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Pienkowski T, Kiik L, Catalano A, Hazenbosch M, Izquierdo-Tort S, Khanyari M, Kutty R, Martins C, Nash F, Saif O, Sandbrook C. Recognizing reflexivity among conservation practitioners. CONSERVATION BIOLOGY : THE JOURNAL OF THE SOCIETY FOR CONSERVATION BIOLOGY 2023; 37:e14022. [PMID: 36285608 DOI: 10.1111/cobi.14022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2022] [Revised: 10/03/2022] [Accepted: 10/06/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
When deciding how to conserve biodiversity, practitioners navigate diverse missions, sometimes conflicting approaches, and uncertain trade-offs. These choices are based not only on evidence, funders' priorities, stakeholders' interests, and policies, but also on practitioners' personal experiences, backgrounds, and values. Calls for greater reflexivity-an individual or group's ability to examine themselves in relation to their actions and interactions with others-have appeared in the conservation science literature. But what role does reflexivity play in conservation practice? We explored how self-reflection can shape how individuals and groups conserve nature. To provide examples of reflexivity in conservation practice, we conducted a year-long series of workshop discussions and online exchanges. During these, we examined cases from the peer-reviewed and gray literature, our own experiences, and conversations with 10 experts. Reflexivity among practitioners spanned individual and collective levels and informal and formal settings. Reflexivity also encompassed diverse themes, including practitioners' values, emotional struggles, social identities, training, cultural backgrounds, and experiences of success and failure. Reflexive processes also have limitations, dangers, and costs. Informal and institutionalized reflexivity requires allocation of limited time and resources, can be hard to put into practice, and alone cannot solve conservation challenges. Yet, when intentionally undertaken, reflexive processes might be integrated into adaptive management cycles at multiple points, helping conservation practitioners better reach their goals. Reflexivity could also play a more transformative role in conservation by motivating practitioners to reevaluate their goals and methods entirely. Reflexivity might help the conservation movement imagine and thus work toward a better world for wildlife, people, and the conservation sector itself.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Pienkowski
- Interdisciplinary Centre for Conservation Science, Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Centre for Environmental Policy, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Laur Kiik
- Interdisciplinary Centre for Conservation Science, Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Tokyo College, The University of Tokyo Institutes for Advanced Study, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- School of Anthropology & Museum Ethnography, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | | | - Mirjam Hazenbosch
- Interdisciplinary Centre for Conservation Science, Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Santiago Izquierdo-Tort
- Instituto de Investigaciones Económicas, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico City, Mexico
| | - Munib Khanyari
- Interdisciplinary Centre for Conservation Science, Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Nature Conservation Foundation, Mysore, India
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
| | - Roshni Kutty
- Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment, Bangalore, India
- Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE), Manipal, India
| | - Claudia Martins
- Institute for the Conservation of Neotropical Carnivores, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Fleur Nash
- Department of Geography, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Omar Saif
- School of GeoSciences, Institute of Geography, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Chris Sandbrook
- Department of Geography, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
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Pienkowski T, Keane A, de Lange E, Kapoor V, Khanyari M, Ravi R, Smit IPJ, Castelló y Tickell S, Hazenbosch M, Arlidge WNS, Baranyi G, Brittain S, Papworth S, Saxena S, Hout V, Milner‐Gulland EJ. Psychological distress and workplace risk inequalities among conservation professionals. CONSERVATION SCIENCE AND PRACTICE 2023. [DOI: 10.1111/csp2.12918] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/03/2023] Open
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