Abstract
Debate about what proportion of the Earth to protect often overshadows the question of how nature should be conserved and by whom. We present a systematic review and narrative synthesis of 169 publications investigating how different forms of governance influence conservation outcomes, paying particular attention to the role played by Indigenous peoples and local communities. We find a stark contrast between the outcomes produced by externally controlled conservation, and those produced by locally controlled efforts. Crucially, most studies presenting positive outcomes for both well-being and conservation come from cases where Indigenous peoples and local communities play a central role, such as when they have substantial influence over decision making or when local institutions regulating tenure form a recognized part of governance. In contrast, when interventions are controlled by external organizations and involve strategies to change local practices and supersede customary institutions, they tend to result in relatively ineffective conservation at the same time as producing negative social outcomes. Our findings suggest that equitable conservation, which empowers and supports the environmental stewardship of Indigenous peoples and local communities represents the primary pathway to effective long-term conservation of biodiversity, particularly when upheld in wider law and policy. Whether for protected areas in biodiversity hotspots or restoration of highly modified ecosystems, whether involving highly traditional or diverse and dynamic local communities, conservation can become more effective through an increased focus on governance type and quality, and fostering solutions that reinforce the role, capacity, and rights of Indigenous peoples and local communities. We detail how to enact progressive governance transitions through recommendations for conservation policy, with immediate relevance for how to achieve the next decade’s conservation targets under the UN Convention on Biological Diversity.
Highlights
The contribution of Indigenous peoples and local communities (IPLCs) to effective biodiversity conservation has gained recognition, since the 2003 World Parks Congress in Durban, South Africa (Brosius 2004, Diaz et al 2019)
When interventions are controlled by external organizations and involve strategies to change local practices and supersede customary institutions, they tend to result in relatively ineffective conservation at the same time as producing negative social outcomes
Our findings suggest that equitable conservation, which empowers and supports the environmental stewardship of Indigenous peoples and local communities represents the primary pathway to effective long-term conservation of biodiversity, when upheld in wider law and policy
Summary
The contribution of Indigenous peoples and local communities (IPLCs) to effective biodiversity conservation has gained recognition, since the 2003 World Parks Congress in Durban, South Africa (Brosius 2004, Diaz et al 2019). Progress toward recognition of the role of IPLCs in conservation has included the promotion of rights-based approaches (Roe et al 2010), the combination of social and ecological goals as in the Aichi Targets of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD; Gannon et al 2019), the development of standards and assessment tools for conservation governance and social impacts (Borrini-Feyerabend et al 2013, Zafra-Calvo et al 2017, CBD 2018, Hockings et al 2019), and the inclusion of local governance efforts or “other effective conservation measures” within the global network of conserved areas (Jonas et al 2014, Dudley et al 2018). A wide spectrum of governance types exists, externally controlled forms are commonly initiated based on the narrative that environmental degradation is caused by the material dependence
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