Capacity development for conservation

Review of Community-Based Conservation Initiatives for Protecting a Primary Atlantic Forest Remnant: A Case Study

“…While the desire to engage in conservation activities exists, the prevailing economic disparities and incentives make it considerably easier for communities to opt for more immediately rewarding but less sustainable practices, such as cattle ranching. Thus, to foster a sense of responsibility and encourage communities to protect their environment, it is crucial to establish connections by addressing their basic and immediate needs and supporting them in their quest for sustainable development through capacity development [1,2]. When communities are empowered to manage their natural resources with sustainability in mind, social resources become available [3].…”

“…Urgent transformative change at a societal level is called for to secure a sustainable future for the next generations [4]. We must strategically apply diverse and innovative mechanisms to conserve ecosystems [1,5,6]. Studer accomplished that throughout her quest to preserve the Pedra Talhada forest and its biodiversity [7].…”

Advancing conservation of threatened primates

“…Primate conservation needs to be embedded in local leadership and knowledge, and to foster inclusivity. Across the major regions where primates live—Africa, Asia, Madagascar and the Neotropics—we see an urgent need to enhance local capacity-building programmes and networking to nurture and support the next generation of primate conservationists, as noted in an earlier editorial for conservation more widely (O'Connell & Carter, 2022).…”

Writing for conservation—a skill for life

“…[We] need a literature for all conservationists, everywhere, written, read and utilized by researchers and practitioners wherever they may [be].’ (Fisher, 2015, p. 2). The need to scale up capacity development in conservation strategically—including for individuals as authors, leaders and researchers—is now recognized (O'Connell et al, 2019; O'Connell & Carter, 2022). This was the theme of the September 2022 issue of Oryx, in which 14 teams of authors examined a range of issues, including resilience strategies (Loffeld et al, 2022) and training evaluation (Abu-Bakarr et al, 2022; Gerrie et al, 2022).…”

“…Expertise from within the three CLP partners—Birdlife International, Fauna & Flora International and the Wildlife Conservation Society—along with input from grantees across continents and generations, has honed the programme into one that strives to understand the complexities of conservation challenges. The Conservation Leadership Programme awards funding that enables early-career conservationists to undertake experiential learning and, additionally, offers training to enhance skills, paid internships, opportunities for innovative practice and learning (O'Connell & Carter, 2022), and an active network that facilitates solidarity and connectivity, and also supports individual resilience (Loffeld et al, 2022).…”