Everyone Loves a Success Story: Optimism Inspires Conservation Engagement

McAfee, Dominic; Doubleday, Zoë A.; Geiger, Nathaniel; Connell, Sean D.

doi:10.1093/biosci/biz019

Cited by 102 publications

(79 citation statements)

References 69 publications

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“…This duality between pessimism and optimism is powerful motivator in conservation (McAfee & Connell ; McAfee et al. ). From our experience, historical baselines provided a nexus to align policy goals with public aspirations, a vital part of legitimacy for policy formation (Dryzek et al.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Environmental solutions sparked by environmental history

McAfee

Alleway

Connell

2019

Conservation Biology

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Environmental solutions require a decision‐making process that is ultimately political, in that they involve decisions with uncertain outcomes and stakeholders with conflicting viewpoints. If this process seeks broad alignment between the government and public, then reconciling conflicting viewpoints is a key to the legitimacy of these decisions. We show that ecological baselines can be particularly powerful tools for creating a common understanding for public support (legitimacy) and conformity to new rules or regulations (legality) that enable the solution. They are powerful because they move the discussion of solutions from the abstract to the concrete by providing a conceptual model for a common expectation (e.g., restoring habitat). They provide narratives of the past (ecological histories) that readjust the future expectations of individuals on how to perceive and respond to new policy. While ecological baselines offer scientists benchmarks for reinstating ecological functions, they also normalize public and government discussion of solutions. This social normalization of public issues may assist government policy and influence social views, practices, and behaviors that adopt the policy. For science to more effectively inform conservation, we encourage interdisciplinary thinking (science‐ and human‐centered) because it can provide public support and government legitimacy for investing in environmental solutions.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Environmental solutions sparked by environmental history

McAfee

Alleway

Connell

2019

Conservation Biology

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“…We chose to connect people to the science of Operation Crayweed and the story of our coasts through a science communication and crowdfunding campaign that celebrated our success in reversing local extinction and re‐establishing a long‐lost species to the Sydney coastline. The literature has shown how good‐news stories such as this one can be particularly effective in generating interest and inspiring positive conservation action (Cvitanovic & Hobday 2018; McAfee et al 2019b). We further collaborated with artists to give interested communities the opportunity to interact and engage with the project in a variety of ways (Fig.…”

Section: Cultural Engagement In Operation Crayweedmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…From the start of the project, we realised that this good‐news story about reversing the local extinction of a seaweed species could become an important tool to engage local communities and boost public awareness about the local marine environment in Sydney (Cvitanovic & Hobday 2018; McAfee et al 2019b). To do this, we created an identity for the project (‘Operation Crayweed’), and we built a website, joined various social platforms and commissioned a short film about the story of our restoration project and our initial success.…”

Section: Cultural Engagement In Operation Crayweedmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Success stories of species and ecosystem recovery, either through improved environmental management (de los Santos et al 2019) or through restoration at large spatial scales (DeAngelis et al 2020), continue to emerge. These examples, where science successfully influences policy and leads to positive impacts, can inspire a sense of optimism that enhances community engagement in conservation and motivates further action (Krupnick & Knowlton 2017; Cvitanovic & Hobday 2018; McAfee et al 2019b).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Operation Crayweed: Ecological and sociocultural aspects of restoring Sydney’s underwater forests

Vergés¹,

Campbell²,

Wood³

et al. 2020

Eco Management Restoration

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Operation Crayweed focuses on the restoration of underwater forests that disappeared from the coastline of Sydney, Australia’s largest city, 40 years previously. We show how a combination of science, hands‐on restoration, community engagement and art has helped the project to reach its goals as well as raise awareness about the importance of underwater kelp forests that are experiencing global decline.

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“…Similarly, ecologists are developing new ways to conserve biodiversity even in the face of irreversible damage from climate change (Heller & Zavaleta ). Crucially, if we believe that we can overcome environmental trouble and work toward improving nature, then we will be better prepared to actually do so (Swaisgood & Sheppard ; McAfee et al ).…”

Section: Intent Over Outcomementioning

confidence: 99%

How can ecologists thrive during the global environmental crisis? Lessons from the ancient world

Freeling

Preston²

2019

Restoration Ecology

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When striving to meet an immense challenge, how can we, as restoration ecologists, flourish? Given the ongoing environmental crisis, it is normal to experience ecological grief and discouragement. This article discusses how insights from the ancient philosophy of Stoicism can help environmental practitioners navigate these troubling times. To overcome ecological grief, ecologists can draw on three tenets from Stoic thought: distinguishing between what we can and cannot control; recognizing our contribution as part of a broader community of environmental managers; and focusing on the intent of our actions. We believe that these ideas can help ecologists shoulder the emotional burden of modern environmental practice and focus on working toward a diverse and resilient biosphere.

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Everyone Loves a Success Story: Optimism Inspires Conservation Engagement

Cited by 102 publications

References 69 publications

Environmental solutions sparked by environmental history

Environmental solutions sparked by environmental history

Operation Crayweed: Ecological and sociocultural aspects of restoring Sydney’s underwater forests

How can ecologists thrive during the global environmental crisis? Lessons from the ancient world

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