Livestock production has been highly relevant in the Azores, boosted by European agricultural policies, increasing the demand for pasture and competing for space with other land uses. Therefore, it is important to understand the spatial evolution of pasture and related land use/land cover (LULC) trade‐offs. This study describes a geographical information systems‐based LULC change detection approach to identify, map and assess pasture‐related land use changes and respective trade‐offs in Pico Island in the period between 1998 and 2013 (15 years). Pasture in 1998 occupied a total area of 17,131 ha (about 39% of Pico Island surface), while in 2013, this same area was of 17,621 ha (about 40% of Pico Island surface). During this period, about 16,316 ha of pasture remained unchanged, while 2,110 ha (about 5% of Pico Island surface) of land use have changed from pasture to another land use (810 ha), or from a previous land use to pasture (1,300 ha). The whole pasture spatial dynamics and its net increase of 3% from 1998 to 2013 (490 ha, about 1% of Pico Island surface) were analysed through the identification, mapping and assessment of LULC trade‐offs and interpreted according to several physical (elevation) and socio‐economic/policy drivers. Pasture and livestock grazing activity with adequate management may not constitute per se threats to nature conservation and biodiversity protection in Pico Island, as the identified issues have been shown to be mostly related to the pasture dynamics (changes and respective trade‐offs). Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Using the Safe Islands for Seabirds LIFE project as a case study, we assessed the socio-economic impact of a nature conservation project on the local community, focusing on the wealth created and the jobs supported directly and indirectly by the project. The Safe Islands for Seabirds project took place during 2009–2012, mainly on Corvo Island, the smallest and least populated island of Portugal's Azores Archipelago. To assess the impact of the project we used a combination of methods to analyse the project expenditure, the jobs created directly as a result of it, and, by means of multipliers, the incomes and jobs it supported indirectly. We estimate that during 2009–2012 direct expenditure of EUR 344,212.50 from the project increased the gross domestic product of the Azorean region by EUR 206,527.50. Apart from the 4.5 jobs created directly by the project, it also supported indirectly the equivalent of 1.5–2.5 full-time jobs. The project also provided the opportunity to preserve and promote natural amenities important for the quality of life of the local community. Our findings show that a nature conservation project can have positive economic impacts, and we recommend the creation of a standardized tool to calculate in a straightforward but accurate manner the socio-economic impacts of conservation projects. We also highlight the need to design projects that support local economies.

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The effects of climate change are global, but small islands are among the most vulnerable places. Local populations on small islands might have a ground-based perspective of the impacts that threaten them. This study was undertaken on Corvo (Azores), where 34% of the residents of both genders and different education levels were surveyed. Here, their understanding of climate change and their perception of its local impacts, the sense of risk, the local areas at risk, the willingness to propose mitigation and adaptation strategies, and the knowledge of regional procedures was analysed. Education played a crucial role in local understanding. The general perception was that the regional policies were insufficient to address climate change issues at the local level. This fact points out that the efforts to mitigate climate change impacts, and the public participation procedures for supporting policy-making, must be significantly increased and improved, in order to reach a real impact on local island communities.