TY - JOUR
T1 - A bottom-up practitioner-derived set of Essential Variables for Protected Area management
AU - Hummel, Herman
AU - Kalle, Valerie
AU - Bienfait, Louise
AU - Boyer, Yolande
AU - Heurich, Marco
AU - Svajda, Juraj
AU - Adamescu, Mihai
AU - Cazacu, Constantin
AU - Medina, Félix Manuel
AU - Morkūnė, Rasa
AU - Razinkovas-Baziukas, Arturas
AU - Poursanidis, Dimitris
AU - Tasevska, Orhideja
AU - Al Malla, Ajman
AU - Stritih, Ana
AU - Rossi, Christian
AU - Arenas-Castro, Salvador
AU - Carvalho-Santos, Claudia
AU - Smit, Izak P.J.
AU - Valentini, Emiliana
AU - Xuan, Alessandra Nguyen
AU - Orenstein, Daniel
AU - Provenzale, Antonello
AU - de Wit, Rutger
AU - Hummel, Christiaan
N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2022 The Authors
PY - 2022/6
Y1 - 2022/6
N2 - Assessing the environmental status of Protected Areas (PAs) is a challenging issue. To indicate that status, the identification of a common set of variables that are scientifically sound, and easy to assess and monitor by the PA practitioners, is particularly important. In this study, a set of 27 Essential Variables (EVs) for PA management was selected in a bottom-up process from 67 harmonised variables that describe the status of Ecosystem Functions and Structures, Ecosystem Services, and Threats in PAs. This bottom-up process involved 27 internationally recognised PAs, mostly European, with different level of protection, different extent, and a wide range of human-nature interactions. The EVs were selected by more than 120 practitioners, i.e. PA managers and rangers, as well as scientists, working in terrestrial and aquatic PAs. Across both terrestrial and aquatic PAs, scientists and practitioners largely identified the same variables as important. Data availability for these 27 EVs varied between PAs and av eraged 67% across all studied PAs. As this set of EVs for PAs is defined through a bottom-up approach considering variables already in use both in management and research, it is more than for previous EVs likely to be adopted, applied and developed to record the status and changes in the ecological and socio-economic conditions of PAs and to forecast future changes. Thereby, the EVs for PAs present a common vocabulary and tool to enhance in a uniform way the (inter)national communication, exchange and comparison of information on the status of PAs between policy makers, scientists and PA managers. The perceived status of the EVs, on an average 3.6 on a scale to a maximum of 5, indicates the surveyed PAs are in a moderate to good environmental condition. Moreover, the EVs for PAs form a cost- and time-efficient tool for PA managers to monitor developments in essential elements of their PAs, including the potential for Societal Goods and Benefits (SG&B), and to (pro-)actively tackle the potential threats that may arise in their area. Likewise, for policy makers EVs for PAs may support decision making on ecosystem management, spatial planning, and predictive modelling on the future status and requirements of PAs in their country or region.
AB - Assessing the environmental status of Protected Areas (PAs) is a challenging issue. To indicate that status, the identification of a common set of variables that are scientifically sound, and easy to assess and monitor by the PA practitioners, is particularly important. In this study, a set of 27 Essential Variables (EVs) for PA management was selected in a bottom-up process from 67 harmonised variables that describe the status of Ecosystem Functions and Structures, Ecosystem Services, and Threats in PAs. This bottom-up process involved 27 internationally recognised PAs, mostly European, with different level of protection, different extent, and a wide range of human-nature interactions. The EVs were selected by more than 120 practitioners, i.e. PA managers and rangers, as well as scientists, working in terrestrial and aquatic PAs. Across both terrestrial and aquatic PAs, scientists and practitioners largely identified the same variables as important. Data availability for these 27 EVs varied between PAs and av eraged 67% across all studied PAs. As this set of EVs for PAs is defined through a bottom-up approach considering variables already in use both in management and research, it is more than for previous EVs likely to be adopted, applied and developed to record the status and changes in the ecological and socio-economic conditions of PAs and to forecast future changes. Thereby, the EVs for PAs present a common vocabulary and tool to enhance in a uniform way the (inter)national communication, exchange and comparison of information on the status of PAs between policy makers, scientists and PA managers. The perceived status of the EVs, on an average 3.6 on a scale to a maximum of 5, indicates the surveyed PAs are in a moderate to good environmental condition. Moreover, the EVs for PAs form a cost- and time-efficient tool for PA managers to monitor developments in essential elements of their PAs, including the potential for Societal Goods and Benefits (SG&B), and to (pro-)actively tackle the potential threats that may arise in their area. Likewise, for policy makers EVs for PAs may support decision making on ecosystem management, spatial planning, and predictive modelling on the future status and requirements of PAs in their country or region.
KW - Bottom-up procedure
KW - Ecosystem functions
KW - Ecosystem services
KW - Essential variables
KW - Protected areas
KW - Stakeholders
KW - Threats
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85125889870&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indic.2022.100179
DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indic.2022.100179
M3 - مقالة
SN - 2665-9727
VL - 14
JO - Environmental and Sustainability Indicators
JF - Environmental and Sustainability Indicators
M1 - 100179
ER -