Linking sufficiency and the protection of biodiversity: An issue of political implications, framing, descriptiveness and interdisciplinarity?

Abstract

The dramatic loss of biodiversity is caused by the use of resources and land. One strategy aiming at reducing the use of resources and land is sufficiency, which consequently could be a strategy for protecting biodiversity. This article therefore examines the extent to which sufficiency in the context of biodiversity conservation is already being addressed by nature conservation associations and the scientific community. To this end, publications were analysed firstly with regards to the understanding of sufficiency, secondly with regards to the considered links between sufficiency and biodiversity as well as thirdly with regards to the considered fields of action. The systematic identification and evaluation of scientific publications (for the years 2017–2021) and publications by German and international nature conservation associations shows that few publications address the link between sufficiency and biodiversity. And when they do, the link often remains unspecific. Possible reasons are that sufficiency potentially has broader political implications, that the term is not descriptive and that other terms are used to describe similar strategies. Other potential explanations are that several framings for the need for sufficiency are possible and that linking sufficiency and biodiversity requires interdisciplinarity. Drawing on the results and the discussion, an argument in favour of using the term ‘sufficiency’ and further research is presented. Moreover, a sufficiency typology is developed and questions are raised that could form the basis for future research on linking biodiversity conservation and the various aspects of sufficiency.