Abstract
There is a growing body of science to suggest that there is a mutualistic relationship between habitat restoration projects and community volunteers and participation. Restoration projects and programs benefit from community participation via an added labor force and by fostering community investment and support, which is critical for project success and future restoration investments. Community participants gain physically and psychologically rewarding experiences from being a part of restoration projects, while fostering an environmental ethos. Oyster restoration serves as particularly ideal opportunities for engaging community volunteers and participation. These additional values provided to a community where oyster restoration is taking place is an important additive benefit that oyster restoration provides. The nature by which many oyster restoration projects are implemented offers satisfying opportunities for community members to participate in physically rewarding, hands-on work. Many oyster restoration programs are also ideal for incorporating student or citizen science, or broad-scale education and outreach. Despite the growing science to support the value of volunteer and community participation, coupled with increased oyster restoration, there is a paucity of information for project managers to turn-to for guidance as to how community participation can be built into oyster restoration projects and programs. This chapter presents five cases from the United States to demonstrate the broad, and often unique, opportunities to incorporate community and volunteer participation into oyster restoration.
Highlights
Restoration practitioners, ecologists and researchers tend to cite the value of shellfish restoration projects in terms of the ecosystem services they provide (Coen et al 1999; 2004, 2007; Coen and Luckenbach 2000; Brumbaugh et al 2006; Grabowski and Peterson 2007; Beck et al 2011; Grabowski et al 2012)
Here we present five very different cases in the United States to provide examples of the variety of approaches that different shellfish restoration projects and programs have used to incorporate volunteer or community participation into their projects
Community outreach and education through shellfish restoration can come in many different varieties and forms – and there is no one-size-fits-all formula
Summary
Restoration practitioners, ecologists and researchers tend to cite the value of shellfish restoration projects in terms of the ecosystem services they provide (Coen et al 1999; 2004, 2007; Coen and Luckenbach 2000; Brumbaugh et al 2006; Grabowski and Peterson 2007; Beck et al 2011; Grabowski et al 2012). Here we present five very different cases in the United States to provide examples of the variety of approaches that different shellfish restoration projects and programs have used to incorporate volunteer or community participation into their projects. This is clearly not meant to be an exhaustive list, as there are many noteworthy examples in the U.S not mentioned here. We are not attempting to comment on the quantitative or qualitative success or restoration output in terms of goods and services provided from the restoration, but rather describing how the projects each successfully incorporated community participation that provided benefits to both the restoration project, and the participants
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