Quantitative Assessment of a Tanzanian Integrated Conservation and Development Project Involving Butterfly Farming

Abstract

Scientific understanding of the role of development in conservation has been hindered by the quality of evaluations of integrated conservation and development projects. We used a quasi-experimental design to quantitatively assess a conservation and development project involving commercial butterfly farming in the East Usambara Mountains of Tanzania. Using a survey of conservation attitudes, beliefs, knowledge, and behavior, we compared 150 butterfly farmers with a control group of 170 fellow community members. Due to the nonrandom assignment of individuals to the two groups, we used propensity-score matching and weighting in our analyses to control for observed bias. Eighty percent of the farmers believed butterfly farming would be impossible if local forests were cleared, and butterfly farmers reported significantly more participation in forest conservation behaviors and were more likely to believe that conservation behaviors were effective. The two groups did not differ in terms of their general conservation attitudes, attitudes toward conservation officials, or knowledge of conservation-friendly building techniques. The relationship between butterfly farming and conservation behavior was mediated by dependency on butterfly farming income. Assuming unobserved bias played a limited role, our findings suggest that participation in butterfly farming increased participation in conservation behaviors among project participants because farmers perceive a link between earnings from butterfly farming and forest conservation.

Collaborative information behaviour of butterfly farmers in Eastern Usambara Mountains, Tanzania

“…Similarly, Morgan-Brown et al (2009) examined how farmers' perceptions and benefits gained from butterfly farming changed their conservation behaviors positively. Generally, these two studies found positive relationships between butterfly farming and conservation behavior where majority of the farmers were more likely to participate in conservation (Morgan-Brown 2007;Morgan-Brown et al 2009). Other studies have focused on impact of ICDPs to the local communities and conservation of natural resources around Amani nature reserve.…”

“…The projects which started in 2001 are based on the Integrated Conservation and Development model. In this model butterfly farming is used as a way of providing alternative income for local communities and conserving forests (Morgan-Brown et al 2009). Farmers with the support from Tanzania Forest Conservation Group are involved in breeding and selling pupae in Europe and America for both live exhibitions and dried butterfly collections.…”

Contrasting perceptions of ecosystem services of an African forest park

“…It has been demonstrated that providing ecosystem services to local people can influence their support of conservation (Morgan-Brown et al 2010;Solomon et al 2012). As perceptions of these types of benefits change with education, advocacy, culture, and life experiences, so too do the values a community holds for their ecosystem services (Costanza 2003).…”

Conservation and Unscripted Development: Proximity to Park Associated with Development and Financial Diversity

“…Although some scholarship has pointed to successful, small-scale collaborations between conservationists and local groups (Morgan-Brown et al 2010, the majority of research on conservation landscapes in this region has identified struggles between conservation and development. Specifically, these studies have highlighted economic decline (McCabe 1992), negative local perceptions of conservation (Baird et al 2009, Davis 2011, the marginalization of local groups and local knowledge in CBC design (Goldman 2003(Goldman , 2011, the challenges internal to indigenous rights NGOs (Igoe 2003), interethnic group conflict (Greiner 2012), power struggles between local groups and conservation planners (Brockington 2004, Baker et al 2012), corruption and local governance (Brockington 2007), and the growth of conservation NGOs (Sachedina 2010).…”