11th ICRS Abstract book - Nova Southeastern University

21-22
Local Ecological Knowledge And The Management Of Marine Protected Areas in
Brazil
Leopoldo GERHARDINGER 1 , Eduardo GODOY* 2
1 ECOMAR NGO, Americana, Brazil, 2 ICMBio, Brasilia, Brazil
Site visits were done at 9 different Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) along the Brazilian
coastline and semi-structured interviews were done with site managers in order to record
their perception on the role of local ecological knowledge of fishermen in the
management of their sites. The main types of local ecological knowledge useful for MPA
management were, in broad terms, the knowledge of resource users regarding spatial
distribution and seasonal variation of resources and human use of the seascape within the
MPA. This can be summarised as ‘where’ resources and their users are located in space
and time. Other types of knowledge categories were mentioned as valuable, such as
knowledge on tidal cycles, species migration, sustainable resource exploitation rates,
birds, navigation, wind behaviour, general and specific cycles of nature, amongst others.
The utility of LEK systems for MPAs was also acknowledged on their: 1) value to define
new MPA sites; 2) utility for patrolling activities (i.e. knowing where and when to focus
effort) and; 3) usefulness as baseline data on less researched/assessable areas of the site.
Favourable contexts for greater local ecological knowledge influence in marine protected
areas management in Brazil were identified: 1) Presence of managers known to the
community; 2) Dependence on individual approach adopted by a given officer; 3) MPA
category; 4) Presence of a working and representative management council; 5)
Identifying the issue of local ecological knowledge as a priority topic for discussion; 6)
Presence of local social science research groups and; 7) LEK being readily available or
systematised for use in decision making. The study shows a very large perspective for
cooperation of fishermen in the management of MPAs in the country, considering the
vast coastline (more than 8,000km) and the presence of hundreds of fishing communities
in the Brazilian coast.
21-23
Navigating The Transition To Ecosystem-Based Management Of The Great Barrier
Reef, Australia
Per OLSSON* 1 , Carl FOLKE 1 , Terry HUGHES 2
1 Stockholm Resilience Centre, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden, 2 Australian
Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University,
Townsville, Australia
This article analyses social-ecological conditions that enable transitions towards
ecosystem-based management, using the recent governance changes of the Great Barrier
Reef Marine Park as a case study. It addresses the interplay between individual actors,
organizations, and institutions at multiple levels. We highlight the crucial role of a
flexible organization, the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, which initiated the
transition to ecosystem-based management, and the subsequent transformation of the
governance regime and provided leadership throughout the process. Strategies involved
internal reorganization and management innovation, leading to an ability to coordinate
the scientific community, to increase public awareness of environmental issues and
problems, to involve a broader set of stakeholders, and to maneuver the political system
for support at critical times. The transformation process was triggered by an emergent
coral reef crisis, and it shifted the focus of governance from protection of selected
individual reefs to stewardship of the larger-scale seascape incorporating 70 bioregions
(including many non-reef habitats). The study emphasizes the significance of flexible
governance regimes that allow for new forms of management to emerge in response to
crisis. It clarifies that top-down decision making, enabling legislation or other forms of
social bounds are essential, but not sufficient for shifting governance towards adaptive
co-management of complex marine ecosystems.
Oral Mini-Symposium 21: Social-ecological Systems
21-24
Coral Reef Resilience Decision-Making Requires An Integrated Understanding Of Coral
Reef Ecosystems
Christopher HAWKINS* 1 , David LOOMIS 2
1 Natural Resouces Conservation, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, 2 Natural
Resources Conservation, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA
A social-ecological system-based approach to coral reef management is especially important
given that people’s social values and activities are at the same time both the major drivers of
protection to and degradation of coral reefs. Furthermore, this relationship is dynamic, in that
when social values with respect to the natural environment change, as they periodically do,
protection activities and negative impacts change in response. Therefore, the implications of
using the reef resilience concept to
monitoring programs and management frameworks include institutionalizing holistic
management thinking by recognizing the interrelationships between social, political, economic,
and natural systems and broadening coral reef ecosystem monitoring parameters. This paper
will outline a conceptual management model that discusses the integration of the four systems
identified above, provide background about one approach to thinking complexly about coral
reef management issues, and present a recent case
study of social-ecological research for the Florida Reef Resilience Program. This study,
conducted between May, 2006 and July, 2007 represents a broad examination of attitudes,
norms, specialization levels, attributions, and potential conflict among anglers, divers, and
snorkelers throughout the Florida Keys. Data were collected in accordance with ecological
zones established by the Florida Reef Resilience Program for later integration with other
research efforts.
21-26
Social And Ecological Assessments To Plan Improvements In Coral Reef Management
Effectiveness In Las Perlas Islands, Panama
Nohora GALVIS 1 , Nohora GALVIS* 1
1 Coral reefs, Corporacion Propuesta Ambiental, Bogota, Colombia
In order to plan improvements for better coral reef management in Las Perlas Archipelago, two
types of assessments of management effectiveness were applied by in situ measurements of the
indicators performance and by interviewing different stakeholders to measure how they
perceive the performance of the same indicators.
Measurements of perspectives from different stakeholder groups were compared about the
importance they assign to key indicators of ecological, social and economic functions which
were related to coral reefs ecological integrity, threatens and respective objectives of protection
and sustainable use of the related benefits and services.
In Las Perlas, the overall performance was acceptable for most of the survey sites only the
perspectives of tourist operators and divers show low effectiveness or acceptance to the
management scheme before the new declaration of Special Management Area.
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