Understanding scuba divers' response to coral bleaching: An application of Protection Motivation Theory.

Coral reefs are important to the dive experience, suggesting the expected increase in coral bleaching events has the potential to alter global flows of dive tourists. There are a growing number of studies that suggest taking people's estimation of their options and ability to react to a threat into account provides a clearer picture of the decision to respond to a threat. This study applied Protection Motivation Theory (PMT) to help understand the motivational factors associated with intended adaptation to coral bleaching.

Examining marginalized communities and local conservation institutions: the case of Nepal's Annapurna Conservation Area.

In developing countries, participatory conservation initiatives have been criticized for many reasons, mainly for excluding marginalized groups which have led to unequal benefits. Using concepts from the literature on participation, conservation, and political ecology, this research explored the participation of marginal groups, i.e.

Local residents perception of benefits and losses from protected areas in India and Nepal.

High densities of people living around protected areas (PAs) in South Asia require management strategies to balance conservation goals and livelihood needs. Based on a survey of 777 households around five PAs in India and Nepal, this paper provides a comparative perspective of Indian and Nepali households' views of protected area benefits and costs, their attitude toward conservation in general, and attitude toward protected area staff. Results indicate mixed responses towards tourism, varying from very favorable in Nepal to less favorable in India.

Local responses to participatory conservation in Annapurna conservation area, Nepal.

Biodiversity conservation has undergone a profound change in philosophy, policies and management approaches over the last forty years. The traditional top-down approach to nature protection has been widely criticized for failing to include critical social elements in management practices, and is being gradually replaced by a slew of participatory strategies under the rubric of bottom-up conservation. The new approach recognizes local communities as key partners in wildlife management and seeks their participation in social development and biodiversity conservation.

Integrating social marketing into sustainable resource management at Padre Island National Seashore: an attitude-based segmentation approach.

High demand for outdoor recreation and increasing diversity in outdoor recreation participants have imposed a great challenge on the National Park Service (NPS), which is tasked with the mission to provide open access for quality outdoor recreation and maintain the ecological integrity of the park system. In addition to management practices of education and restrictions, building a sense of natural resource stewardship among visitors may also facilitate the NPS ability to react to this challenge. The purpose of our study is to suggest a segmentation approach that is built on the social marketing framework and aimed at influencing visitor behaviors to support conservation.

Evaluating local benefits from conservation in Nepal's Annapurna Conservation Area.

Protected areas are integral to the global effort to conserve biodiversity, and, over the past two decades, protected area managers have begun to recognize that conservation objectives are next to impossible to achieve without considering the needs and concerns of local communities. Incentive-based programs (IBPs) have become a favored approach to protected area management, geared at fostering local stewardship by delivering benefits tied to conservation to local people. Effective IBPs require benefits to accrue to and be recognized by those experiencing the greatest consequences as a result of the protected area, and those likely to continue extractive activities if their livelihood needs are compromised.

Characterizing and comparing backcountry trail conditions in Mount Robson Provincial Park, Canada.

Two backcountry trails located within the Mount Robson Provincial Park boundaries in British Columbia, Canada, are compared for the type of ecological characteristics and the influence of topographical use level and management on trail degradation. Data on five trail impact variables were collected at 68 fixed line transects, and information on management features, use level, and water-related problems were based on a survey of 31 km of trails. Results show that the two trails are similar in several ecological characteristics.

Comparison of vegetation conditions along two backcountry trails in Mount Robson Provincial Park, British Columbia (Canada).

Vegetation conditions, i.e., plant cover, species richness, and the presence of exotic species, are compared along a high-use trail (Berg Lake Trail--BLT) and a low use trail (Mt.

Visitor-induced changes in the chemical composition of soils in backcountry areas of Mt Robson Provincial Park, British Columbia, Canada.

Balancing recreation and conservation is an important issue in Canada's parks and protected areas. Increased levels of visitation to parks, especially to backcountry areas, create undue pressure on natural resources, resulting in a variety of ecological impacts. This paper illustrates the issue of visitor-induced changes on the chemical composition of soils in Mt Robson Provincial Park, British Columbia.

Visitor impacts on trails in the Sagarmatha (Mt. Everest) National Park, Nepal.

This study summarizes findings of a visitor impact study conducted in the Sagarmatha (Mt. Everest) National Park, Nepal. The effect of visitor use, and the influence of environmental characteristics on trail conditions are investigated.

Involving indigenous peoples in protected area management: comparative perspectives from Nepal, Thailand, and China.

Despite over two decades of efforts towards involving indigenous and traditional peoples in protected area management, there are few successful examples. Several international principles and guidelines on indigenous peoples' involvement in protected areas exist. However, because of the lack of evaluation of whether or not these principles and guidelines have been put into practice, there is hardly any information that indicates the actual involvement of indigenous peoples in protected areas.