Urban and rural perceptions of protected areas: a case study in Dandeli Wildlife Sanctuary, Western Ghats, India

Abstract

SUMMARYResearchers, governments and conservation organizations recognize that the long-term integrity of protected areas (PAs) in low-income nations depends upon the support of indigenous and rural communities that live within or around them. Thus, understanding the determinants of residents’ attitudes towards PAs might provide guidance in the design, implementation and evaluation of this strategic form of biodiversity conservation. This paper (1) compares urban and rural residents’ perceptions of the impact of a PA and (2) analyses the association between the perception of economic, social and environmental impacts, and overall attitude towards the PA. Information was collected among urban and rural residents living in the vicinity of the Dandeli Wildlife Sanctuary in the Western Ghats (Karnataka, India). Local residents’ attitudes towards the PA were mainly positive, especially among urban residents. Multivariate analysis showed a positive association between the perception of economic benefits and individual attitudes towards the PA. There was no statistically significant association between attitudes towards the PA and perception of social and environmental impacts. Future research should address whether positive attitudes translate into more sustainable behaviours.

Who Is For or Against the Park? Factors Influencing the Public’s Perception of a Regional Park: A Slovenian Case Study

“…Contrary to other studies (Bonaiuto et al, 2002;Shibia, 2010;Triguero-Mas et al, 2009;Vodouhê et al, 2010), living within or outside the park boundary has no significant influence on interviewees' perceptions of the park in designation. This phenomenon could be explained by the fact that the people in the main populated areas are closely connected and have similar experiences from the past, the park founder's consistent communication strategy in the founding process thus far, or that the population has not yet been divided into those living inside and outside the park boundary as the park has not been formally founded.…”

“…The most frequently mentioned are socioeconomic influences such as age (Karanth & Nepal, 2012;Shibia, 2010;Tomicevic et al, 2010), gender (Allendorf & Allendorf, 2013;Karanth & Nepal, 2012), education (Shibia, 2010;Tomicevic et al, 2010;Triguero-Mas et al, 2009), wealth and land size (Allendorf, 2010;Karanth & Nepal, 2012;Kideghesho et al, 2007), group membership (e.g., farmers, entrepreneurs) (Arnberger & Schoissengeier, 2012;Bonaiuto et al, 2002;Kideghesho et al, 2007;Shibia, 2010), ethnicity (Mehta & Heinen, 2001), and place of residence (Bonaiuto et al, 2002;Triguero-Mas et al, 2009;Vodouhê et al, 2010). Positive perception of the PA is most strongly associated with higher education, higher income, and living outside the park boundaries.…”

Local People Attitudes towards Community Forestry Practices: A Case Study of Kosti Province-Central Sudan

“…In these subsistence economies, the presence of forest beyond walking distance to household is of often irrelevant. Furthermore, there has been increasing recognition that local communities must be actively involved, and their needs and aspirations considered if resources are to be conserved [2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9]. Social forestry or 2 International Journal of Forestry Research community forestry has been gaining attention as one of the solution to the ever present energy crisis in the rural areas of developing countries [10][11][12].…”

Local Residents' Knowledge about Protected Areas: A Case Study in Dandeli Wildlife Sanctuary, India

“…role of local populations in achieving conservation goals, there is a substantial body of research on local residents' attitudes toward and perceptions of the costs and benefits of PAs (Allendorf et al 2006;Arjunan et al 2006;De Boer and Baquete 1998;Holmes 2003;Triguero-Mas et al 2009). However, there is substantially less research that explicitly focuses on local residents' knowledge about PAs.…”