A socioecological resilience approach for evaluating management effectiveness of marine protected areas

Coral reefs worldwide need urgent conservation action because of their high level of degradation and susceptibility. This conservation priority is more urgent in the face of current global change events, which obscure the possibility for understanding the socio-ecological systems (SESs) complex dynamics, and limits the management effectiveness of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). MPAs' ineffectiveness and lack of tools to unravel SESs' social and ecological relationships make necessary the implementation of a holistic approach that helps to determine current state and potential risk of these systems. In the present study we create an integrative model based on socioecological resilience in order to assess the management effectiveness of MPAs. By using indexes to estimate Resilience and Human-Intervention trough indicators relating to the social and ecological status of the system, we are able to detect specific conservation strategies and action plans to improve resilience, based on the particular conditions of the MPAs. The model is tested in two MPAs of the Southern Caribbean (Colombia) and it determined they are in a risk state of low resilience and high human intervention. We provide evidence that this model results an appropriate tool for decision-makers and reserve managers since it provides an insight for improving MPA's protection effectiveness, capitalizing opportunities to consolidate conservation goals and mitigating the vulnerability of coral reefs ecosystems and local communities.

• Autores: López Angarita, Juliana
• Fecha de publicación: 2009
• Institución: Universidad de los Andes
• Repositorio: Séneca: repositorio Uniandes
• Idioma: eng
• OAI Identifier: oai:repositorio.uniandes.edu.co:1992/11198
• Acceso en línea: http://hdl.handle.net/1992/11198
• Palabra clave: Resiliencia (Ecología) - Investigaciones - Colombia; Ecosistemas - Aspectos sociales - Investigaciones - Colombia; Litoral - Protección - Investigaciones - Colombia; Ecología de arrecifes coralinos - Investigaciones - Colombia; Biología
• Rights: openAccess
• License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/