Biodiversity Monitoring and Conservation: Bridging the Gap Between Global Commitment and Local Action

Description

As the impacts of anthropogenic activities increase in both magnitude and extent, biodiversity is coming under increasing pressure. Scientists and policy makers are frequently hampered by a lack of information on biological systems, particularly information relating to long-term trends. Such information is crucial to developing an understanding as to how biodiversity may respond to global environmental change. Knowledge gaps make it very difficult to develop effective policies and legislation to reduce and reverse biodiversity loss. This book explores the gap between global commitments to biodiversity conservation, and local action to track biodiversity change and implement conservation action. High profile international political commitments to improve biodiversity conservation, such as the targets set by the Convention on Biological Diversity, require innovative and rapid responses from both science and policy. This multi-disciplinary perspective highlights barriers to conservation and offers novel solutions to evaluating trends in biodiversity at multiple scales. Conservation Science and Practice Series Previously published Title Page Copyright Contributors Acknowledgements Chapter 1: Biodiversity Monitoring and Conservation: Bridging the Gaps Between Global Commitment and Local Action Why a book on biodiversity monitoring and conservation? Biodiversity and human well-being Species-based indicators of biodiversity change Indicators of the pressures on biodiversity The next generation of biodiversity indicators Biodiversity monitoring in practice Conclusions References Part I: Species-Based Indicators of Biodiversity Change Chapter 2: Tracking Change in National-Level Conservation Status: National Red Lists Introduction Methods Interpreting the index in the context of biodiversity change? Global Red List and RLI results Implementation of the index: national case studies Two decades of extinction risk assessment for the Venezuelan fauna The Red Data Book for the mammals of South Africa Critique of strengths and weaknesses Acknowledgements References Chapter 3: The Wildlife Picture Index: A Biodiversity Indicator for Top Trophic Levels Introduction Component of biodiversity: medium to large terrestrial birds and mammals The Wildlife Picture Index Measuring the WPI Trend analysis using the WPI Implementation of the WPI Preliminary simulations Cost of implementation Weaknesses and strengths The future Acknowledgements References Chapter 4: Tracking Change in Abundance: The Living Planet Index Introduction Methods What has the index told us about biodiversity change? Interpreting the index Global LPI results Implementation of the index Critique of strengths and weaknesses Conclusions Acknowledgements References Part II: Indicators of the Pressures on Biodiversity Chapter 5: Satellite Data-Based Indices to Monitor Land Use and Habitat Changes Introduction Satellites and their possible role in helping monitoring biodiversity through habitat change Satellites: a world of possibilities The Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and its promising links with ecology Limits to satellite data Conclusions: biodiversity monitoring, satellites, and national reporting Glossary References Chapter 6: Indicators of Climate Change Impacts on Biodiversity Introduction Attributing and measuring climate change impacts on species Developing a theoretical framework for climate change indicators Climate change indicators in practice Validating climate change vulnerability assessments and indicators Conclusions Acknowledgements References Chapter 7: Monitoring Trends in Biological Invasion, its Impact and Policy Responses Introduction Review of indicators of invasions Development of global indicators for biological invasion Technical challenges to the development of invasion indicators Discussion and conclusions Acknowledgements References Chapter 8: Exploitation Indices: Developing Global and National Metrics of Wildlife Use and Trade Introduction Indicators currently available Indicators of sustainable use Future directions for indicators of exploitation and trade in wild species Concluding remarks Acknowledgements References Chapter 9: Personalized Measures of Consumption and Development in the Context of Biodiversity Conservation: Connecting the Ecological Footprint Calculation with the Human Footprint Map Introduction Ecological footprint calculation The human footprint map Connecting the ecological footprint and human footprint Equivalency between the ecological footprint and the human footprint Discussion References Part III: The Next Generation of Biodiversity Indicators Chapter 10: Indicator Bats Program: A System for the Global Acoustic Monitoring of Bats Introduction Monitoring ultrasonic biodiversity Developing an ultrasonic indicator Comparisons with existing indicators Indicator Bats Program The future Acknowledgements References Chapter 11: Occupancy Methods for Conservation Management Introduction First step: defining conservation management objectives Proportion of area occupied (PAO) Species richness Conservation management of red slender loris in Sri Lanka References Chapter 12: Monitoring and Evaluating the Socioeconomic Impacts of Conservation Projects on Local Communities Introduction Why monitor the socioeconomic impacts of conservation projects? What to monitor? How to monitor? What are the pitfalls? Conclusions References Chapter 13: Science to Policy Linkages for the Post-2010 Biodiversity Targets Introduction Twenty targets for 2020 Conclusions Acknowledgements References Part IV: Biodiversity Monitoring in Practice Chapter 14: Building Sustainable National Monitoring Networks International conventions for biodiversity conservation Why national long-term sustainable monitoring? Monitoring goals Monitoring plan design Data collection Data storage Data analysis Standardization Human and financial capacity Institutional frameworks Establishing trust and credibility Communication and dissemination Discussion Conclusions Acknowledgements References Chapter 15: Monitoring in the Real World Introduction The importance of power in monitoring Real-world challenges An ideal monitoring programme? Conclusions Acknowledgements References Chapter 16: Monitoring in UNDP-GEF Biodiversity Projects: Balancing Conservation Priorities, Financial Realities, and Scientific Rigour Introduction The GEF and biodiversity conservation UNDP and biodiversity conservation The role of biodiversity monitoring in the monitoring and evaluation of UNDP-GEF biodiversity projects Mechanisms for increasing the contribution of GEF biodiversity projects to broader biodiversity monitoring efforts Financing for increased technical support to GEF biodiversity projects and other considerations Conclusions Acknowledgements References Chapter 17: Scaling Up or Down? Linking Global and National Biodiversity Indicators and Reporting Introduction Global biodiversity indicators use Global biodiversity indicators production National biodiversity indicators use National biodiversity indicators production National biodiversity indicators data sources National biodiversity indicator types Challenges in developing national biodiversity indicators Regional indicators for biodiversity National use of global indicators for biodiversity National capacity needs for biodiversity indicators Scaling up or scaling down? Addressing differing motivations Acknowledgements References Chapter 18: Conserving Biodiversity in a Target-Driven World Background The CBD 2010 Target—positive aspects The CBD 2010 Target—problematic aspects The 2010 Target—why was it not met? How do we raise the priority of biodiversity? How will the Aichi 2020 Biodiversity Target help avoid pitfalls post-2010? Linking targets to actions Conclusion Acknowledgements References Index