Understanding residents’ perceptions of nature and local economic activities using an open-ended question before protected area designation in Amami Islands, Japan

Abstract

For successful protected area (PA) management, it is essential to understand residents’ perceptions during the early phases of the designation process. However, most studies on residents’ perceptions have been conducted after PA designation due to the lack of researcher–policymaker cooperation. In this study, we reveal residents’ perceptions before the PA designation of Japan’s Amami Islands as a national park and a Natural World Heritage Site. We conducted a questionnaire survey using an open-ended question to collect textual answers on residents’ perceptions of nature and the local economic activities. We then categorized these answers into six topics by applying topic models and interpreted the topics qualitatively, indicating their content. We also examined the relativity of the topics and the islands using correspondence analysis.The residents were more interested in the landscapes relevant to their livelihoods and expected them to be managed. This result implies discrepancy between residents’ perceptions and the PA draft management plan because the draft plan mainly focuses on the conservation of biodiversity in subtropical rainforests, whereas residents were unfamiliar with this. With regard to the local economic activities, residents expected enhancement of agriculture and traditional craft industries and nature-based tourism. Furthermore, residents’ perceptions were probably influenced by the context of the islands on which they lived. We suggest adoption of suitable PA management and communication strategies for each island in view of residents’ perceptions. Our approach has enabled us to understand residents’ perceptions that have been disregarded through the PA designation process.