Bridging the conservation genetics gap by identifying barriers to implementation for conservation practitioners

Taylor, Helen R.; Dussex, Nicolás; Heezik, Yolanda van

doi:10.1016/j.gecco.2017.04.001

Cited by 132 publications

(159 citation statements)

References 45 publications

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“…Nevertheless, limited understanding is not the only barrier to better integration of evolutionary theory (Taylor et al. ; Cook & Sgrò ). Practitioners often report a lack of resources as a significant impediment to greater integration of evolutionary theory into management (Taylor et al.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Growing evidence that practitioners are willing to adapt their management practices (Taylor et al. ; Cook & Sgrò ) and that better conservation outcomes can be achieved (e.g., Prober et al. ; Weeks et al.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although practitioners (on‐the‐ground managers and policy makers) recognize the importance of using evolutionary theory to inform management practices (Taylor et al. ), this has yet to be translated into management practice (Cook & Sgrò ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Several barriers to better integration of evolutionary theory into conservation practices have been suggested, including limited engagement between practitioners and scientists (Mace & Purvis ; Taylor et al. ), a lack of resources (Cook & Sgrò ), and inadequate knowledge about relevant evolutionary concepts (Ashley et al. ; Frankham ; Cook & Sgrò ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Conservation practitioners’ understanding of how to manage evolutionary processes

Cook

Sgrò

2019

Conservation Biology

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Both academics and practitioners consider a lack of knowledge about evolutionary theory to be a general barrier to effectively managing genetic diversity. However, it is challenging to judge practitioners’ level of understanding and how this influences their management decisions. Knowledge built through experience may be difficult for practitioners to articulate, but could nonetheless result in appropriate management strategies. To date, researchers have assessed only the explicit (formal) knowledge practitioners have of evolutionary concepts. To explore practitioners’ understanding of evolutionary concepts, it is necessary to consider how they might apply explicit and implicit knowledge to their management decisions. Using an online survey, we asked Australian practitioners to respond to 2 common management scenarios in which there is strong evidence that managing genetic diversity can improve outcomes: managing small, isolated populations and sourcing seeds for restoration projects. In describing their approach to these scenarios, practitioners demonstrated a stronger understanding of the effective management of genetic diversity than the definitions of the relevant concepts. However, their management of genetic diversity within small populations was closer to best practice than for restoration projects. Moreover, the risks practitioners described in implementing best practice management were more likely to affect their approach to restoration than translocation projects. These findings provide evidence that strategies to build the capacity of practitioners to manage genetic diversity should focus on realistic management scenarios. Given that practitioners recognize the importance of adapting their practices and the strong evidence for the benefits of actively managing genetic diversity, there is hope that better engagement by evolutionary biologists with practitioners could facilitate significant shifts toward evolutionarily enlightened management.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Conservation practitioners’ understanding of how to manage evolutionary processes

Cook

Sgrò

2019

Conservation Biology

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“…New technological developments need careful translation to practical conservation management, otherwise the gap between scientists and practitioners will probably increase (Taylor et al, ). One should refrain from promising too much and too early: only what works well, is well understood and can readily be used makes sense for conservation professionals.…”

Section: Perspectivesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Conservation genetics: Linking science with practice

et al. 2019

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Conservation genetics is a well‐established scientific field. However, limited information transfer between science and practice continues to hamper successful implementation of scientific knowledge in conservation practice and management. To mitigate this challenge, we have established a conservation genetics community, which entails an international exchange‐and‐skills platform related to genetic methods and approaches in conservation management. First, it allows for scientific exchange between researchers during annual conferences. Second, personal contact between conservation professionals and scientists is fostered by organising workshops and by popularising knowledge on conservation genetics methods and approaches in professional journals in national languages. Third, basic information on conservation genetics has been made accessible by publishing an easy‐to‐read handbook on conservation genetics for practitioners. Fourth, joint projects enabled practitioners and scientists to work closely together from the start of a project in order to establish a tight link between applied questions and scientific background. Fifth, standardised workflows simplifying the implementation of genetic tools in conservation management have been developed. By establishing common language and trust between scientists and practitioners, all these measures help conservation genetics to play a more prominent role in future conservation planning and management.

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Navigating spaces between conservation research and practice: Are we making progress?

Jarvis

Borrelle

Forsdick

et al. 2020

Ecol Sol and Evidence

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1. Despite aspirations for conservation impact, mismatches between research and implementation have limited progress towards this goal. There is, therefore, an urgent need to identify how we can more effectively navigate the spaces between research and practice. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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Bridging the conservation genetics gap by identifying barriers to implementation for conservation practitioners

Cited by 132 publications

References 45 publications

Conservation practitioners’ understanding of how to manage evolutionary processes

Conservation practitioners’ understanding of how to manage evolutionary processes

Conservation genetics: Linking science with practice

Navigating spaces between conservation research and practice: Are we making progress?

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