30
Social values and conservation biogeography
3 Is rewilding a useful conservation tool or an unnecessary distraction?
4 How can an understanding of social values be used
to make protected areas more relevant to the public?
5 Is ‘ wilderness ’ a meaningful concept in the 21st
century?
SUGGESTED READING
Bhagwat , S.A. & Rutte , C. ( 2006 ) Sacred groves: potential for
biodiversity management . Frontiers in Ecology and the
Environment , 4 , 519 – 524 .
Ehrlich , P.R. & Ehrlich , A.H. ( 1992 ) The value of biodiversity .
Ambio , 21 , 219 – 226 .
Jepson , P. & Whittaker , R.J. ( 2002 ) Histories of protected
areas: internationalisation of conservationist values and
their adoption in the Netherlands Indies (Indonesia) .
Environment and History , 8 , 129 – 172 .
Jepson , P. & Ladle , R. ( 2010 ) Conservation: a beginner ’ s guide .
Oneworld , Oxford .
Vera , F.W.M. ( 2000 ) Grazing ecology and forest history . CABI
Publishing , Oxford .
Wilson , E.O. ( 1984 ) Biophilia . Harvard University Press ,
Cambridge, MA .
conservation biogeography draws on a base of hard
evidence and scientifi c principles, its overall remit is
intrinsically linked to the fundamental values of the
conservation movement. Moreover, as human impacts
on natural systems continue to broaden and intensify,
patterns of species distribution and abundance are
increasingly ‘ biocultural ’ – which is to say that they
fi nd explanation in the geography of social values
towards nature.
Decisions need to be made on what to conserve,
where to spend money, and who will ultimately benefi t
(or lose out) from conservation. In other words, conservation is social and political as much as it is scientifi c and rational.
FOR DISCUSSION
1 How do modern conservation values differ from
those apparent at the beginnings of the global conservation movement?
2 Are conservation values universal and does this
matter?
Social values and conservation biogeography
3 Is rewilding a useful conservation tool or an unnecessary distraction?
4 How can an understanding of social values be used
to make protected areas more relevant to the public?
5 Is ‘ wilderness ’ a meaningful concept in the 21st
century?
SUGGESTED READING
Bhagwat , S.A. & Rutte , C. ( 2006 ) Sacred groves: potential for
biodiversity management . Frontiers in Ecology and the
Environment , 4 , 519 – 524 .
Ehrlich , P.R. & Ehrlich , A.H. ( 1992 ) The value of biodiversity .
Ambio , 21 , 219 – 226 .
Jepson , P. & Whittaker , R.J. ( 2002 ) Histories of protected
areas: internationalisation of conservationist values and
their adoption in the Netherlands Indies (Indonesia) .
Environment and History , 8 , 129 – 172 .
Jepson , P. & Ladle , R. ( 2010 ) Conservation: a beginner ’ s guide .
Oneworld , Oxford .
Vera , F.W.M. ( 2000 ) Grazing ecology and forest history . CABI
Publishing , Oxford .
Wilson , E.O. ( 1984 ) Biophilia . Harvard University Press ,
Cambridge, MA .
conservation biogeography draws on a base of hard
evidence and scientifi c principles, its overall remit is
intrinsically linked to the fundamental values of the
conservation movement. Moreover, as human impacts
on natural systems continue to broaden and intensify,
patterns of species distribution and abundance are
increasingly ‘ biocultural ’ – which is to say that they
fi nd explanation in the geography of social values
towards nature.
Decisions need to be made on what to conserve,
where to spend money, and who will ultimately benefi t
(or lose out) from conservation. In other words, conservation is social and political as much as it is scientifi c and rational.
FOR DISCUSSION
1 How do modern conservation values differ from
those apparent at the beginnings of the global conservation movement?
2 Are conservation values universal and does this
matter?