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The Role of Citizen Science in Landscape and Seascape Approaches to Integrating Conservation and Development

Author

Listed:
  • Jeffrey Sayer

    (Centre for Tropical Environmental and Sustainability Science, College of Marine and Environmental Sciences, James Cook University, P.O. Box 6811, Cairns, QLD 4870, Australia)

  • Chris Margules

    (Centre for Tropical Environmental and Sustainability Science, College of Marine and Environmental Sciences, James Cook University, P.O. Box 6811, Cairns, QLD 4870, Australia
    Research Centre for Climate Change, University of Indonesia, Kampus UI Depok, West Java 16424, Indonesia)

  • Iris Bohnet

    (Centre for Tropical Environmental and Sustainability Science, College of Marine and Environmental Sciences, James Cook University, P.O. Box 6811, Cairns, QLD 4870, Australia)

  • Agni Boedhihartono

    (Centre for Tropical Environmental and Sustainability Science, College of Marine and Environmental Sciences, James Cook University, P.O. Box 6811, Cairns, QLD 4870, Australia)

  • Ray Pierce

    (Kuranda Envirocare, Kuranda, QLD 4881, Australia)

  • Allan Dale

    (The Cairns Institute, James Cook University, P.O. Box 6811, Cairns, QLD 4870, Australia)

  • Kate Andrews

    (The Fenner School of Environment and Society, Australian National University, Linnaeus Way, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia)

Abstract

Initiatives to manage landscapes for both biodiversity protection and sustainable development commonly employ participatory methods to exploit the knowledge of citizens. We review five examples of citizen groups engaging with landscape scale conservation initiatives to contribute their knowledge, collect data for monitoring programs, study systems to detect patterns, and test hypotheses on aspects of landscape dynamics. Three are from landscape interventions that deliberately target biodiversity conservation and aim to have sustainable development as a collateral outcome. The other two are driven primarily by concerns for agricultural sustainability with biodiversity conservation as a collateral outcome. All five include programs in which, management agencies support data collection by citizen groups to monitor landscape changes. Situations where citizen groups self-organise to collect data and interpret data to aid in landscape scale decision making are less common and are restricted to landscapes where the inhabitants have a high level of scientific literacy. Given the complexity of landscape processes and the multiple decision makers who influence landscape outcomes we argue that citizen science broadly defined should be an essential element of landscape scale initiatives. Conservation managers should create space for citizen engagement in science and should empower citizen groups to experiment, learn, and adapt their decision-making to improve landscape scale outcomes.

Suggested Citation

  • Jeffrey Sayer & Chris Margules & Iris Bohnet & Agni Boedhihartono & Ray Pierce & Allan Dale & Kate Andrews, 2015. "The Role of Citizen Science in Landscape and Seascape Approaches to Integrating Conservation and Development," Land, MDPI, vol. 4(4), pages 1-13, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jlands:v:4:y:2015:i:4:p:1200-1212:d:60274
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Ezzine de Blas, Driss & Ruiz Pérez, Manuel & Sayer, Jeffrey A. & Lescuyer, Guillaume & Nasi, Robert & Karsenty, Alain, 2009. "External Influences on and Conditions for Community Logging Management in Cameroon," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 37(2), pages 445-456, February.
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    Cited by:

    1. Jeffrey Sayer & Chris Margules & Agni Klintuni Boedhihartono, 2017. "Will Biodiversity Be Conserved in Locally-Managed Forests?," Land, MDPI, vol. 6(1), pages 1-9, January.
    2. Rebecca A. Riggs & James D. Langston & Chris Margules & Agni Klintuni Boedhihartono & Han She Lim & Dwi Amalia Sari & Yazid Sururi & Jeffrey Sayer, 2018. "Governance Challenges in an Eastern Indonesian Forest Landscape," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(1), pages 1-18, January.

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