How the diversity of human concepts of nature affects conservation of biodiversity

Protecting nature has become a global concern. However, the very idea of nature is problematic. We examined the etymological and semantic diversity of the word used to translate nature in a conservation context in 76 of the primary languages of the world to identify the different relationships between humankind and nature. Surprisingly, the number of morphemes (distinct etymological roots) used by 7 billion people was low. Different linguistic superfamilies shared the same etymon across large cultural areas that correlate with the distribution of major religions. However, we found large differences in etymological meanings among these words, echoing the semantic differences and historical ambiguity of the contemporary European concept of nature. The principal current Western meaning of nature in environmental public policy, conservation science, and environmental ethics–that which is not a human artifact–appears to be relatively rare and recent and to contradict the vision of nature in most other cultures, including those of pre-Christian Europe. To avoid implicit cultural bias and hegemony–and thus to be globally intelligible and effective–it behooves nature conservationists to take into account this semantic diversity when proposing conservation policies and implementing conservation practices.     

Quantifying the extent of protected‐area downgrading,downsizing, and degazettement in Australia

The use of total area protected as the predominant indicator of progress in building protected area (PA) networks is receiving growing criticism. Documenting the full dynamics of PA networks, both in terms of the gains and losses in protection, provides a much more informative approach to tracking progress. To this end, documentation of PA downgrading, downsizing, and degazettement (PADDD) has increased. Studies of PADDD events generally fail to place these losses in the context of gains in protection; therefore, they omit important elements of PA network dynamics. To address this limitation, we used a spatially explicit approach to identify every parcel of land added to and excised from the Australian terrestrial PA network and PAs that had their level of protection changed over 17 years (1997–2014). By quantifying changes in the spatial configuration of the PA network with time‐series data (spatial layers for nine separate time steps), ours is the first assessment of the dynamics (increases and decreases in area and level of protection) of a PA network and the first comprehensive assessment of PADDD in a developed country. We found that the Australian network was highly dynamic; there were 5233 changes in area or level of protection over 17 years. Against a background of enormous increases in area protected, we identified over 1500 PADDD events, which affected over one‐third of the network, which were largely the result of widespread downgrading of protection. We believe our approach provides a mechanism for robust tracking of trends in the world's PAs through the use of data from the World Database on Protected Areas. However, this will require greater transparency and improved data standards in reporting changes to PAs.     

Effects of cost metric on cost‐effectiveness of protected‐area network design in urban landscapes

A common goal in conservation planning is to acquire areas that are critical to realizing biodiversity goals in the most cost‐effective manner. The way monetary acquisition costs are represented in such planning is an understudied but vital component to realizing cost efficiencies. We sought to design a protected‐area network within a forested urban region that would protect 17 birds of conservation concern. We compared the total costs and spatial structure of the optimal protected‐area networks produced using three acquisition‐cost surrogates (area, agricultural land value, and tax‐assessed land value). Using the tax‐assessed land values there was a 73% and 78% cost savings relative to networks derived using area or agricultural land value, respectively. This cost reduction was due to the considerable heterogeneity in acquisition costs revealed in tax‐assessed land values, especially for small land parcels, and the corresponding ability of the optimization algorithm to identify lower‐cost parcels for inclusion that had equal value to our target species. Tax‐assessed land values also reflected the strong spatial differences in acquisition costs (US$0.33/m²–$55/m²) and thus allowed the algorithm to avoid inclusion of high‐cost parcels when possible. Our results add to a nascent but growing literature that suggests conservation planners must consider the cost surrogate they use when designing protected‐area networks. We suggest that choosing cost surrogates that capture spatial‐ and size‐dependent heterogeneity in acquisition costs may be relevant to establishing protected areas in urbanizing ecosystems.     

Promoting meaningful and positive nature interactions for visitors to green spaces

The increasing alienation of people from nature is profoundly concerning because people's interactions with nature affect well-being, affinity for nature, and support of biodiversity conservation. Efforts to restore or enhance people's interactions with nature are, therefore, important to ensure sustainable human and wildlife communities, but little is known about how this can be achieved. A key factor that shapes the way people interact with nature is their affinity for nature (often measured as nature relatedness [NR]). We explored how using cues to experience nature as a means to induce NR situationally can influence the quality of people's nature interactions on visits to green spaces and their positive affect after the visit. Cues to experience are cues that guide individuals on how to interact with nature. We surveyed 1023 visitors to a nature reserve to examine the relationships between trait (i.e., stable and long-lasting) and state (i.e., temporary, brief) NR, the quality of nature interactions, and positive affect. We also conducted a controlled experiment in which 303 participants spent 30 min outdoors on campus and reported the quality of their nature interactions and positive affect. Participants were randomly assigned to 1 of 9 cues-to-experience experimental groups (e.g., smell flowers, observe wildlife, turn off your phone) that differed in the psychological distance from nature that they prompted. Participants who received cues of close psychological distance from nature (e.g., smell and touch natural elements) interacted 3 to 4 times more with nature and reported 0.2 more positive affect than other participants. Our results demonstrate that providing cues to experience nature, which bring people closer to nature and potentially induce state NR, can enhance the quality of people's nature interactions and their positive affect. These results highlight the role of NR in high-quality nature interactions and suggest the use of cues to experience as a promising avenue for inducing state NR and promoting meaningful interactions with biodiversity, thus, reconciling conservation and well-being objectives.     

Lynn White Jr. and the greening‐of‐religion hypothesis

Lynn White Jr.’s “The Historical Roots of Our Ecologic Crisis,” which was published in Science in 1967, has played a critical role in precipitating interdisciplinary environmental studies. Although White advances a multifaceted argument, most respondents focus on his claim that the Judeo‐Christian tradition, especially Christianity, has promoted anthropocentric attitudes and environmentally destructive behaviors. Decades later, some scholars argue contrarily that Christianity in particular and the world's predominant religions in general are becoming more environmentally friendly, known as the greening‐of‐religion hypothesis. To test these claims, we conducted a comprehensive review of over 700 articles—historical, qualitative, and quantitative—that are pertinent to them. Although definitive conclusions are difficult, we identified many themes and dynamics that hinder environmental understanding and mobilization, including conservative theological orientations and beliefs about the role of divine agency in preventing or promoting natural events, whether the religion is an Abrahamic tradition or originated in Asia. On balance, we found the thrust of White's thesis is supported, whereas the greening‐of‐religion hypothesis is not. We also found that indigenous traditions often foster proenvironmental perceptions. This finding suggests that indigenous traditions may be more likely to be proenvironmental than other religious systems and that some nature‐based cosmologies and value systems function similarly. Although we conclude White's thesis and subsequent claims are largely born out, additional research is needed to better understand under what circumstances and communication strategies religious or other individuals and groups may be more effectively mobilized to respond to contemporary environmental challenges.     

Role of Tibetan Buddhist Monasteries in Snow Leopard Conservation

The snow leopard (Panthera uncia) inhabits the rugged mountains in 12 countries of Central Asia, including the Tibetan Plateau. Due to poaching, decreased abundance of prey, and habitat degradation, it was listed as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature in 1972. Current conservation strategies, including nature reserves and incentive programs, have limited capacities to protect snow leopards. We investigated the role of Tibetan Buddhist monasteries in snow leopard conservation in the Sanjiangyuan region in China's Qinghai Province on the Tibetan Plateau. From 2009 to 2011, we systematically surveyed snow leopards in the Sanjiangyuan region. We used the MaxEnt model to determine the relation of their presence to environmental variables (e.g., elevation, ruggedness) and to predict snow leopard distribution. Model results showed 89,602 km² of snow leopard habitat in the Sanjiangyuan region, of which 7674 km² lay within Sanjiangyuan Nature Reserve's core zones. We analyzed the spatial relation between snow leopard habitat and Buddhist monasteries and found that 46% of monasteries were located in snow leopard habitat and 90% were within 5 km of snow leopard habitat. The 336 monasteries in the Sanjiangyuan region could protect more snow leopard habitat (8342 km²) through social norms and active patrols than the nature reserve's core zones. We conducted 144 household interviews to identify local herders’ attitudes and behavior toward snow leopards and other wildlife. Most local herders claimed that they did not kill wildlife, and 42% said they did not kill wildlife because it was a sin in Buddhism. Our results indicate monasteries play an important role in snow leopard conservation. Monastery‐based snow leopard conservation could be extended to other Tibetan Buddhist regions that in total would encompass about 80% of the global range of snow leopards. Papel de los Monasterios Budistas Tibetanos en la Conservación del Leopardo de las Nieves     

基于储存寿命的战储器材轮换方法研究

针对传统轮换方法在战储器材轮换上的缺陷和不足,结合长储器材失效数据较少、无法实时检测等特点,提出了一种利用定期检测数据分析小子样储存可靠度,并估计其储存寿命来确定轮换期的方法。在求解寿命分布参数时,为克服迭代法运算时间较长、初始值选取对迭代结果收敛性影响较大等不足,利用粒子群算法求解。通过实例分析表明,该方法得到的结果与工程实际相吻合,能为战储器材的轮换提供有效的决策支持。     

紫花含笑适宜生境的保护空缺与人类干扰分析

以紫花含笑地理分布点数据为基础,结合地形和气候数据,使用最大熵（MaxEnt）模型,对紫花含笑的生境适宜度进行了评估,并基于阈值法,将紫花含笑生境分为适宜区和最适宜区,分析了紫花含笑生境适宜区和最适宜区在我国的地理分布、保护现状以及人类干扰状况,结果表明：年均降雨量对紫花含笑的分布影响最为重要,地形因子和温度因子对紫花含笑的分布影响相对较小;紫花含笑的生境最适宜区面积为13.7万km²,适宜区为27.0万km²,分布在22°~30°N,107°~120°E之间.广东、福建、广西、江西和湖南等5个省是紫花含笑生境最适宜分布区面积最广的地区;位于国家级自然保护区内的生境最适宜区和适宜区面积约占总面积的1.9%,大部分适宜生境未得到有效保护;紫花含笑生境适宜区和最适宜区内,林地是最大的土地利用类型,但是各项人类活动也占有相当大的比例.     

自然保护区社区共管模式的四个维度研究

绿色发展理念和生态文明建设为自然保护区的建设与管理、发展与保护带来了新机遇.探讨了中国自然保护区事业的发展现状和建设中存在问题.从生态伦理、生态补偿、环境立法和耗散结构理论四个维度视角出发,厘清了社区共管模式的优越性和必要性.提出了构建自然保护区协调发展管理新构想,认为社区共管模式应是一种在生态法则基础上,由政府主导、社区参与、资源共享、权力均等、义务均担,生态环境有序健康演进和社区经济持续发展的双赢模式.本研究旨在为实现自然保护区社区共管的科学性提供支撑和范式.     

纳板河流域国家级自然保护区土地利用模式研究

研究了西双版纳纳板河流域自然保护区土地利用的5种基本模式,及其对地区生物多样性保护和社会经济可持续发展的作用.