On the effectiveness of public awareness campaigns for the management of invasive species

Abstract

SummaryInvasive species can have disastrous effects on the ecosystems they invade, requiring costly, labour-intensive mitigation. Public awareness campaigns are often used as a tool to reduce these species’ impacts. While heralded as useful and cost-effective, little evidence suggests that these campaigns contribute to meaningful biological outcomes. Furthermore, awareness campaigns are relatively understudied despite their usage as a common approach to mitigating invasive species. We conducted a literature review to assess publications that evaluated the efficacy of public awareness campaigns for managing invasive species. Out of 4382 papers initially extracted for analysis, we determined that 24 of them included studies conducted on awareness campaigns for invasive species. Four public awareness campaigns were deemed a ‘success’, and the other campaigns’ success was indeterminable due to study design. Our study revealed that inconsistencies in defined end points, unclear procedures and variability of campaigns contribute to there being insufficient evidence to determine the efficacy of public awareness campaigns. To evaluate the true efficacy of public awareness campaigns, we recommend that organizations conducting such campaigns implement rigorous and standardized assessments (e.g., Before–After Control–Impact designs or Bayesian analyses) that include measures of not just changes in the knowledge and behaviour of target audiences, but also relevant biological outcomes.

Human–Wildlife Conflict Mitigation Based on Damage, Distribution, and Activity: A Case Study of Wild Boar in Zhejiang, Eastern China

“…Moreover, other practical measures, such as the establishment of electronic fences [ 76 , 77 ], the utilization of sound and light intimidation techniques [ 20 ] and interference coupled with legal hunting [ 78 ] and planning arrangements, such as the construction of ecological corridors [ 79 ] and the adjustment of land use [ 18 ], also should be integrated into the current management. Finally, public campaigns targeting residents can be implemented [ 80 ]. Meanwhile, the local residents can provide valid support in providing regularly updated data on the fauna, which could create a valuable system that increases the cooperation between the residents and management authorities and their connection with the territory.…”

Stakeholders' views on the global guidelines for the sustainable use of non‐native trees

“…Therefore, there is an urgent need to raise awareness among stakeholders about the existence of global policies and regulations, and to encourage their adoption and compliance to reduce risks associated with tree invasions (Novoa et al, 2018). It remains unclear which type of campaign can most effectively increase awareness of non-native species among stakeholders (Haley et al, 2023; but see Verbrugge et al, 2014). This highlights the need to invest more effort in this topic.…”