Incorporating social-ecological complexities into conservation policy

Peadar Brehony; Peter Tyrrell; John Kamanga; Lucy Waruingi; Dickson Kaelo

doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2020.108697

Incorporating social-ecological complexities into conservation policy

Biol Conserv. 2020 Aug:248:108697. doi: 10.1016/j.biocon.2020.108697. Epub 2020 Jul 22.

Authors

Peadar Brehony¹, Peter Tyrrell^{2

3}, John Kamanga², Lucy Waruingi⁴, Dickson Kaelo⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Geography, University of Cambridge, Downing Place, Cambridge, United Kingdom.
² South Rift Association of Landowners, P.O. Box 15289, Nairobi 00509, Kenya.
³ Wildlife Conservation Research Unit, Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, United Kingdom.
⁴ African Conservation Centre, P.O. Box 15289, Nairobi 00509, Kenya.
⁵ Kenya Wildlife Conservancies Association, P.O. Box 1038, Nairobi 00517, Kenya.

Abstract

In the process of developing new conservation policies, policymakers must have access to information which will inform their decisions. Evidence rarely considers the complexities of social-ecological systems. The Social-Ecological Systems Framework (SESF) is an adaptable yet structured approach for understanding the processes that lead to changes in natural resources, using a systems-based approach that aims to treat ecological and social components equally. Few conservation planning and policy initiatives have implemented the SESF to assess the interlinked social and ecological consequences of conservation policies. We apply the SESF to explore the barriers to the potential implementation of a policy of consumptive utilisation of wildlife in Kenya, a policy regarded as successful in several southern African countries. Using secondary data and expert review we developed a conceptual model of the social-ecological system associated with consumptive utilisation of wildlife in Kenya. We then analysed how different combinations of first and second-tier variables interacted to create focal action situations, and subsequently identified seven barriers to this policy. Our analysis revealed that game ranching would require large-scale investment in effective monitoring systems, new regulations, training, market development and research, considerations about equity, and devolved ownership of wildlife. The least barriers existed for game farming. The SESF appears to be a useful framework for this purpose. In particular, it can help to reveal potential social and ecological barriers which conservation policies might face in attempting to meet intended goals. The information required to implement the SESF are necessarily cross-disciplinary, which can make it challenging to synthesise.

Keywords: Africa; Consumptive use; Game ranching; Social-Ecological Systems Framework; Sustainability; Wildlife.