Benefits Beyond Borders: Assessing Landowner Willingness-to-Accept Incentives for Conservation Outside Protected Areas
Unplanned land-use change surrounding protected areas (PAs) can lead to degradation and fragmentation of wildlife habitats, thereby placing tremendous pressure on PAs especially in tropical countries. Incentivizing the expansion of habitats beyond PAs will not only benefit wildlife but also has the...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2021-07-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fevo.2021.663043/full |
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| author | Dincy Mariyam Dincy Mariyam Mahi Puri Mahi Puri Abishek Harihar Abishek Harihar Krithi K. Karanth Krithi K. Karanth |
| author_facet | Dincy Mariyam Dincy Mariyam Mahi Puri Mahi Puri Abishek Harihar Abishek Harihar Krithi K. Karanth Krithi K. Karanth |
| author_sort | Dincy Mariyam |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Unplanned land-use change surrounding protected areas (PAs) can lead to degradation and fragmentation of wildlife habitats, thereby placing tremendous pressure on PAs especially in tropical countries. Incentivizing the expansion of habitats beyond PAs will not only benefit wildlife but also has the potential to create livelihood opportunities for marginalized communities living adjacent to PAs. Our study explored landowners’ willingness to participate in an incentive-based, wildlife-friendly land-use program using a discrete choice modeling approach. We surveyed 699 landowners living in 287 villages within a five-kilometer buffer around Nagarahole and Bandipur National Parks in India. We found that landowners preferred wildlife-friendly land-use over their ongoing farming practices. Landowners preferred short-term programs, requiring enrolling smaller parcels of land for wildlife-friendly land-use, and offering higher payment amounts. Landowners with larger landholdings, a longer history of living next to the PA, and growing fewer commercial crops were more likely to prefer enrolling large parcels of land. Landowners who grew more commercial crops were likely to prefer long term programs. We also estimated the average monetary incentive to be INR 64,000 (US$ 914) per acre per year. Wildlife-friendly land use, in developing economies like India with shrinking wildlife habitats and expanding infrastructural developments, could supplement rural incomes and potentially expand habitat for wildlife, thereby being a promising conservation strategy. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-22T13:29:43Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-b3039420d88344639aa1aa261748a0b0 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2296-701X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-22T13:29:43Z |
| publishDate | 2021-07-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution |
| spelling | doaj.art-b3039420d88344639aa1aa261748a0b02022-12-21T18:24:13ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution2296-701X2021-07-01910.3389/fevo.2021.663043663043Benefits Beyond Borders: Assessing Landowner Willingness-to-Accept Incentives for Conservation Outside Protected AreasDincy Mariyam0Dincy Mariyam1Mahi Puri2Mahi Puri3Abishek Harihar4Abishek Harihar5Krithi K. Karanth6Krithi K. Karanth7Centre for Wildlife Studies, Bengaluru, IndiaManipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, IndiaCentre for Wildlife Studies, Bengaluru, IndiaDepartment of Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United StatesPanthera, New York, NY, United StatesNature Conservation Foundation, Mysore, IndiaCentre for Wildlife Studies, Bengaluru, IndiaNicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Durham, NC, United StatesUnplanned land-use change surrounding protected areas (PAs) can lead to degradation and fragmentation of wildlife habitats, thereby placing tremendous pressure on PAs especially in tropical countries. Incentivizing the expansion of habitats beyond PAs will not only benefit wildlife but also has the potential to create livelihood opportunities for marginalized communities living adjacent to PAs. Our study explored landowners’ willingness to participate in an incentive-based, wildlife-friendly land-use program using a discrete choice modeling approach. We surveyed 699 landowners living in 287 villages within a five-kilometer buffer around Nagarahole and Bandipur National Parks in India. We found that landowners preferred wildlife-friendly land-use over their ongoing farming practices. Landowners preferred short-term programs, requiring enrolling smaller parcels of land for wildlife-friendly land-use, and offering higher payment amounts. Landowners with larger landholdings, a longer history of living next to the PA, and growing fewer commercial crops were more likely to prefer enrolling large parcels of land. Landowners who grew more commercial crops were likely to prefer long term programs. We also estimated the average monetary incentive to be INR 64,000 (US$ 914) per acre per year. Wildlife-friendly land use, in developing economies like India with shrinking wildlife habitats and expanding infrastructural developments, could supplement rural incomes and potentially expand habitat for wildlife, thereby being a promising conservation strategy.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fevo.2021.663043/fullagriculturechoice experimentincentiveland sharingland-usewildlife |
| spellingShingle | Dincy Mariyam Dincy Mariyam Mahi Puri Mahi Puri Abishek Harihar Abishek Harihar Krithi K. Karanth Krithi K. Karanth Benefits Beyond Borders: Assessing Landowner Willingness-to-Accept Incentives for Conservation Outside Protected Areas Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution agriculture choice experiment incentive land sharing land-use wildlife |
| title | Benefits Beyond Borders: Assessing Landowner Willingness-to-Accept Incentives for Conservation Outside Protected Areas |
| title_full | Benefits Beyond Borders: Assessing Landowner Willingness-to-Accept Incentives for Conservation Outside Protected Areas |
| title_fullStr | Benefits Beyond Borders: Assessing Landowner Willingness-to-Accept Incentives for Conservation Outside Protected Areas |
| title_full_unstemmed | Benefits Beyond Borders: Assessing Landowner Willingness-to-Accept Incentives for Conservation Outside Protected Areas |
| title_short | Benefits Beyond Borders: Assessing Landowner Willingness-to-Accept Incentives for Conservation Outside Protected Areas |
| title_sort | benefits beyond borders assessing landowner willingness to accept incentives for conservation outside protected areas |
| topic | agriculture choice experiment incentive land sharing land-use wildlife |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fevo.2021.663043/full |
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