Conservation Social Science

We introduce the family of k-gap-planar graphs for k ≥ 0, i.e., graphs that have a drawing in which each crossing is assigned to one of the two involved edges and each edge is assigned at most k of its crossings. This definition finds motivation in edge casing, as a k-gapplanar graph can be drawn crossing-free after introducing at most k local gaps per edge. We obtain results on the maximum density, drawability of complete graphs, complexity of the recognition problem, and relationships with other families of beyond-planar graphs.

Mobility restrictions, cultural preservation, and intersectional marginalization are interrelated challenges that profoundly affect indigenous and nomadic populations. Restrictions on their movement through national borders, conservation measures, and development policies disrupt long-established spatial practices, economic systems, and kinship networks. While cultural preservation is essential for maintaining collective identity, it is often complicated by external interventions such as the commercialization of cultural heritage, state assimilation initiatives, and the pressures of globalization. The Moken, a traditionally seminomadic seafaring people of the Andaman Sea, are a prime example of these intersecting dynamics. Their experiences therefore provide an excellent case study for examining the intertwined dynamics of mobility, identity and marginality in today's maritime Southeast Asia. Field research conducted from November 2024 to March 2025 on the islands of Surin and Phayam has shown that the Moken's way of life has gradually shifted toward sedentarism. In this article, we argue that the preservation of the Moken's valuable cultural knowledge, both in terms of their profound understanding of their maritime environment and their sustainable use of natural resources, depends crucially on maintaining their "semi-nomadic" identity. However, as their ancestral habitat continues to shrink, they are at risk of losing not only their centuries-old identity but also their valuable cultural practices. This article focuses on the question of what remains of traditional spatial concepts and mobility patterns today and what new patterns have emerged because of changing living and environmental conditions.

Interactions between conservation and the social sciences are frequently characterized by either critique (of conservation by social scientists) or co‐optation (of social scientific methods and insights by conservationists). This article seeks to push beyond these two dominant positions by exploring how conservationists and social scientists can engage in mutually transformative dialogue. Jointly authored by conservation scientists and social scientists, it uses the global nexus of orangutan conservation as a lens onto current challenges and possibilities facing the conservation–social science relationship. We begin with a cross‐disciplinary overview of recent developments in orangutan conservation—particularly those concerned with its social, political and other human dimensions. The article then undertakes a synthetic analysis of key challenges in orangutan conservation—working across difference, juggling scales and contexts and dealing with politics and political economy—and link...

The objective of the present research is to characterize the phytotoxic activity of geopropolis from the Jandaira bee (Melipona subnitida Ducke) in the state of Ceará in Northeast Brazil and to analyze its effects. Extracts were prepared in 80% v/v grain alcohol at 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, and 1.0%. Their effects were determined on seed germination, radicle elongation, and hypocotyl growth of the pasture weeds malícia (Mimosa pudica) and mata-pasto (Senna obtusifolia). Extract phytotoxicity varied as functions of plant species, application dosage, and plant organ. M. pudica was more sensitive to the inhibitory effects of geopropolis than S. obtusifolia. There was a phytotoxic effect of 50% (PE50) for S. obtusifolia in terms of seed germination and in rootlet development near the maximum applied concentrations. M. pudica had PE50 and PE90 at the minimum concentration (0.25%) and near the maximum (1.00%), respectively. Thus, geopropolis extracts from the Jandaira bee (M. subnitida) are potentially phytotoxic to certain plant species.

The European uplands are undergoing a significant transition towards a post-productive countryside, centred on the provision of socioenvironmental benefits and the consumption of nature through tourism and amenity development. It is in this context that the rewilding of European uplands is being employed as a strategy to revalorise lands rendered marginal by the confluence of increasingly neoliberal agrarian systems and expanding conservation regimes. This paper aligns with a growing seam of research that seeks to develop a political ecology of Human-Wildlife Conflict (HWC), offering a productive and critical corrective to the technical rendering of farming practices and strategies in much of the conservation science literature. However, we argue that beyond revealing the political-economic conditions which generate the material realities of livestock predation, a political ecology of HWC should also demonstrate how these conditions are generative of particular emotive and political responses of environmental subjects. We present case studies from Skye in Scotland and Somiedo in Spain, that demonstrate how political-economic transitions to a post-productivist countryside shape material vulnerability to predation, and in doing so draw strong emotional responses from farmers whose subjectivities are constructed through practice-based, everyday, and embodied engagements with landscapes. Drawing on agrarian studies, critical conservation studies, and relational and feminist approaches to subjectivity, our work argues that a political ecology of livestock predation must account for how agrarian change is both shaping farming practices and farmer's exposure to predations, and the personal, sociocultural and emotive responses of farmers to carnivore presence.

Bha an neach-naidheachd Aonghas MacEanraig (Angus Henderson, 1866–1937) air fear dhe na sgrìobhadairean Gàidhlig a bu chudromaiche aig toiseach an fhicheadamh linn. Tha na h-aistean poileataigeach a chuir e ri Guth na Bliadhna (1904–1925) agus irisean eile gu sònraichte a’ seasamh a-mach ann an eachdraidh neo-fhicsean na Gàidhlig. Tha an talt seo a’ cur ri chèile eachdraidh-beatha MhicEanraig bho a thùsan ann an Àird nam Murchan, chun nam bliadhnaichean mòra a chuir e seachad ann an Sruighlea agus Glaschu. Tha e a’ toirt cunntas air an iomadh pàipear-naidheachd is foillseachadh anns an robh e an sàs agus a’ sgrùdadh nam prìomh sgrìobhaidhean aige. Am measg toraidhean an rannsachaidh, tha mìneachadh ann air na chuir MacEanraig ri faclair Dwelly (1902); tha ceasnachadh ann air na chaidh a sgrìobhadh gu ruige seo mun phàipear-naidheachd seachdaineil Alba (1908–1909); agus thathas a’ toirt am follais na dàrna Alba (1920–1921) — am pàipear-naidheachd seachdaineil mu dheireadh ann an Gàidhlig. Aig an teis-meadhan, thathas a’ beachdachadh air mar a chuir MacEanraig poileataigs radaigeach, sòisealach agus nàiseantach an cèill na chuid sgrìobhaidhean. Co-cheangailte ri seo, gheibhear cnuasachadh air an dàimh a bha aige ri gluasad na Gàidhlig, An Comunn Gàidhealach, agus ri sgrìobhadairean eile — gu h-àraid Ruaraidh Arascain is Mhàirr (1869–1960).

Angus Henderson (Aonghas  MacEanraig, 1866–1937) was one of the most significant  Gaelic writers of the early twentieth century. The political essays he contributed to Guth na  Bliadhna (1904–1925) in particular stand out in the history of Gaelic non-fiction. This article  pieces together Henderson’s biography from his beginnings in Ardnamurchan to the many years he spent in Stirling and Glasgow. It aims to trace the numerous newspapers and publications in which he was involved and to examine his most important writings.  Among  the research results, there is an explanation of Henderson’s contribution to Dwelly’s dictionary (1902); claims in the current scholarship concerning the weekly newspaper Alba(1908–1909) are questioned; and the second Alba (1920–1921) is brought to light — the  last weekly Gaelic newspaper to have existed. At its core, the article aims to understand Henderson’s radical, socialist and nationalist politics as developed in his writings. Related to  this, there is some consideration of his relationship to the Gaelic movement, An Comunn  Gàidhealach, and to other writers — most importantly Ruaraidh Erskine of Marr (1869–1960).

https://clog.glasgow.ac.uk/ojs/index.php/aiste/issue/view/31

There was time not too long ago when conservation was seen to be mainly the purview of the ecological sciences. Now the reality is widely appreciated that conservation is primarily about managing ourselves, people, and the societies we create. To fail to appreciate this symbiosis is to fail to grasp the essence of what will determine future sustainability on the planet. From a lifetime of work in the tropics, mainly in Southeast Asia, this lesson has been taught and retaught to me many times. One particular experience stands out where we were investigating poaching rates in different sectors of a protected area complex in Thailand. We found two sectors that had significantly reduced poaching. In one, we found out, the Chief of the guard station was a particularly frightening individual who ran a very effective anti-poaching ranger squad. Poachers were too scared to go in the forest. In the other sector the story was totally different. A recent initiative had seen the development of several manufacturing plants in the vicinity and many of the villagers had found work in those plants. The average income levels in this sector were significantly higher than anywhere else around the protected area. Interviewees told us that poaching was previously on an "as needed" basis. As incomes had risen the need was considerably reduced and poaching as a practice and tradition was dying out. These examples illustrate the need to fully understand the complexity of place-based solutions to conservation. Any such understanding must be fully grounded in knowledge of the socio-ecological systems that prevail in the area and especially in livelihoods. This basic premise forms the basis of the Protected Areas and Poverty Reduction (PAPR) project funded under an International Community University Research Alliance (ICURA) grant by SSHRC and IDRC. It draws upon experience in different contexts in three differing countries, Canada, Tanzania, and Ghana, to work towards sustainable futures for communities in and around protected areas. It is important to note that our enquiries do not exist in a vacuum. There is a wealth of global experience in these kinds of challenges. Our approach is to learn from this body of knowledge and combine this with the wealth of knowledge in the PAPR Team and amongst our local partners. This annotated bibliography is one contribution towards this effort. It brings together, synthesizes and makes recommendations based on the main sources related to Sustainable Livelihoods, which are at the nexus of many of the challenges society faces both now and in the future.

The article explores what we term "coexistence 2.0": the simultaneous separation of people and wildlife in physical space and their reconnection online. Our discussion builds on a growing body of research examining the uptake of web 2.0 platforms by conservation organizations to encourage virtual connection with nature, often characterized as "nature 2.0". Yet within this prolific nature 2.0 literature, the particular dynamic of coexistence 2.0 has not yet been explicitly highlighted and analysed. To develop our discussion, we introduce and analyze a specific case of human-brown bear conflict, namely the so-called "case of the bear from Belitsa". This emblematic case of a brown bear attack on a woman occurred in 2021 in the region of the town of Belitsa in Southwest Bulgaria. It was followed by unprecedented flood of public reactions, discussions and activism in support of the bear within the country, a large part of which took place within virtual space. Yet these reactions ironically tended to reinforce the sense that people and wildlife should remain physically separated in ways diametrically opposed to the aim to connect people and wildlife that nature 2.0 pursues. We conclude that peculiar promotion of coexistence 2.0 by various conservation actors thus appears to serve their conservation goals, but also highlights the central paradox embodied in effort to reconnect people with nature while still living at a distance from it.

The modification of crab traps using biodegradable cotton rope, particularly on panel ropes and trap mouth ropes, aims to reduce the impact of ghost fishing. While the characteristics of cotton rope have been tested in the laboratory, they have not been directly tested in field fishing operations. This research aims to analyze cotton ropes' technical use and damage levels, compare crab catches in control and modified traps, and provide recommendations for fishermen to use modified traps. Experimental fishing involved operating 500 units of modified traps with cotton ropes and 500 units of control traps used by fishermen. The trap operations were conducted over 30 trips in Gebang Mekar, Cirebon Regency, and West Java Indonesia. The results indicate that the modified and control traps use the same operating techniques and damage levels. The crab catches in the modified traps reached 1101 individuals with a total weight of 130.9 kg, not significantly different from the control traps, which reached 1110 individuals with a total weight of 129.8 kg (p > 0.05, T-test). Based on technical use, damage levels, and catch results, fishermen can use modified traps made from cotton rope as an effective alternative to prevent ghost fishing in crab trap fisheries.

ABSTRACT. Maia U.M., Jaffe R., Carvalho A.T. & Imperatriz-Fonseca V.L. [Meliponiculture in Rio Grande do Norte.] Meliponicultura no Rio Grande do Norte. Revista Brasileira de Medicina Veterinaria, 37(4):327-333, 2015. Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciencias e Letras de Ribeirao Preto, Universidade de Sao Paulo, Avenida Bandeirantes, 3900, Monte Alegre, Ribeirao Preto, SP 14040-901, Brasil. E-mail: [email protected] This study aimed to assess the current status of stingless bee beekeeping (meliponiculture) in the State of Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil, with the aid of structured questionnaires made during visits to beekeepers. The results were compared with a previous census made in the state and with a similar study from Australia. Meliponiculture in Rio Grande do Norte is still informal and little standardized. The activity has grown in recent years considering the mean number of nests per beekeeper. Most apiaries are formed of up to 50 colonies, usually distributed in...

Contemporary fisheries have been shaped by a paradigm of perpetual growth, characterized by increasing global production and consumption. While this growth has driven economic benefits and technological progress, it has jeopardized the sustainability of marine ecosystems, with implications for the long-term livelihoods and wellbeing of fishers, consumers and resource dependent coastal populations worldwide. This paper advocates for a shift beyond growth towards a wellbeing economy. It considers how five fundamental principles intrinsic to a wellbeing economy-purpose, nature, fairness, participation and dignity-can help reorient the fisheries sector. The paper then provides ten actionable recommendations for reshaping the composition and structure of economic activity in fisheries to enhance societal wellbeing and equity within ecological boundaries. In a world grappling with the consequences of unchecked economic growth, this paper offers insights into fostering a regenerative fisheries system that safeguards human prosperity and environmental integrity.

The ocean is the next frontier for many conservation and development activities. Growth in marine protected areas, fisheries management, the blue economy, and marine spatial planning initiatives are occurring both within and beyond national jurisdictions. This mounting activity has coincided with increasing concerns about sustainability and international attention to ocean governance. Yet, despite growing concerns about exclusionary decision-making processes and social injustices, there remains inadequate attention to issues of social justice and inclusion in ocean science, management, governance and funding. In a rapidly changing and progressively busier ocean, we need to learn from past mistakes and identify ways to navigate a just and inclusive path towards sustainability. Proactive attention to inclusive decision-making and social justice is needed across key ocean policy realms including marine conservation, fisheries management, marine spatial planning, the blue economy, climate adaptation and global ocean governance for both ethical and instrumental reasons. This discussion paper aims to stimulate greater engagement with these critical topics. It is a call to action for ocean-focused researchers, policy-makers, managers, practitioners, and funders.

The conservation community is increasingly focusing on the monitoring and evaluation of management, governance, ecological, and social considerations as part of a broader move toward adaptive management and evidence-based conservation. Evidence is any information that can be used to come to a conclusion and support a judgment or, in this case, to make decisions that will improve conservation policies, actions, and outcomes. Perceptions are one type of information that is often dismissed as anecdotal by those arguing for evidence-based conservation. In this paper, I clarify the contributions of research on perceptions of conservation to improving adaptive and evidence-based conservation. Studies of the perceptions of local people can provide important insights into observations, understandings and interpretations of the social impacts and ecological outcomes of conservation; the legitimacy of conservation governance; and the social acceptability of environmental management. Perceptions of these factors contribute to positive or negative local evaluations of conservation initiatives. It is positive perceptions, not just objective scientific evidence of effectiveness, that ultimately ensure the support of local constituents thus enabling the long-term success of conservation. Research on perceptions can inform courses of action to improve conservation and governance at scales ranging from individual initiatives to national and international policies. Better incorporation of evidence from across the social and natural sciences and integration of a plurality of methods into monitoring and evaluation will provide a more complete picture on which to base conservation decisions and environmental management.

To determine global trends in ecological restoration (ER) research, we conducted a geographically-explicit English-language literature review. We assessed a representative sample (n=603) of publications that use the ER concept (n=8,678). Only 19.2% (n=118) were explicit ER studies, and these were evaluated to determine geographic location, research framework, ER paradigm, journal disciplinary orientation, article type, disturbance factor studied, and ER-response measurements. The Global North produced 2x more studies than the South, and ecological research frameworks predominated overall. However, significantly more Southern studies operated under a postmodern paradigm (i.e., addressing ecosystem processes, functions and health) than in the North, where more studies sought to reconstitute pre-disturbance biotic assemblages (i.e., classical paradigm). Both regions published mostly in natural science journals, but significantly more in the North; in the South, there were significantly more publications in engineering journals. An incipient socio-ecological research framework was detected in the North (23.1%) and South (32.5%), but social science studies were only found in the North (11.5%). Plus, the North had significantly more conceptual publications. Opportunities exist in both regions to enhance a holistic ER perspective. Southern scientists and practitioners could pay attention to context-specific concepts and approaches. Understanding global and regional ER research trends can contribute to improving theoretical, practical and ethical outcomes.

Western environmental thought and practice historically separated humans and nature. This dichotomy led to an ecological bias in environmental research and management, but increasingly issues like biological invasions are being re-conceived as socioecological problems. Here, we studied how terrestrial and freshwater vertebrate species assemblages in Tierra del Fuego (TDF) have been co-constructed between humans and nature. The social imaginary concept was used to integrate shared discourses (e.g., species preferences, nature ideals, broader social values) and practices (e.g., species introductions, environmental management) via institutions (e.g., informal norms, laws, governmental entities, organizations). To analyze how socio-historical processes interact with biological invasions, we used TDF as a case study linked to broader geographic scales in Patagonia, Argentina, Chile and beyond. We found three predominant social imaginaries characterizing human-nature relationships that led to 20 species being introduced and subsequent efforts to remove or control seven of these: Colonization (ca. 1850Colonization (ca. -1930)), Development (ca. 1930Development (ca. -1980) ) and Conservation (ca. 1980-present). Each imaginary materialized via formal and informal institutions operating from local to international scales. Specifically, we uncovered 10 discourse categories that related to human interventions of TDF's species assemblage, ranging from Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article () contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Shared ecological knowledge about the impacts of biological invasions can facilitate the collective action necessary to achieve desired management outcomes. Since its introduction to an island archipelago in South America, the North American beaver has caused major changes to the ecosystem. We examined landowners' mental models of how beavers impact ecosystem services in riparian areas to understand the potential to implement a large-scale eradication program. We used ethnographic interviews to characterize individual landowners' perceptions about beaver-caused changes to ecosystems and landowners' wellbeing, and examined the degree to which they are shared. While the eradication initiative focuses on ecosystem integrity, landowners considered impacts on provisioning services to be most salient. Landowners did not have a highly shared causal model of beaver impacts, which indicates a diverse knowledge system. This lack of consensus on how beavers impact riparian areas provides some optimism for garnering support for eradication, and also offers insights into challenges with mental modeling methodologies. Keywords North American beaver (Castor Canadensis) . concept mapping . local ecological knowledge . mental models . private lands . network analysis . Tierra del Fuego * Michael G. Sorice

To determine global trends in ecological restoration (ER) research, we conducted a geographically-explicit English-language literature review. We assessed a representative sample (n=603) of publications that use the ER concept (n=8,678). Only 19.2% (n=118) were explicit ER studies, and these were evaluated to determine geographic location, research framework, ER paradigm, journal disciplinary orientation, article type, disturbance factor studied, and ER-response measurements. The Global North produced 2x more studies than the South, and ecological research frameworks predominated overall. However, significantly more Southern studies operated under a postmodern paradigm (i.e., addressing ecosystem processes, functions and health) than in the North, where more studies sought to reconstitute pre-disturbance biotic assemblages (i.e., classical paradigm). Both regions published mostly in natural science journals, but significantly more in the North; in the South, there were significantly more publications in engineering journals. An incipient socio-ecological research framework was detected in the North (23.1%) and South (32.5%), but social science studies were only found in the North (11.5%). Plus, the North had significantly more conceptual publications. Opportunities exist in both regions to enhance a holistic ER perspective. Southern scientists and practitioners could pay attention to context-specific concepts and approaches. Understanding global and regional ER research trends can contribute to improving theoretical, practical and ethical outcomes.