Systematic conservation planning within a Fijian customary governance context
Hans K. Wendt A D E , Rebecca Weeks B , James Comley C and William Aalbersberg A
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations
A Institute of Applied Sciences, The University of the South Pacific, Laucala Campus, Suva, Fiji.
B Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University, Townsville, Qld 4811, Australia.
C Golder Associates Pty Ltd, 147 Coronation Drive, Milton, Qld 4064, Australia.
D Present address: The International Union for Conservation of Nature, IUCN Oceania Regional Office, Private Mail Bag, Suva, Fiji.
E Corresponding author. Email: Hans.Wendt@iucn.org
Pacific Conservation Biology 22(2) 173-181 https://doi.org/10.1071/PC16001
Submitted: 13 January 2016 Accepted: 16 March 2016 Published: 19 April 2016
Abstract
Although conservation planning research has influenced conservation actions globally in the last two decades, successful implementation of systematic conservation plans in regions where customary marine tenure exists has been minimal. In such regions, local community knowledge and understanding of socioeconomic realities may offer the best spatially explicit information for analysis, since required socioeconomic data are not available at scales relevant to conservation planning. Here we describe the process undertaken by the Kadavu Yaubula Management Support Team, a team of researchers from The University of the South Pacific and the local communities to assess whether systematic conservation planning tools can be effectively applied and useful in a customary governance context, using a case study from Fiji. Through a participatory approach and with the aim of meeting local-scale conservation and fisheries needs, a spatial conservation planning tool, Marxan with Zones, was used to reconfigure a collection of locally designed marine protected areas in the province of Kadavu in order to achieve broader objectives. At the local scale, the real value of such tools has been in the process of identifying and conceptualising management issues, working with communities to collate data through participatory techniques, and in engaging communities in management decision making. The output and use of the tool has been of secondary value. The outcome was invaluable for developing marine protected area network design approaches that combine traditional knowledge with ecological features in a manner appropriate to a Melanesian context.
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