ENVISION

New publications out

envision — Tue, 12 Apr 2022 07:41:21 +0000

Envision researchers have recently published three new articles covering inclusive conservation approaches in different study areas.

Alaska, U.S.A.: Devin Goodson, University of Illinois, investigated perceived inclusivity and trust in protected area management decisions among stakeholders in the Denali region, Alaska. One of many important findings from this research is that the morality of agencies were the primary driver of perceived inclusivity in land management decisions, indicating that agencies should focus on solving problems through deliberation and discussion about moral principles rather than by force.

Goodson, D. J., van Riper, C. J., Andrade, R., Cebrián-Piqueras, M. A., & Hauber, M. E. (n.d.). Perceived inclusivity and trust in protected area management decisions among stakeholders in Alaska. People and Nature, n/a(n/a). https://doi.org/10.1002/pan3.10312

Mjölby kommun, Sweden: Sara Zaman, University of Helsinki, led a study on public participation geographical information systems (PPGIS), assessing associations between landscape values, self-reported knowledge, and land-use. She found stronger spatial associations between landscape values and land-use types compared with landscape values and self-reported knowledge about landscape man–
agement, highlighting the value of PPGIS in addressing the values of different land-use stakeholders, and the potential benefits of increased inclusivity in forms of local knowledge.

Zaman, S., Korpilo, S., Horcea-Milcu, A.-I., & Raymond, C. (2022). Associations between landscape values, self-reported knowledge, and land-use: A public participation GIS assessment. Ecosystems and People, 18(1), 212–225. https://doi.org/10.1080/26395916.2022.2052749

Sierra de Guadarrama National Park, Spain: Veronica Lo, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, worked with a diverse research team to investigate the relationship between values and visions for protected area management, and how these were affected by the global COVID-19 pandemic. She found that differences in visions for park management were associated with differences in perceived drivers of change. Visions were largely stable during the pandemic, but any differences were expressed in terms of heightened perceptions of certain drivers associated with higher visitation rates, including mountain recreation, lack of environmental awareness, and changes in values and traditions.

Lo, V. B. P. G., López-Rodríguez, M. D., Metzger, M. J., Oteros-Rozas, E., Cebrián-Piqueras, M. A., Ruiz-Mallén, I., March, H., & Raymond, C. M. (2022). How stable are visions for protected area management? Stakeholder perspectives before and during a pandemic. People and Nature, 4(2), 445–461. https://doi.org/10.1002/pan3.10292

ENVISION Flagship publication just published!

envision — Thu, 24 Mar 2022 07:55:15 +0000

One Earth paper just published by the ENVISION project team on tensions and prospects for inclusive conservation of protected areas – implications for the Post-2020 Biodiversity Framework (Draft)

The Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework (First Draft)2 has targets on the fair and equitable sharing of nature’s benefits (Target 13) and ensuring equitable and effective biodiversity decision-making (Target 21). It is thus timely to consider how protected area management can widen its frame to include biodiversity conservation, equity and well-being goals through ‘inclusive conservation’ which seeks to recognise the plurality of values and visions of multiple stakeholders.

The ENVISION project, led by Prof. Christopher Raymond at the Department of Landscape Architecture, Planning and Management, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, just published a paper in One Earth entitled: Inclusive conservation and the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework: Tensions and prospects (see: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oneear.2022.02.008). This paper outlines four tensions associated with the implementation of inclusive conservation approaches in protected area management globally:

Supporting area-based conservation vs. cross-boundary landscape management
Recognising vs. reducing plurality in the visions for and values of nature
Incorporating local and experiential knowledge into the dominant Western knowledge system
Acknowledging power relations in conservation: seeking consensual outcomes vs. embracing dissent

Drawing upon protected area management case examples from Sweden, The Netherlands, United States and Spain, the paper then presents a governance frameworkthat can be used to recognise, soften and, where possible, reframe these tensions. More specifically:

Recognising hybridity and multiple layers of tension
Softening tensions by enabling conditions for reflexivity
Reframing tensions through forging new partnerships.

ENVISION is funded through the 2017-2018 Belmont Forum and BiodivERsA joint call for research proposals, under the BiodivScen ERA-Net COFUND programme, and with the support of the following national funders: Swedish Research Council for Sustainable Development (FORMAS), Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) (Grant: FKZ:01LC1806A), Germany, Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO), US National Science Foundation (grant number 1854767), a Cooperative Agreement with the U.S. National Park Service (P18AC00175), the University of Illinois Campus Research Board (RB19119), and the Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación, Spain.

Science and Policy: Celebrating 30 years of the EU Habitats Directive

envision — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 23:31:30 +0000

Event: Thursday 24 February 2022, 16:00 – 17:30 CET

Come celebrate 30 years of the EU Habitats Directive! The European Parliament Intergroup on Climate Change, Biodiversity and Sustainable Development, and the IUCN European Regional Office are organizing a science-policy event hosted by MEP Anna Deparnay-Grunenberg (Greens/EFA). On 24 February 2024, we’ll discuss how recent findings from the international ENVISON research project on inclusive conservation can shed light on achieving stakeholder ownership of the EU Biodiversity Strategy and its targets.

Speakers include:

MEP Anna Deparnay-Grunenberg (Greens/EFA)
Prof. Christopher Raymond, ENVISION Project Coordinator and Guest Professor, Department of Landscape Architecture, Planning and Management, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
Joseph van der Stegen, Policy Officer, European Commission, DG Environment, Nature Protection Unit
David Reynolds, President of the George Wright Society and WCPA Regional Focal Point for North America
Erika Stanciu, WCPA European Regional Vice Chair (tbc)
Moderator: Alberto Arroyo Schnell, Head of Policy and Programme, IUCN European Regional Office

See the event page for more details and to register for the event!

Policy brief on tools for inclusive conservation

envision — Wed, 26 Jan 2022 01:52:36 +0000

The ENVISION team has published a policy brief that provides an overview of the current protected areas policy landscape and a summary of tools that can be used to enhance inclusive approaches to protected areas management. The tools were applied to the Sierra de Guadarrama National Park (Spain) case study as part of a collaborative research approach between scientists and local actors. Please check out our policy brief here. A summary brochure of the toolbox can also be found here. A detailed report of the toolbox will be published later this year.

New! Decision-making toolkit for inclusive conservation

envision — Tue, 25 Jan 2022 20:46:18 +0000

ENVISION team members from Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC) have just published a report focused on a toolbox to provide protected areas managers and practitioners with tools for fostering stakeholder inclusion and active participation in conservation decision-making (see Toolbox summary here). The tools were applied to the Sierra de Guadarrama National Park (Spain) case study as part of a collaborative research approach between scientists and local actors. From the feedback collected throughout the research activities (e.g., interviews, surveys, and workshops), researchers from the ENVISION project shaped a set of participatory research tools for inclusive conservation in the National Park. These tools included: i) A set of graphic tools, ‘Streamline’, ii) Participatory mapping, iii) Deliberative processes within a participatory scenario planning exercise, iv) Mental, emotional, and power maps, v) Context-specific boundary object to call for action, and vi) Governance arrangements matrix. National Park decision-makers and stakeholders evaluated the applicability of these six participatory research tools in management. Findings from the evaluation revealed that local decision-makers and experts on protected areas perceive that the participatory research tools can potentially be applied to the management of the National Park; however, they also see major challenges to be addressed before ensuring that these tools can be used as instruments for participatory governance. These findings helped us propose recommendations for operationalizing and scaling up the applicability of the decision-making toolbox to other protected areas. Please check out the Toolbox summary here, and full details of the toolbox will be published in late 2022.

Join us on 17 Nov for a webinar on Denali National Park

envision — Thu, 28 Oct 2021 23:39:14 +0000

Wed, November 17, 2021, 9:00 AM – 10:30 AM PST; 6:00 PM – 7:30 PM CST

Please join us for this webinar on ‘Visions for the future of Alaska’s protected areas.’ This webinar will gather stakeholders from the Denali region of Alaska and representatives from Envision and IUCN. We’ll discuss the complexities of protected areas management when there are diverse interest groups and contested histories of resource management, combined with the challenges of climate change impacts.

This webinar focuses special attention on social learning about protected areas as a process that enables residents to collectively define their futures and shift their values in response to deliberation. A fact sheet featuring the Denali case study will be released in the future.

Programme:

Welcome, introduction to Envision and the Panorama Solutions platform
Introduction to Denali research
Social learning as a process to collectively define futures and explore value shifts
PANORAMA Solution and fact sheet
Q&A

Please register for this event here. For more information about our research in the Denali region of Alaska, please see here and here.

Sharing Envision research at the IUCN World Conservation Congress

envision — Thu, 09 Sep 2021 06:20:46 +0000

The Envision project video was launched on 8 September 2021 at the IUCN World Conservation Congress in Marseille, France. The video highlights the perspectives of different stakeholders for inclusive protected areas management, and includes beautiful footage from our case study areas across Sweden, Spain, the Netherlands, and Alaska (click for short and long versions). The launch event at this hybrid-attendance conference included interventions by:

Frank Vassen, European Commission
Andrej Sovinc, Regional Vice Chair for Europe, IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas
Alberto Arroyo Schnell, Sr. Policy Officer, IUCN Brussels
Dr. Veronica Lo, Envision project manager, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences

Throughout the Congress, participants can learn about the Envision project at the “Vital Sites for a Protected Planet” Pavilion Clinic Space, where IUCN colleagues are explaining our project and providing QR codes to download our latest publications. Check our our Twitter feed for updates!

Inclusive conservation through social learning in Alaska protected areas

envision — Fri, 02 Jul 2021 13:18:12 +0000

Envision researchers are pleased to partner with IUCN to publish a summary of inclusive conservation approaches in the Denali region of Interior Alaska in the Panorama Solutions database. Panorama is a partnership initiative to document and promote examples of inspiring, replicable solutions across a range of conservation and sustainable development topics, enabling cross-sectoral learning and inspiration. See the solution here to learn more about social learning approaches in this beautiful, biodiverse region of Alaska.

Summary

The Denali region of Interior Alaska faces social and environmental pressures related to rapid landscape change. Although the communities there are tight-knit and linked by their shared connection to the area, local stakeholders can feel excluded from regional decision-making to address resource management issues. One potential pathway toward more inclusive decision-making is having residents learn from and adapt to one another in discussions about landscape change, thereby strengthening underrepresented voices through collective knowledge building. Community deliberation can be challenging to get started, but social learning is a conservation tool that can facilitate shared dialogue based on understanding the many and diverse values related to public land management through community deliberation. This solution is based on the concept of socially inclusive conservation, which aims to represent how people value nature to improve protected area management.

Join us for the IUCN Vital Sites Webinar, 22 June 16h00-17h30 CEST

envision — Fri, 04 Jun 2021 11:08:07 +0000

Learn about inclusive conservation tools in the Sierra de Guadarrama National Park (SGNP), Spain, in this webinar on 22 June 2021, 16h00-17h30 (register here) This webinar is part of the ‘Vital Sites: Journey to Marseille’ series osted by IUCN and the World Commission on Protected Areas in the lead-up to the IUCN World Conservation Congress 2021 in Marseille, France. Vital Sites offers our community the chance to highlight stories, expert opinions, and case studies on the importance of protected and conserved areas, from around the world.

This webinar will introduce to the participants the SGNP PANORAMA Solution and will present a set of tools to identify, compare and balance different visions, preferences, and tensions for protected areas management and power relations between stakeholders in order to move towards better social engagement in conservation governance. The Solution complements the SGNP Fact Sheet.

Speakers:

Christopher M Raymond – Coordinator of the ENVISION project, Professor of Sustainability Science at the University of Helsinki and Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
María Dolores López Rodríguez – Postdoctoral researcher – ENVISION, Universitat Oberta de Catalunya
Miguel Ángel Cebrián-Piqueras – Postdoctoral Researcher at ENVISION and Chair of Social-Ecological Interactions in Agricultural Systems, Gottingen University, Germany
Veronica Lo – ENVISION Project Manager and Researcher, Department of Landscape Architecture, Planning and Management, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
Alberto Arroyo Schnell (moderator) – Senior Policy Manager, IUCN Brussels

Report: Co-producing tools to promote participatory governance and inclusive conservation in protected areas

envision — Fri, 23 Apr 2021 12:53:57 +0000

Envision researchers are co-designing tools for participatory governance and inclusive conservation of the Sierra de Guadarrama National Park. This report (in Spanish) outlines the process the research team took in developing and testing these tools with stakeholders, including an overview of a virtual stakeholder workshop in December 2020. The report also complements and provides more in-depth information to the Sierra de Guadarrama Fact Sheet (in English).

Researchers are also engaged in connecting with the community around the National Park, including continuous communications and updates. In this newsletter, the teams at the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, and University of Göttingen shares highlights from research activities developed in 2020 in the Sierra de Guadarrama National Park, findings, publications and next steps. To access the newsletter, please click here (in Spanish).