027201)

Prior to the commencement of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), genetic resources were considered to be the common heritage of mankind; this principle gave the right to developed countries to obtain and freely use the genetic material of developing countries. Growing concern over the controversial ‘free access’ system and the monopolization of benefits led to the negotiation of an international treaty, the CBD, to regulate access to genetic resources and the sharing of benefits resulting from the utilisation of such resources. The CBD makes some important innovations. It recognizes that the authority to determine access to genetic resources depends on national governments and is subject to national legislation. Thus, the CBD recognizes state sovereignty over genetic resources and institutes the principles of Prior informed Consent (PIC), Mutually Agreed Terms and Benefit-Sharing. However, the CBD and other international instruments relating to genetic resources have not had the desired effect of preventing the misappropriation of genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge (TK). Developing countries suffered and continue to suffer from the piracy of their resources. This state of affairs has led to the recent adoption of the ‘Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization to The Convention on Biological Diversity,’ (2010 Nagoya Protocol). This dissertation will consider the contribution of the Nagoya Protocol to the existing global and regional instruments concerning the access and benefit sharing of genetic resources. After explaining the gaps in the existing instruments, it will explore whether the Protocol is a miracle solution to the recurrent concern over misappropriation of genetic resources from biologically rich countries, or whether there is still much work to do to sort out this problem. / Thesis (LL.M.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2012.

Biological diversity - means the variability among living organisms from all sources including, inter alia, terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and the ekological complexes of which they are part; this includes diversity within species, between species and ecosystems, as Biological Diversity Convention says. In this work was made analysis of forest data of State Forest Enterprise of Kaisiadorys, Buda forest district. Atention was paid to the forest elements that can promote biological diversity. The archive data of managment (1977,1987,1996,2003 years)of Buda forest district used for assessment. Stand species diversity was analyzed using Number of species, Diversity, Proportionality and Dominance indexes. Thestand diversity dynamics of the Buda forest district was analyzed accordind to these indexes. There also were analyzed Species of Data Red Book of Lithuania of forest district, reserves teritories and key habitat teritories of Buda forest district.That supported to mark 2 teritories of Great biodiversity and 8 hotspots of biological diversity on the map of analyzed forest district.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Wollongong, 2007. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references: page 256-281.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Columbia University, 1999. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 379-391).

Thesis (M.A. (Environmental Science)) - Rhodes University, 2005.