Community-based and traditional natural resource conservation in Northern Pakistan: comparative analysis of attitudes and beliefs

Abstract

Community-based conservation is promoted as a strategy for improving resource management through community engagement, while traditional management approaches rely on customary laws and practices to regulate the natural resource use. However, there is little research directly comparing these approaches. We used surveys and interviews to examine attitudes and perceptions of resource management in a traditional use (TU) area and a community-based conservation (CBC) area in Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan. Respondents in the CBC area more consistently cited communal benefits, showed greater willingness to conserve natural resources, and observed greater presence of management. However, these differences were contingent on communal benefits generated in the CBC area that have helped influence attitudes about management. The CBC approach may also be more adaptable to technological and socioeconomic changes that are taxing traditional systems. This comparative analysis demonstrates how CBC may support conservation goals in the face of limited governance capacity and changing socio-economic conditions.