Natural Resources and Conservation Commons^™

Testing The Baobab’S Mettle: An Evaluation Of The Sustainability And Economic Potential Of Harvesting Adansonia Digitata, Benjamin Rhodes

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In light of southern Africa’s growing population and economy, as well as the increasing international market for Adansonia digitata products, it seems important to ascertain whether or not rural baobab harvesting is having an impact on the health of the trees and whether it could be improved or expanded to increase benefits to communities. This study focused on 72 trees in and around the village of Gweta, Botswana, examining local usage and harvesting practices and exploring their correlations with the health of the trees. Results suggest that baobab harvesting in its current form is detrimental to the trees’ health and …

Creating A Category V: Conservation Perceptions And Cultural Changes In The Anjozorobe-Angavo Forest Corridor, Kate Wright

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Local communities have long played an integral role in the realization of conservation goals and the success of protected areas in Madagascar. Since the appearance of human civilizations approximately 2,000 years ago (Brown 1995), the physical landscape of the island has undergone processes of adaptation to the practices of Malagasy people, while Malagasy cultures have in turn molded to fit their surroundings. The coevolution of nature and culture has produced a delicate environmental situation where human practices exploit but also conserve important natural resources, a situation that has been historically misinterpreted as intentional environmental destruction on the part of local …

The Realities And Effectiveness Of Ecotourism Operations On Moreton Island, Yoshihiko Kubota

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Ecotourism is the fastest growing sector of the tourism industry, but there has been a lack of studies assessing the tour operators’ views on the environment of the area of their operation, and of the effectiveness of their interpretation methods. This study focuses on Moreton Island for its relatively undisturbed environment and restricted accessibility.. Interviews with a former Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) employee, representative of a local conservation group, and multiple tour operators were conducted to assess the knowledge of tour operators on the environmental issues of Moreton Island, while pre-visit and post-visit surveys were conducted with Moreton Island visitors …

The Transition Movement In Australia: An Analysis Of The Progress, Challenges, And Future Of Transition Initiatives, Mia Goldwasser

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The threats of climate change and peak oil have roots in our society’s dependence on the availability of cheap fossil fuels for its function and design. In order to both decrease greenhouse gas emissions and significantly lower the demand on fossil fuels, our settlements –built when oil was cheap and abundant- must ‘relocalize’, or develop the systems which will enable the local production of food, energy, materials, employment, and goods. The Transition Movement has developed as a grassroots, community-based response to these challenges, grounded in the belief that a higher quality of life has the opportunity to emerge from a …

The Cost Of Progress: Failed Development And Community Response On Pulau Serangan, Julia Nakad

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Introduction - extract

No place on Bali illustrates the promise and heartbreak of development more clearly than the failed development project on Serangan Island, the location of a halted (if not completely aborted) development project in the 1990s that drastically changed the landscapes and livelihoods on the island in a relatively short span of time. Prior to the development project, most Serangan people made a living from fishing in the ocean surrounding the island, as well as from extracting coral and engaging in the turtle trade. These same people were promised jobs in the resorts that were to be built …

Guardians Of The Grassland: A Qualitative Assessment Of The Success Of Community-Based Wildlife Conservation In Mongolia’S Eastern Steppe, Alexandra Sprague

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Community-based conservation is a newer type of conservation that includes people in the ecosystem and attempts to simultaneously promote development and conservation. One organization in Mongolia that is facilitating the implementation of community-based conservation is the Wildlife Conservation Society. Their goal is:

My research questions concerning this NGO’s project are: what are the perceived benefits and problems with CBC? What makes it successful and how can it be improved? My location of study was the easternmost aimags of Mongolia, Dornod and Sukhbaatar. I spent 1 week travelling to 9 of the WCS’s 13 active herder communities asking their opinions about …

National Parks In China: A New Model For Nature Conservation, Katherine Fritz

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

When the author of “China has First National Park” published in The Science News-Letter in 1948, he could not foresee the next 60 years of China’s struggle to develop an effective nature conservation system. If he had, he would have known that simply recognizing the value of precious land, as China did in 1948, does not automatically lead to a sophisticated, nation-wide national park system.

National parks are the hallmark of advanced civil society and complex government conservation schemes. Since the State Forestry Department declared China’s first officially protected space at Dinghu Shan Nature Reserve in Guangdong province in 1956 …

Green Dharma: Clearing The Pollution Of Our Minds To Save The Environment, Richard Dale Jenkinson Iv

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This paper seeks to examine the relationship in Mongolia between Buddhism and the environment, as well as the condition of that relationship, the environmental work being done out of the motivation of Buddhist beliefs, and how to improve the environmental condition through Buddhism. Great understanding of this topic was obtained through interviews with Buddhist monks, of both Mongolian and Western origins and from both urban Ulaanbaatar and the rural countryside of Mongolia. Perhaps some of the greatest understanding came from simple everyday observations and interactions with the Buddhist community. Concrete textual information came from reading endless Buddhist sutras, scholarly books, …

The Role Of The Local Community In Integrated Conservation With Development Projects: A Case Study Of The Phu My Lepironia Conservation Project, Marion Boulicault

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Recognizing the connection between local communities and conservation areas, Integrated Conservation with Development Projects (ICDPs) are being developed across the world to simultaneously address conservation and local development goals. Through a case study of the Phu My Lepironia Conservation Project (an ICDP) in Kien Giang Province, Vietnam, this study aimed to examine the nature of the role of the local community in ICDPs, the factors affecting this role and the impact this role is having on the conservation project. Participant observation and open-ended interview techniques were used to achieve this aim.

The study found that, despite the goal of the …

The Amphibian And Reptile Diversity Of Tràm Chim National Park, Đống Tháp Province, Việt Nam, Alex Krohn

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The herpetofauna of the Mekong Delta Region of Vietnam is not as frequently studied as the fauna of the Central and Northern Highlands Regions of the same country. Tram Chim National Park is situated in the Mekong Delta Region in Đồng Tháp Province and is one of the last remaining intact areas of the “Plain of Reeds” ecosystem that once used to cover this now mainly agricultural land. Although studies on the bird fauna, vegetation and ecological management of Tram Chim National Park are common, there has never been a study of the parks reptiles and amphibians. Moreover, by comparing …

Diagnostique Sur La Santé Des Récifs Coralliens À Nosy Tanikely Et La Baie D’Ambanoro, Chelsea Nahill

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Pendant mon étude, les récifs coralliens à Nosy Tanikely et à la Baie d’Ambanoro étaient examinées avec le but de déterminer la condition de chaque récif et la biomasse des poissons. La durée de cette étude est de trois semaines et j’ai plongé en apnée quatre fois du 10 avril 2009 au 23 avril 2009, pour examiner les trois sites. Il y avait six stations au total, quatre pour examiner le premier site à Nosy Tanikely et deux dans la Baie d’Ambanoro, où sont le deuxième et troisième site. Utilisant les données collectées au long du transect de cent mètres, …

Creative Ecology: Art’S Role In Addressing Environmental And Sustainability Issues In Australia, Michael Meade

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Art has embodied the relationship between humans and the natural environment throughout the ages. As this relationship changed, many artists began to address concerns about the ways humans interact with nature. Today, more than ever, there is a need for channels of communication to address the major environmental and sustainability problems of our time. This study examines how art is influenced by environmental and sustainability concerns and the ways in which it responds to such concerns. By investigating how artists, community organizations, festivals and other initiatives encourage public awareness about environmental and sustainability issues, the study explores art’s role in …

The Role Of Zoos In Creating A Conservation Ethic In Visitors, Elean Kazarov

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This research project addresses the role of zoos in creating a conservation ethic in their visitors, with a focus on Taronga Zoo in Sydney, Australia. The zoo educates visitors about animals, species, and habitats as well as conservation and threats to biodiversity. Interactive exhibits encourage the visitors to reflect upon the relationship between humans and animals and humans and nature, as well as solidify the zoo experience in the visitors’ minds. By providing an entertaining experience, the zoo renders visitors more receptive to conservation messages. Other messages increase respect for animals, species and habitats. Individual connections with animals are facilitated …

Estatus Actual De Los Búhos Terrestres (Athene Cunicularia) En La Zona De Puerto López, Ecuador: Efectos De Las Creencias Y Sentimientos Hacía Los Animales Silvestres, Allison Qubain

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In response to negative attitudes towards the existing biodiversity in the region of Puerto Lopez, Ecuador and as a follow-up of a study conducted in 2006 on the status of Burrowing Owl (Athene cunicularia) populations, through informal interviews and observation, this investigation focuses on how local sentiments towards nature have affected the current status of the Burrowing Owl populations and their habitat. The investigation revealed that in addition to the effects of legends and beliefs, there is an existing lack of knowledge, understanding, and appreciation for the extremely high biodiversity, which has created an evident fear instilled in the people. …

Walking Amongst The Sacred Spines: Social And Ecological Investigation Of The Fenoaivo And Zanavo Sacred Forests In Southern Madagascar, Laura Miller

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study explores the social and ecological aspects of the Fenoaivo and Zanavo sacred forests—an area located in the commune of Ifotaka and region of Anosy in the spiny forest of southern Madagascar. Through a general survey of the 2.5km by 950 meter forest, a survey of the fauna and flora, a survey of the sacred forest areas, over fifty local interviews and an expert stakeholder survey sent out to over 65 people internationally, an attempt was made to look at the areas potential for a community conserved area and the possibility of community-based tourism. Discovering that both the general …

Study Of A Self-Assessment System For The Ecotourism Group In Curuçá: Accounting For Tourist Opinions While Maintaining Initial Goals, Karina Hope Costa

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Community-based ecotourism can be a potential tool to both promote empowerment and conservation of the local environment. One of the main goals of community-based ecotourism is to ensure that participating communities take an active role in the development and management of ecotourism activities. One way to measure if their goals are being reached is through a system of assessment, through which an ecotourism community will be able to account for the opinions of the tourist, the guide operators, and the local community. The general objective of this paper is to determine how a community-based ecotourism group can account for the …

Arauco Y Sus Políticas De Rse En La Viii Región Del Bío Bío (Una Comparación Entre Sus Políticas Medio Ambientales Y La Situación Real), Jamie Warner

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The purpose of my independent research project is to find out whether the written Corporate Social Responsibility environmental policies of Arauco Forests are actually enacted in the eight region (Bíobío). My hypothesis is that even though Arauco has implemented these policies, it does not have a sustainable model for its forest industry. Arauco continues to damage the land, water, and air in the Biobió region, which is in turn affecting the lives of the people that live in the region, the natural flora and fauna, and the workers. I have chosen to focus on the VIII region because it has …

La Sucesión Primaria De La Vegetación Sobre Los Flujos Piroclásticos Del 2006 En El Volcán Tungurahua, Lauren Schaefer

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

A year and a half after the August 2006 eruption of the Tungurahua volcano, the vegetative growth on the pyroclastic flows is young and scarce. To determine the types of plants and the mechanisms which control the dynamics of vegetative recovery, two transects were made; one in the Cusúa gorge and the other in the Bascún gorge in which the type, quantity and ages of the plants were noted. A third transect of vegetation not directly affected by the 2006 flows was made near the Bascún gorge for comparison purposes. In the two main sites, a total of 47 species …

Formal Education For Sustainable Development, Caryn Saslow

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Over the next 50 years, humans will make the choice as to whether or not they would like to mitigate or exacerbate global warming. Seeing as now is a crucial time in which to enact change, why is it that the issues inherent in sustainable development are not currently a compulsory part of primary and secondary school education within the developed Western world? If our children stand to inherit our environmental, social, and economic problems, it is our responsibility to supply them with the tools to survive through such adversity. This paper examines the history of the concept of sustainable …

Renewable Energy And Agriculture: Promoting Biogas In The Rural Communities Of The Lashihai Wetland Nature Reserve, Amanda Lee

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

“China’s economic miracle will end soon because the environment can no longer keep pace.” – Pan Yue, deputy environmental director (Larson, 21)

In recent years, the causes and impacts of global warming have increasingly garnered press on an international scale. Scientists have confirmed global warming as being mostly anthropogenic (Rosenthal and Revkin; Xuequan). More wildlife species have become endangered or extinct (Roach) and natural disasters such as storms have increased in severity (“New study”; Schmid). With the 2008 Beijing Olympics quickly approaching, the international community has turned its eye to China and its policies, including those towards the environment. Since …

Post-Fire Demography Of A Dry Eucalypt Forest In The Midlands, Tasmania: A Pilot Study, Christine Urbanowicz

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

There have been many efforts to regenerate the threatened and declining dry eucalypt forests found within the Midlands of Tasmania. This pilot study was completed as part of a larger research project on eucalypt regeneration. Researchers need to know where recruits are most successful in order to appropriately place regeneration microsites. I have begun characterizing the baseline demography of a recently burnt remnant forest. I had two objectives: 1. to characterize the stand structure where recruits are successful, and 2. to describe where the recruits are within this structure. Data on location, size, and life history stage of trees were …

Storybooks: A Teaching Tool For Sustainability, Amanda Medress

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

If today’s children learn to make decisions with the environment in mind, tomorrow’s future will be cleaner, greener, and energy leaner. Storybooks, which are a creative and imaginative learning tool, can influence children to pursue sustainable lifestyles. Early education through literature can help green decisions be the default mode for the next generation.

This project has two components. The first is to produce research on the following question: what kind of storybook instills environmental regard and motivates sustainable behavior? The second is to produce a children’s adaptation of Greeniology, a green living guide by Tanya Ha, which utilizes the findings …

Conceptions Of Wilderness In Tasmania, Sam Adels

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

With this project I set out collect and compare different conceptions of wilderness from individuals on all sides of the ongoing wilderness protection versus forestry debate in Tasmania. I purposed to share the results with all parties to bring them together to cooperate and work towards wilderness protection and sustainable forestry for the future of Tasmania. I spent 5 weeks in April and May of 2008 researching the history of the concept of wilderness as well as Tasmanian wilderness issues. I interviewed 11 subjects, involved in the wilderness versus forestry debate in many different arenas, including forest ecologists, wilderness academics, …

Atravesando La Amazonía: Carreteras, Desarrollo, & El Camino Del Desastre, Olivia De Lancie

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Road construction in the Amazon has greatly impacted its floral and faunal inhabitants. The opening of a new road in a previously isolated region exposes its populations to the economy for the first time, and to the possibility of enriching themselves through the extraction of their products. Unfortunately, this exchange of goods results in the aculturization of indigenous groups, and in the loss of their unique culture. The migration that the roads near indigenous communities encourages increases access to education and sources of work, but results in a nearly complete destruction of these communities’ social fiber. Economic and cultural exchanges …

The Current State Of Populations Of Diadema Antillarum On Isla Colón In Bocas Del Toro, Panamá, 25 Years After Mass Mortality, Leah T. Ritz

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In January 1983, the worst recorded die-off of any marine animal hit the Caribbean beginning near the mouth of the Panama Canal and eventually wiping out nearly 99% of one of the most important herbivores in coral reef communities, Diadema antillarum—the long-spined sea urchin or Diadema. No populations of Diadema in the Western Atlantic are known to have escaped the drastic population declines. The loss of Diadema throughout the Western Atlantic has had long-lasting impacts on the structure and composition of many types of communities including coral reefs, mangrove roots, sea grass beds, and sand flats. Though the mortality was …

A Reassessment Of Avian Assemblages Along The Lakes Corridor In The Atherton Tablelands, North Queensland, Shaina N. Stewart

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Forest fragmentation is the process by which large areas of continuous forest are replaced by foreign ecosystems that restrict native growth to isolated patches. Biota remaining within these fragmented environments often suffer consequences that stem from reduced forest area. Wildlife corridors—linear patches of habitat that connect remnant fragments—have frequently been proposed to alleviate fragmentation effects by facilitating biotic movement between forest patches. Initiated in 1998, the Lakes Corridor on the Atherton Tablelands in North Queensland, Australia, connects the two formerly isolated sections of Crater Lakes National Park with the goal of promoting wildlife dispersal between them. This study monitored avian …

Why Logging? A Value Assessment Of Forestry Uses In The Huon Forest District, Ryan Bailey

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The Huon Forest District comprises 762,800 hectares of forests in southwest Tasmania, with 128,900 hectares of that total designated as state forest managed by Forestry Tasmania. These forests are used primarily for wood production, although tourism, carbon storage, leatherwood honey and the specialty timbers industry are competing for access to these forests. This study examines the socio-economic values of these uses and determines whether the Huon Forest District is being utilized efficiently.

To accomplish this, an extensive literature review of past research was conducted. This information supplemented 7 semi-structured interviews that were conducted with experts from the forestry industry, tourism …

To Live With The Sea: Community-Based Management Of Marine Resources In Southwest Madagascar, Hannah Pitt

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

“God intended us to fish, and we will fish until the end,” the elderly Vezo fisherman explained, shrugging his shoulders as if in resignation to an unavoidable truth (Niry). For a people whose history, culture, and economy have revolved around the sea for generations, the idea of preservation is just not palatable, he seemed to be saying. The momentum of tradition, in other words, cannot be stopped. Yet in 23 Vezo fishing villages in the region of Andavadoaka, along the southwest coast of Madagascar, communities have collectively established seasonal and permanent restrictions on critical fishing grounds that together make up …

Implementing Uganda’S National Wetlands Policy: A Case Study Of Kabale District, Sophie Glass

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Uganda’s “National Policy for the Conservation and Management of Wetland Resources” was launched in 1995 to promote the protection of Uganda’s wetlands in order to sustain their ecological and socioeconomic functions. Despite the formal policy, wetlands continue to be drained and converted. This report examines factors that account for the divide between the National Wetlands Policy and reality. Six weeks were spent researching the challenges associated with implementing the National Wetlands Policy. Kabale District was used as a case-study to better understand the issues that institutions and stakeholders face when trying to abide by the precepts of the policy. Rapid …

Ecosystem-Based Fishery Management In South Australia And Victoria, Rebecca Devries

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The detrimental impact from fishing on various species as well as on the overall ecosystem has increased so much over the years that the Australian fishing industry is currently in jeapordy. Scientists, fishery managers, government agencies, industry, and environmental organizations have therefore been actively developing and researching management strategies focused on finding a balance between fisheries and the ecosystem. A new holistic and promising approach, ecosystem-based fishery management, invested in ecological sustainability and the recognition of the critical interdependence between human well-being and ecological health, is currently proposed as the best solution for fishery management.

This paper will consequently investigate …