As conservation scientists, most of us hope to conduct research that will be useful to practitioners, and will ultimately "make a difference". However, it remains unclear whether the areas towards which we are investing our research efforts will actually produce the information that conservation practitioners and natural resource managers need. Understanding the information that decision-makers … Continue reading Help identify research priorities for Oceania
SEMINAR: Michele Barnes-Mauthe – Social-Ecological Linkages: an Integrative Systems Approach to Marine and Coastal Governance
The Conservation planning group will be meeting with Michelle over lunch next Wednesday, but first, catch her seminar on an Integrative Systems Approach to Marine and Coastal Governance Where: Building 19 (Kevin Stark Research Building) Room #106 (upstairs), JCU, Townsville When: Monday 2nd February 2015; 12:00 to 1:00 hrs. Abstract: Considering the scale of anthropogenic … Continue reading SEMINAR: Michele Barnes-Mauthe – Social-Ecological Linkages: an Integrative Systems Approach to Marine and Coastal Governance
Can Pacific Islanders bank on a secure fisheries future?
I'm currently in Albany with a "team of international experts" (and a chef!) from UWA, WCS-Fiji, CalPoly, DPaW, CNRS, and Fervor, working on a meta-analysis of Periodically Harvested Closures. See the media release from UWA, below, for more on what we're getting up to! Traditional conservation measures, such as local ‘Tabus' - areas periodically closed … Continue reading Can Pacific Islanders bank on a secure fisheries future?
Call for nominations: Society for Conservation Biology Oceania Section Board
The Oceania Section of the Society for Conservation Biology are currently looking for nominations for new board members - 3 Members-at-large and 1 President Elect. I've been on the board for a year (and will be for 2 more) and it's been great. Serving on the board is a good way to get more involved … Continue reading Call for nominations: Society for Conservation Biology Oceania Section Board
New Paper: Larval dispersal and movement patterns of coral reef fishes, and implications for marine reserve network design
Our new paper on reef fish movement patterns and implications for marine reserve network design is finally online (and open access!) at Biological Reviews. My favourite part of the paper is the wonderful figure (below) which shows how far fish move, making it easy to understand the spatial scale at which marine reserves, or other … Continue reading New Paper: Larval dispersal and movement patterns of coral reef fishes, and implications for marine reserve network design
NEW PAPER: Real-world progress in overcoming the challenges of adaptive spatial planning in marine protected areas
A new paper on adaptive spatial planning, led by Conservation Planing Group members Morena Mills, Rebecca Weeks and Bob Pressey (with many wonderful co-authors!), is now online at Biological Conservation. Using case studies from Fiji (pictured above), Philippines, Australia, the USA, and South Africa, we explore the extent to which the many promises of adaptive … Continue reading NEW PAPER: Real-world progress in overcoming the challenges of adaptive spatial planning in marine protected areas
Combating illegal fishing in offshore marine reserves
Conservation scientists say there needs to be a new approach to protecting offshore marine reserves. Illegal fishing in marine reserves will be a major focus at the IUCN World Parks Congress, which has opened in Sydney. Researchers at the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies (Coral CoE) at James Cook University, who are … Continue reading Combating illegal fishing in offshore marine reserves
CONVERSATION PIECE: We have more parks than ever, so why is wildlife still vanishing?
Protecting the leftovers. Failing to stop the losses. Aiming for the wrong targets. Just in time for the World Parks Congress in Sydney, Bob Pressey has a piece in The Conversation asking, if we have more parks than ever, why is wildlife still vanishing? So why are protected areas making so little difference? This is … Continue reading CONVERSATION PIECE: We have more parks than ever, so why is wildlife still vanishing?
NATURE comments: A to-do list for the world’s parks and a call for inclusive conservation
With the World Parks Congress kicking off in Sydney next week, it's not surprising that this week's issue of Nature features a lot of content on conservation and protected areas, which includes contributions from the conservation planning group. First up, Bob Pressey leads a group of experts sharing their priorities for what must be done … Continue reading NATURE comments: A to-do list for the world’s parks and a call for inclusive conservation