Keystones for conservation: Diversity, Wellbeing, Coexistence

Abstract

The field of conservation has a history of divisive debates over what exactly its purview covers, how to carry out its mission, and whose perspectives matter. With the world facing a host of interconnected socioecological crises, the conservation community needs a pluralistic framework within which varied ideologies and identities can work together toward more equitable and effective outcomes. Here, we propose three keystone concepts to help integrate and guide the complex conservation ecosystem, drawing upon growing interdisciplinary scholarship and diverse worldviews to expand concept meanings. The first keystone, diversity, supports a more holistic understanding of diversity as inclusive of intersecting human and nonhuman axes (e.g., race/ethnicity, species, ways of knowing) across scales. The second keystone, wellbeing, contests zero-sum thinking to promote multispecies interests across geographical space and generational time. The third keystone, coexistence, furthers recent momentum to expand our understanding of more-than-human communities and socioecological interactions. We explore the merits of applying these keystones across conventional dichotomies (e.g., human and nonhuman, individuals and collectives) to dismantle oppressive systems and reshape conservation norms. All three keystones apply to both conservation's external impacts and internal workings. This framework is not meant as a singular or static solution, but rather seeks to elucidate shared foci that can be built upon over time. Overall, we hope these keystones help conservation aim not solely for a survivable future, but for a thriving one.