It is an internationally acknowledged that marine protected area (MPA) is an important measure for maintaining biodiversity and rescuing endangered species. MPA can also effectively inhibit human interferences such as development and pollution discharge. The establishment of MPA is possible to fulfill the goal of sustainable management, which is to conserve marine habitat for an integrative ecosystem and a higher biodiversity. However, how to design an effective MPA remains an important research issue to be explored. In order to grasp the spatial distribution of the ecological data in the study area, the current research uses spatial interpolation tool, Kriging, provided by the Geographic information system (GIS) software. Then three spatial analytical models have been developed based on integer programming techniques. It is guarantee that all three models can find the global optimal solutions for the best protective area partitions. This quantitative approach is more efficient and effective compared to the qualitative methods in many aspects. The models are able to preserve the maximum ecological resources under the limited spatial area. Besides, the model formulation can be adjusted from different environmental impact factors to fulfill the requirements of users. The case study of the research is to design a MPA for Kaomei wetland. However the spatial analytical models developed in this research can also be applied to protected area design in land area.

During the research it was established that restrictions of economic activity in protected areas make negative influence on the amount of money got from economic activity in those areas and that it is essential to compensate losses of those restrictions in order to follow restrictions of economic activity in protected areas.

An important step for protecting Endangered species is the identification of critical habitat. This can be especially challenging for deep ocean species. Northern bottlenose whales (Hyperoodon ampullatus) are deep-diving beaked whales of the North Atlantic. A population of this species occurs along the edge of the Scotian Shelf primarily in three submarine canyons that have been identified as critical habitat for the population: the Gully (the largest submarine canyon off eastern North America), Shortland Canyon and Haldimand Canyon. The Scotian Shelf population is considered Endangered mainly due to its small numbers and the anthropogenic threats it faces. The primary objective of my research was to further identify critical habitat of the population using passive acoustic monitoring, increasing knowledge of how the whales use the canyons and adjacent areas throughout the year. A review of the literature on cetacean associations with submarine canyons indicates that various mechanisms may act to attract cetaceans to these features. While many different species occur in canyons globally, they appear to be particularly important habitat for beaked whales. I developed an automated click detection algorithm customized for detecting northern bottlenose whale echolocation clicks, and long-term acoustic recordings were analyzed to examine the presence and relative abundance of northern bottlenose whales on the Scotian Slope over various spatial and temporal scales. The whales occurred in the area consistently throughout the year and all three canyons, as well as the area between canyons, appeared to be important foraging grounds for the population. The whales displayed diurnal foraging patterns. I also investigated niche separation between northern bottlenose whales and sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus), another deep diving species. The presence of the two species was positively correlated over all spatial and temporal scales examined. These results indicate that areas within and adjacent to the Gully are important foraging grounds for northern bottlenose whales throughout the year. Furthermore, in addition to the canyons themselves, the shelf-edge areas between the Gully, Shortland and Haldimand canyons may constitute critical habitat for the whales. This research will be used to inform management measures relevant to the protection and recovery of this Endangered population.

Participation has been promoted and studied in diverse disciplines including tourism, development, planning, health, politics, and others. In natural resource conservation, the shift from centralized to decentralized decision making which emphasizes community involvement in planning, implementation and monitoring of programs has been broadly encouraged, especially in developing countries. Although considered a more effective alternative to top down decision making, participatory conservation initiatives have been criticized for many reasons, mainly the exclusion of marginalized groups in programs which lead to unequal distribution of socioeconomic benefits. This inequality is conditioned by social, physical and political structures which act as barriers to sustainable development of resources and communities. Using a political ecology approach, this research explored the participation of marginal groups (poor, women, and lower caste) in Nepal's Annapurna Conservation Area. The main objectives of this study are: 1) To examine the perceived benefits of Annapurna Conservation Area Project (ACAP) and how marginal groups fare in the distribution of benefits; 2) To analyze the level of participation of marginal groups in local management institutions; and 3) To identify the barriers to participation as perceived by marginal groups. Field work for this dissertation was conducted during August ? October 2010 using both quantitative and qualitative data, and employing participant observation and semi-structured interviews. Results indicate that benefits of the project were distributed unequally, and targeted towards elite members of the community. Findings also indicated that although marginal groups were involved in local management institutions, their representation was marginal and had not led to empowerment. Lastly, barriers to participation of communities were complex and deeply rooted in traditions and social norms. Overall, the findings indicate that the definition of marginal groups go beyond gender and caste, and are more significantly defined by wealth, poverty, education, and access to information. The study concludes that ACAP needs to re-orient its conservation and development projects by adopting a more inclusive form of participation and that these projects should aim to overcome the barriers identified by the marginalized households.

<p>A vast range of theoretical and empirical studies now suggests that MPAs can conserve marine biodiversity and, under some circumstances, increase fishery yields. However, despite the importance of pelagic apex predators to ecosystem function, the effectiveness of spatial management for the conservation of pelagic apex predator species is still unknown. I used fishery-dependent logbook and observer datasets to assess fishing effort and both the catch and size of pelagic apex predator species around five different MPAs. The US Hawaii-based deep-set or Atlantic pelagic longline fisheries fish the waters around these MPAs; both of these fisheries have experienced multiple management measures over time to protect species and maximize fishery yield. The MPAs selected for this study range in size, age, level of protection, and reason for establishment. I found that only two MPAs of the five appeared to be benefitting the pelagic apex predator species that I selected: the DeSoto Canyon and East Florida Coast MPAs, both in the Atlantic Ocean. The size of yellowfin tuna around the DeSoto Canyon MPA borders has increased over time, as has fishing effort. In contrast, the size of swordfish has decreased near the boundary of the East Florida Coast MPA, although the catch of swordfish has increased. The increase in catch of smaller swordfish was not a surprise because the East Florida Coast MPA was established around an area that is a nursery habitat for swordfish. These results are promising for the use of static MPAs for the conservation of pelagic apex predators, but three of the MPAs in my study did not show any indication of increased fishing effort, increased catch, or changes in pelagic apex predator size near their boundaries over time. Therefore, the characteristics of the DeSoto Canyon and East Florida Coast MPAs may provide a template for how to best design new MPAs for pelagic apex predators. Both of these MPAs were established with the specific intent of reducing pelagic apex predator bycatch, in areas where there were historically high catch rates. Both areas are relatively large (> 85,000 km2) and are also closed year-round. In combination, these characteristics may provide protection for pelagic apex predators.</p> / Dissertation

Die vorliegende Untersuchung umfasst eine konzeptionelle Analyse von klimawandelbedingten Stressen sowie eine systematische Überprüfung der Managementpläne von Schutzgebieten auf dem amerikanischen Kontinent, mit besonderem Augenmerk auf dem Department Santa Cruz in Bolivien. Die Wirkungen von sich klimawandelbedingt ändernden Mustern der Temperatur und des Wetters, z.B. häufigeren und intensiveren Extremwetterereignissen, sind neuartige Herausforderungen für die natürlichen Ökosysteme der Erde. Es ist deshalb von entscheidender Bedeutung, den Klimawandel bei Planung und Management im Naturschutz zu berücksichtigen und so seine Vulnerabilität gegenüber dem Klimawandel zu thematisieren und mithin zu reduzieren. Die Anerkennung des Klimawandels als Bedrohung für Schutzgebiete stellt in Lateinamerika einen beträchtlichen Paradigmenwechsel für die strategische Planungs- und Managementpraxis dar. Um einen solchen Fortschritt zu befördern, versuchen wir im ersten Schritt das aktuelle Schutzgebietsmanagement zu erfassen und seine Fähigkeit einzuschätzen, auf das Klimawandel-Problem einzugehen. Diese Einschätzung erfolgte auf Grundlage von Analysen einer schriftliche Umfrage bei Schutzgebietsmanagern zu Beobachtungen über Reaktionen von Biodiversität auf den Klimawandel. Um mit relativ schnellem und mit Unsicherheit behaftetem Umweltwandel umgehen zu können, bedarf es der Verbesserung der Anpassungsfähigkeit sowohl der Biodiversität als auch der Naturschutz-Systeme. Unter der Hypothese, dass die meisten ‚konventionellen’ Instrumente des Naturschutzes ein dynamisches Schutzgebietsmanagement, das schnellen Umweltwandel ausreichend berücksichtigt, nicht ausreichend befördern, werteten wir fast 900 gebietsspezifische Conservation Action Plans (CAPs) des Naturschutzverbandes The Nature Conservancy (TNC) aus. Dann wählten wir 103 CAPs aus, die vor einer intensiven Überprüfung existierender Pläne und einem Klimawandel-Training der Planungsteams („climate change clinic“), die TNC 2009 vornahm, erstellt worden waren. Wir verglichen die Ergebnisse mit 22 Plänen aus der Zeit nach der climate change clinic. Vor 2009 gebrauchten 20% der CAPs den Begriff „Klimawandel“ in der Beschreibung der Viabilität des Gebiets, und 45% identifizierten ökologische Schlüsselattribute, die mit Klimawandel in Beziehung stehen. Acht Prozent der Schutzstrategien bezogen sich direkt oder indirekt auf die Anpassung an den Klimawandel. Nach 2009 zog ein signifikant höherer Prozentsatz der Pläne den Klimawandel in Betracht. Unsere Daten zeigen auf, dass viele Planungsteams Schwierigkeiten haben, den Klimawandel in Management und Planung zu berücksichtigen. Eine allgemeine fachliche Anleitung und konkretes Training können jedoch Lernprozesse von Managementteams befördern. Daher entwickelten und erprobten wir eine erweiterte Version der Conservation Action Planning-Methode als zusätzliche Planungsmethode. Dieses erweiterte CAP legt einen Schwerpunkt auf die Berücksichtigung des Klimawandels in allen Planungsschritten. Wir erprobten das erweiterte CAP in einer Fallstudie im Schutzgebiet mit integrierter Nutzung („Area de Manejo Integrado“) Río Grande Valles Cruceños im Department Santa Cruz. Im Zuge dieser Pilotanwendung wählten die Teilnehmer als Schutzobjekte insgesamt acht Arten und Biozönosen aus, die zusammen die Biodiversität des Gebiets repräsentieren. Das Schutzobjekt ‚Wasser’, aufgrund von Qualitätsmerkmalen von ökologischen Prozessen und mit ihnen verbundenen Funktionen ausgewählt, erwies sich als Herausforderung bei der Anwendung. Dem Klimawandel wurde in jedem einzelnen Planungsschritt besondere Beachtung geschenkt. Im Ergebnis wurden die aktuelle Viabilität des Schutzgebiets als „Gut“ und die zukünftige Viabilität unter dem Einfluss des Klimawandels als „Mäßig“ eingeschätzt. Anhand der Antworten von Schutzgebietsmanagern auf einem Fragebogen zu Klimawandel und Schutzgebietsmanagement in Santa Cruz, Bolivien, bewerteten wir die Berücksichtigung des Klimawandels im Schutzgebietsmanagement und der Vulnerabilität der betreffenden Gebiete im Hinblick auf ihre Fähigkeit, sich an den Klimawandel anzupassen. Achtundachtzig Prozent der Gebiete füllten den Fragebogen aus, das sind insgesamt 32 (nationale, departmentale und munizipale) Schutzgebiete im ganzen Department. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass alle Gebiete einige Wirkungen des Klimawandels wahrgenommen haben und, bei unterschiedlichem Stand des Wissens und der Umsetzung, auf der Suche sind nach Mitteln und Wegen, wie sie ihr Management entsprechend anpassen können. Sie legten dar, dass sie sei einigen Jahren in hohem Maße Extremwettereignissen und häufigeren und intensiveren Überschwemmungen, Dürren und Waldbränden ausgesetzt sind, insbesondere in der Amazonasregion. Weniger als die Hälfte der Gebiete verfügten über einen Managementplan; keines besaß Kenntnis vom Ansatz der ökosystembasierten Anpassung. Stattdessen benutzten sie andere Arten adaptiven Managements; 11% der Gebiete praktizierten Risikomanagement; 46 % arbeiteten mit benachbarten privaten Grundeigentümern zusammen, und 86% sind der Auffassung, dass die Naturschutz-Arbeit heute schwieriger ist als noch vor 20 Jahren. Nationale Schutzgebiete waren, einem Index der Klimawandel-Vulnerabilität zufolge, am wenigsten vulnerabel, gefolgt von departmentalen Schutzgebieten. Munizipale Schutzgebiete wiesen gemäß verschiedenen Analysen die höchsten Vulnerabilitätswerte auf. Mit dieser Studie haben wir gezeigt, dass Naturschutzplanung unter besonderer Berücksichtigung des Klimawandels zwar nicht einfach, aber durchaus möglich ist. Indem wir diese Herausforderung herausarbeiten, hoffen wir, zu einem proaktiveren Blick auf die Erhaltung der Biodiversität, der systematischer, umfassender dokumentiert und auf den Klimawandel ausgerichtet ist, anzuregen. Dieser neue Ansatz fordert zu pragmatischen wie auch strategischen Handlungen heraus, die dazu angelegt sind, mit dem Klimawandel zurechtzukommen und sich an ihn anzupassen. Neue Instrumente für adaptives Naturschutzmanagement, die explizit Möglichkeiten zum Umgang mit Zukunftsszenarien, Vulnerabilitätsanalysen und Risikomanagement integrieren, können das Schutzgebietsmanagement angesichts des Klimawandels proaktiver und robuster machen.

Co-management agreements for land and resource management can be viewed as emerging forms of a participatory planning model. They strive for equal aboriginal involvement and result not only in more equitable management strategies, but also incorporate aboriginal worldviews and traditional knowledge. This type of planning model is an iterative learning process for all parties involved and is most effective when mechanisms and processes to develop a co-management agreement are situational and contextually appropriate to each location and aboriginal group involved. Co-management agreements should be valued as interim forms that bridge restrictions on and exclusion of aboriginal peoples’ use and influence in relation to land and natural resources, on one side, and complete control through self-government, on the other. This practicum assesses levels of co-management for two case studies by: reviewing relevant literature, analyzing the co-management agreements and plans of management and surveying key personnel at Uluru – Kata Tjuta National Park in Australia and the Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve and Haida Heritage Site in Canada. The study does conclude that the degree of involvement of aboriginal participation is still wanting, but is higher than it would be if no such framework had been applied. To achieve the full benefits of equality in power distribution, the author suggests that co-management at the highest level should be negotiated either within or as part of land claims agreement or as part of a land title transfer to traditional owners.

Over the past three decades, there has been a global paradigm shift in biodiversity conservation approaches from exclusive protected areas (PAs) towards people-centred conservation. This has encouraged the development of community-based conservation across the world, promoting reconciliation between livelihood improvement and biodiversity conservation. However, there is a growing body of literature that demonstrates mixed outcomes of community-based conservation approaches in contributing to improved conservation and local livelihoods, especially to the communities neighbouring PAs in Africa. This dissertation examines the experience of implementing one community wildlife management area (WMA) in Tanzania, with a particular focus on the effectiveness of Ikona WMA in contributing to improved conservation and local livelihoods in Western Serengeti. Specifically, the study investigates livelihood benefits and conservation impacts attributed to Ikona WMA in the study area. It also explores the success and challenges of implementing Ikona WMA and suggests areas for improvement. Qualitative and quantitative data were gathered through field-based research in Nyichoka and Robanda villages, which participate in Ikona WMA, and Rwamchanga village, which does not. Research methods employed in this study include interviews, focus group discussions, and household surveys. With regard to livelihood benefits attributed to Ikona WMA, results show benefits to the communities participating in WMA at the community level, especially improvement of social infrastructure, while few or no benefits were realized at the household level. In addition, findings show variation in perceptions between and among the communities participating in Ikona WMA and the community not participating, and among conservation experts about community access to natural resources and benefits experienced at the household level in the study area. Findings show that the communities participating in the WMA had more positive perceptions of Ikona WMA, and perceived more conservation impact than did the community not participating in the WMA. Both community members and WMA administrators perceived a decline of illegal activities, improvement of habitat, increase of wild animals, and increase of wildlife protection as the major conservation impacts attributable to Ikona WMA. Ikona WMA demonstrates some success in contributing to improved conservation and local livelihoods at the community level. However, the study reveals a number of challenges hindering effective implementation of Ikona WMA, including insufficient power over crucial decision making and ownership of wildlife resources, insufficient involvement of community members, unequal distribution of benefits at the village level, and insufficient transparency, accountability, and monitoring of village development projects. In addition, respondents identified low levels of education among community members and WMA staff members, weak collaboration with other conservation actors, and increases in both livestock and human populations as challenges to the WMA in the study area. The study suggests that broad level participation of community members in decision making about wildlife conservation, empowerment of the local community, particularly with regard to financial resources, skills training, and true devolution of power over wildlife to the community, as well as fostering equity in benefit sharing at the village level, could help to cultivate community interest in wildlife conservation. / Graduate / 0768 / 0478 / 0368

Co-management agreements for land and resource management can be viewed as emerging forms of a participatory planning model. They strive for equal aboriginal involvement and result not only in more equitable management strategies, but also incorporate aboriginal worldviews and traditional knowledge. This type of planning model is an iterative learning process for all parties involved and is most effective when mechanisms and processes to develop a co-management agreement are situational and contextually appropriate to each location and aboriginal group involved. Co-management agreements should be valued as interim forms that bridge restrictions on and exclusion of aboriginal peoples’ use and influence in relation to land and natural resources, on one side, and complete control through self-government, on the other. This practicum assesses levels of co-management for two case studies by: reviewing relevant literature, analyzing the co-management agreements and plans of management and surveying key personnel at Uluru – Kata Tjuta National Park in Australia and the Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve and Haida Heritage Site in Canada. The study does conclude that the degree of involvement of aboriginal participation is still wanting, but is higher than it would be if no such framework had been applied. To achieve the full benefits of equality in power distribution, the author suggests that co-management at the highest level should be negotiated either within or as part of land claims agreement or as part of a land title transfer to traditional owners.

The overexploitation of coastal ecosystems continues to threaten global biodiversity and fisheries. This has prompted international conservation commitments, such as the Convention of Biological Diversity’s Aichi Target 11, to improve the coverage and integrity of marine protected area (MPA) networks worldwide. As reflected in Target 11, MPA networks need to be both ecologically representative and socially equitable. Systematic conservation planning (SCP) is an effective and efficient process for designing MPA networks to achieve biodiversity targets at minimal impacts to society. However, SCP has rarely been used effectively to develop MPA networks in developing nations. Three key challenges contribute to this ‘research-implementation’ gap: (1) SCP research concepts and tools are biased towards developed countries, (2) complete and high-quality datasets are lacking in developing countries, and (3) socioeconomic complexities and needs of stakeholders tend to be oversimplified. In working towards addressing these challenges, this thesis focuses on Sogod Bay as a Philippines case study to examine the following overarching research question “How can systematic conservation planning be applied as a framework for designing MPAs to achieve national biodiversity objectives in a manner that is socially equitable and accommodating to the needs of coastal communities?”. To help answer this question, the thesis addresses three research objectives: 1. Develop and document strategies for incorporating dimensions of equity (recognition, procedural, and distributive) for stakeholders and coastal communities in the planning stages of SCP. 2. Investigate how recognition and procedural equity can impact the systematic design of MPA plans in terms of biodiversity representation, spatial efficiency, and distributive equity for fisher stakeholder groups and communities. 3. Evaluate and compare MPAs designed using a SCP approach with more conventional planning approaches in terms of their impacts on representation and social equity. Objective one and two were assessed in Chapter two of this thesis. The findings of this chapter demonstrate how equity considerations can be integrated in the planning stages of SCP though consulting with local partners; integrating science-driven and participatory approaches; recognizing the key stakeholder groups of MPAs (recognition equity); engaging with representatives of each stakeholder group and community to inform MPA planning processes (procedural equity), and distributing costs of MPAs fairly across all stakeholder groups and communities (distributive equity). Additionally, the chapter demonstrates how inadequate inclusion of stakeholders and/or the variations between communities can disproportionately impact some fishers and communities more than others. Objective three was achieved through the findings of Chapter three, which investigated impacts on representation and equity from MPA plans derived under a SCP approach and two conventional planning approaches. MPAs planned and selected by communities resulted in inadequately representation and unfair distributions of costs across fisheries and community. A donor-assisted approach that used local knowledge to select MPAs resulted in a plan with near-optimal representation but was inequitable for fisheries and communities. The SCP approach was the only approach to produce a representative and equitable MPA plan, thus highlighting the utility of SCP for achieving the representation and equity aspects of Target 11. / Graduate