E. J. Milner-Gulland - Böcker

This book presents the issues surrounding the conservation of wild species and ecosystems used by people. It is aimed at final year undergraduate and master's students taking courses in conservation, environmental management, ecological economics and related subjects, as well as conservation professionals, including managers, policy-makers and researchers. The structure of the book is ideal for a course in conservation, comprising a theoretical section written by the authors, and a set of ten contributed case studies intentionally diverse in discipline, geographical region and system of study. The theoretical section provides the knowledge that is needed to understand the issues, while the case studies can form the basis of seminars. Readers will emerge with a clear recognition of the difficulties of limiting the harvesting of biological resources to sustainable levels, and of the boundaries of sustainable use as a conservation tool. The authors, an ecologist and an anthropologist, have both worked on the conservation and sustainable use of wildlife for several years, including the ivory and rhino horn trades. The first book to examine the issues underlying the sustainable use debate in a fully interdisciplinary manner. Both the theoretical section and the case studies approach the issues using methods from economics, ecology, anthropology and other fieldsDesigned as a course textbook, combining a theoretical section with invited case studies written by expert practitioners in the fieldOutlines the new direction that conservation biology (and thus conservation biologists) must take if it is to be successful

Making decisions about the management and conservation of nature is necessarily complex, with many competing pressures on natural systems, opportunities and benefits for different groups of people and a varying, uncertain social and ecological environment. An approach which is narrowly focused on either human development or environmental protection cannot deliver sustainable solutions. This volume provides frameworks for improving the integration of natural resource management with conservation and supporting stronger collaboration between researchers and practitioners in developed and developing countries. Novel approaches are required when ecological and social dynamics are highly interdependent. A structured, participatory, model-based approach to decision-making for biodiversity conservation has been proven to produce real-world change. There are surprisingly few successful case studies, however; some of the best are presented here, from fisheries, pest management and conservation. Researchers and practitioners need this interdisciplinary approach, focused on quantitative tools that have been tested and applied, and learning from success.