Social capital of the community in the management of Danau Sentarum National Park, West Kalimantan, Indonesia

Civil society plays an important role in the management of national parks, but there needs to be more literature on the interactions of civil society with government. The participatory management strategy has been criticized for articulating the ideals of failed collaboration in the management of national parks. The implementation of a collaborative management strategy has provided significant opportunities and roles for civil society in the management of the national park, taking into account the social, economic, and cultural conditions and expectations of the local community. The aim of this study is to empirically examine the participation of civil society and challenges in the management of Tesso Nilo National Park in Riau Province. Using qualitative and quantitative approaches through snowball interviews and social network modeling, and conducting a case study analysis, our findings show that the community is still given a secondary role. The involvement of civil society in the collaborative management of Tesso Nilo National Park still needs to be strengthened. However, the institutional formation and the nature of their involvement in supporting and implementing activities still needs to be improved. In some cases, community empowerment has already begun. The main challenges are related to regulations or policies, community capacity, resources and governance relationships, therefore the objectives of collaborative national park management activities have not been achieved.

Today, the world faces increasing challenges related to climate change, environmental pollution, and biodiversity loss. The development of national parks, which are crucial for preserving biodiversity and natural ecosystems, is significant in the context of these global challenges. The article aims to study the peculiarities of environmental and economic aspects of the development of the territories of national nature parks. The article establishes that national nature parks are the main areas for the conservation of flora and fauna. Therefore, developing strategies to preserve these unique ecosystems is essential while ensuring sustainable development and taking responsibility for biodiversity conservation. The article emphasizes that the development of territories should consider the needs of the local population while not harming the natural environment, i.e., forests, water resources, and other natural resources should be used reasonably. Ecotourism is an essential component of the functioning and development of national nature parks, as it can be a way to support local economies without harming nature. Ecotourism can include excursions, wildlife watching, hiking, and biking trails, etc. Efficient management and development of national parks require appropriate legislation and regulatory policies. This includes laws governing the use of natural resources, prohibitions on illegal activities such as poaching or illegal logging, and mechanisms to monitor compliance with these laws. The article proves that educational and scientific programs are essential to developing national parks since national parks can be used as sites for scientific research and educational programs. This helps to raise awareness of the importance of nature conservation and can boost the development of the local economy through research and educational initiatives. The development of the territories of national nature parks requires investment and funding. It is crucial to raise funds from the government, the private sector, and international donors to ensure the sustainable development of these territories. The article specifies that local communities should be actively involved in the planning and managing of national parks. Keywords: environmental and economic foundations, territories, communities, recreation, national nature parks, sustainable development, environment, management activities.

Management of German national parks: The role of institutions and actors in defining goals and making decisions

Elephant management in East African reserves and national parks has become one of the urgent conservation problems of today. In this study of the African savanna elephant, Dr Sikes shows that two diseases of the heart and arteries, found only in lowland elephants, were directly associated with the degeneration of the habitat when elephant numbers began to build up in the Tsavo National Park in Kenya and the Queen Elizabeth and Murchison Falls National Parks in Uganda. The two diseases thus appear to be natural factors tending to limit the elephant populations in these reserves, and she suggests four lessons to be drawn from this discovery by those concerned with elephant management in national parks.

The broad purpose of user capacity management in national parks is to identify the types and amounts of use that can be accommodated in a park, while desired resource and experiential conditions are maintained. Traffic management and transportation planning in national parks are increasingly recognized as inextricably linked with user capacity management. The purpose of this study was to develop a tool to integrate transportation and user capacity management in Yosemite National Park. The study consisted of three primary components. First, survey research was used to identify visitor-based standards of quality for crowding in Yosemite Valley. Second, regression modeling was used to estimate statistical relationships between inbound vehicle traffic at park entrance stations and visitor use levels at recreation sites in Yosemite Valley. Third, regression model estimates of visitor use at recreation sites in Yosemite Valley were simulated with computer models to estimate the extent of crowding that occurs in the valley as a result of different levels of inbound vehicle traffic at park entrance stations. Simulation results were compared with visitor-based standards to characterize the quality of visitor experiences in Yosemite Valley associated with different volumes of vehicle traffic entering the park. Thus, the results of this study provide an empirical basis for managing vehicle traffic entering the park in a manner that maintains the quality of visitors’ experiences in Yosemite Valley. Further, the approach developed in this study can be adapted to other National Park System units to support integrated transportation planning and user capacity management systemwide.

The importance of natural disturbances for biodiversity is well-documented in the disturbance ecology literature. Natural disturbances such as fire, wind, and flooding strongly influence ecosystems by creating short and long-term ecological processes. Conservation management of protected areas should consider the importance of natural disturbances since natural shifts in ecosystems are, in a long-term perspective, necessary to maintain high biodiversity. The purpose of this study is to explore how and if natural disturbances are incorporated in the management of Swedish national parks and to identify possible examples of barriers for this incorporation. The design of the study is a multiple comparative case study based on a document study and completed with qualitative interviews. The cases consist of propositions and management plans for 15 Swedish national parks established between 1962 and 2018. The document analysis generated four main categories: historic/future and positive/negative perceptions of natural disturbances. The results indicate that there are positive perceptions concerning the inclusion of disturbance ecology in the management of national parks. However, there are also obstacles and challenges around natural disturbances within Swedish national parks. These obstacles are, in some cases, explained by practical implications such as the closeness to surrounding societies and in others explained by paradoxes such as visitors’ perceptions of national parks and the wilderness.

This study examined the recognition differences between local residents and national park managers on the adjustment of national parks which are conducted every ten years for the purpose of providing basic information for the park management, according to the Natural Parks Act. Both local residents and national park managers positively perceived the adjustment of national parks, but park managers showed concern towards the damage of natural resources resulting from the cancellation and adjustment of restricted development districts in Korean national parks. Local residents are more likely than park managers to recommend boundary adjustment in other national parks regarding the influence of parks adjustment on local change. While local residents recognized that the boundary adjustment of national parks improves the level of community management, park managers focused on damages on the local environment and the park landscape adjacent to the areas. The result shows the recognition differences of local residents and park managers. Further research into adjustment of national parks is necessary to diminish perception gaps among stakeholders and develop prediction indicators of cancellation effect in response to the future cancellation areas of national parks through the characteristics of cancellation communities, revitalization of local economy, and environmental change of local community.

National parks and other protected areas have evolved in most nations, and often reflect idiosyncratic histories and characteristics of each nation. Adopting a historical institutionalist approach, this paper aims to understand the contextual aspects that led to the creation and development of the Brazilian national park system, focusing on political, economic, social and cultural conditions. The analysis identifies the periods of stability in national park management and the internal and external factors that led to institutional change in Brazil. The key findings highlight eight critical path dependencies that have emerged throughout the history of Brazil’s national park creation and management. The path dependencies are related to the original extractivist development model and colonial nature of the country, undefined land tenure, the preservationist perspective, the lack of a relationship between society and protected areas, limited participation, underfunding and understaffing, dependence on external funding and the new focus on concessions. We argue these key path dependencies continue to shape the management of national parks in Brazil.

Our national parks are more than mere recreational destinations. They are repositories of the nation's biological diversity and contain some of the last ecosystem remnants needed as standards to set reasonable goals for sustainable development throughout the land. Nevertheless, public pressure for recreation has largely precluded adequate research and resource monitoring in national and ignorance of ecosystem structure and function in parks has led to costly mistakes--such as predator control and fire suppression--that continue to threaten parks today. This volume demonstrates the value of ecological knowledge in protecting parks and shows how modest investments in knowledge of park ecosystems can pay handsome dividends. Science and Ecosystem Management in the National Parks presents twelve case studies of long-term research conducted in and around national parks that address major natural resource issues. These cases demonstrate how the use of longer time scales strongly influence our understanding of ecosystems and how interpretations of short-term patterns in nature often change when viewed in the context of long-term data sets. Most importantly, they show conclusively that scientific research significantly reduces uncertainty and improves resource management decisions. Chosen by scientists and senior park managers, the cases offer a broad range of topics, including: air quality at Grand Canyon; interaction between moose and wolf populations on Isle Royale; control of exotic species in Hawaiian parks; simulation of natural fire in the parks of the Sierra Nevada; and the impact of urban expansion on Saguaro National Monument. Because national parks are increasingly beset with conflicting views of their management, the need for knowledge of park ecosystems becomes even more critical--not only for the parks themselves, but for what they can tell us about survival in the rest of our This book demonstrates to policymakers and managers that decisions based on knowledge of ecosystems are more enduring and cost effective than decisions derived from uninformed consensus. It also provides scientists with models for designing research to meet threats to our most precious natural resources. If we can learn to save the parks, observe Halvorson and Davis, perhaps we can learn to save the world. Contents- I. Introduction-1. Natural Resources Management in U.S. National Parks: Evolving from Belief to Science-2. Management in National Parks: from Scenery to Science- II. Long-term Versus Short-term Views-3. Fire Research and Management in the Sierra Nevada National Parks-4. Yellowstone Lake and Its Cutthroat Trout-5. Moose and Wolf Populations on Isle Royale National Park-6. Saguaro Cactus Dynamics-7. Alien Species in Hawaiian National Parks- III. No Park Is an Island-8. Water Rights and Devil's Hole Pupfish at Death Valley National Monument-9. Urban Encroachment at Saguaro National Monument-10. Karst Hydrological Research at Mammoth Cave National Park-11. Air Quality in Grand Canyon- IV. Protection Versus Use-12. Rare Plant Monitoring at Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore-13. Wilderness Research and Management in the Sierra Nevada National Parks-14. River Management at Ozark National Scenic Riverways- V. Summary and Analysis-15. Summary of Long-term Research Applied to Major Resource Issues in U.S. National Parks-16. Lessons Learned from a Century of Applying Research Results to Management of National Parks-

Disentangling the influence of the economic development discourse on the management of national parks through systems thinking: Case studies from the Philippines and Mozambique

As ten years have passed since national parks were adjusted and released inceptively, it is the time for evaluating the effectiveness of the national park policy and improving it on the basis of the evaluation result. In this study, the method of appraising the environmental and socio-economical ripple effect on the implementation of national park regulation were provided, based on the institutional consideration, the environment analysis, the survey of residents consciousness, the statistical analysis and so on. It is applied to target sites where were released from national parks, and the policy direction was suggested for sustainable use and management of national parks. National parks, that exhibit various characteristics depending on geographical and local conditions, were categorized through the statistical approach. Released sites from Seoraksan National park, where was categorized as the core national park for sustainable use and management, were evaluated environmentally based on the time-series analysis of environmental thematic maps and socio-economically based on the survey on residents perceptions. As a result of this study, the environmental effect of released sites has been declined or threatened, and the residents' economic, social and living condition in these areas are still not improved(p<0.05) since the adjustment of national parks. Based on the policy approach reflecting regional characteristics, natural resources are kept and enhanced for the sustainable use and management of national parks. And a consensus on the national park policy of national park should be developed between local residents and voluntary participation and public awareness should be attracted from them, based on the construction and the supplement of the infrastructure.

Local residents’ satisfaction plays a crucial role in the successful management of national parks. However, limited attention has been paid to residents’ preferences in the management of national parks, which hinders the sustainable development and optimization of management systems. To address this gap, we focused on the Dongning area of Northeast China Tiger and Leopard National Park (NCTLNP) as a case study and employed the importance–performance analysis (IPA) framework to assess residents’ perceptions and cognitive rankings of current ecosystem services. Additionally, we examined how demographic and socio-economic factors influence these perceptions. Our findings reveal that local residents prioritize ecosystem services that directly impact their livelihoods and that their material, social, spiritual, and cultural needs are not fully met. Satisfaction and importance ratings varied across regions, with significant influences occurring from the residents’ sex, occupations, and livelihoods. Based on these results, we recommend strengthening the institutional framework for national park management and enhancing the scientific effectiveness of management policies by incorporating residents’ perspectives into decision-making processes.

Despite the current health crisis, global trends indicate that tourism all over the world will increase, especially in natural areas. This paper therefore aims to analyse the policy instruments for sustainable tourism management in national parks. The research focuses on three countries and two national parks in each: Los Nevados and Chingaza in Colombia, Manuel Antonio and Volcán Poás in Costa Rica, and Teide and Sierra de Guadarrama in Spain. A content analysis of official documents is carried out to identify organizational, normative and programmatic instruments. Organizational instruments for both tourism and the environment are represented graphically for each country, keywords are used to analyse normative instruments, and eleven topics and thirty-five subtopics are proposed as a means of exploring the inclusion of sustainable tourism criteria in programmatic instruments. The results show the areas where we believe there is room for improvement. These include coordination between those organizations in charge of protecting the environment and natural areas and those in charge of tourism, the inclusion of sustainable tourism in normative instruments, and greater emphasis to be placed on key topics for sustainability in the programmatic instruments, including carbon footprints and accessibility.&#x0D; Keywords: National parks, sustainable tourism, policy instruments

This paper aimed to present a model of natural environment management in national parks in Poland in the context of increased tourist traffic. The research area comprised Polish national parks as they are characterized by barely altered nature, little human impact, and undisturbed natural phenomena. The methods involved the observational method, literature analysis and criticism, and the in-depth interview method employed in November 2019. The respondents included national park management staff. The questions were prepared in accordance with the Berlin Declaration principles of sustainable tourism development and were extended with the authors’ own items. The questionnaire contained 17 questions, grouped in four parts: science and documentation; tourism; cooperation and education; environmental threats. The results indicate that in order for actions to prove efficient in a park, a conservation plan should be carefully developed. Its correctness requires monitoring the state of the environment, tourist traffic size and trends, and tourists’ impact on the environment. An important condition for effective tourism management in parks is to increase the competences of the administering bodies and knowledge regarding individuals’ responsibilities. Boards should be able to evaluate and modify conservation plans, spatial development plans, municipality development strategies, and projects for investments within the parks.

The aim of the article is to compare the legal and administrative foundations of the functioning of national parks as factors determining the quality of management. National parks in Poland and Ukraine, representing different nature protection systems, were selected for the comparative analysis and evaluation. The data was obtained from published sources. The most important were legislations that create the legal basis of the nature protection systems in both countries. The available data were used for analysis using the Desk Research method. There are numerous differences between the Polish and Ukrainian systems of protected areas, mostly based upon the position in the government structure (what is the way of creating the national park and which ministry is responsible for it). Despite those differences, general conclusions can be drawn. Due to the separate legal entity of individual units, as well as subordination to various ministries, there is no clear link between the institutions. This hinders the flow of information and reporting and complicates the decision-making process both at individual units and between national parks.