https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1975-7893
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ABSTRACT
As marine ecosystems decline globally, scientists recommend increasing the coverage of marine protected areas (MPAs), but many are not effectively managed to deliver benefits. Community integration into decision-making can increase effectiveness by supporting behavior change, but this poses implementation challenges. We examine differences in adaptive capacity, community engagement, and perceived MPA benefits using interviews and focal groups in two fishing communities from MPAs with different management strategies and geographic settings: a centrally managed MPA in Kenya and a co-managed MPA in Tanzania. Far fewer Kenyan community members (37%) felt they benefited from the MPA compared to Tanzanian community (95%). Agency, trust, and MPA support were largely similar. Both systems had challenges that reduced collaborative action including: low staff-community interaction and communication, leadership challenges, and social conflict. We identified pathways towards improved co-management that transcend systems: institutional prioritization of community integration, investment in community leadership, mapping social networks, and adequate MPA budgets.
Acknowledgements
We are grateful for the efforts of the MPA leaders and staff and community members who participated in and facilitated the exchanges and surveys. We are grateful to B. Schulte-Herbruggen for contributions to survey question design.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Notes on Contributors
Jennifer K. O'Leary is a marine scientist with the Wildlife Conservation Society, based in Kenya and working regionally in the Western Indian Ocean (WIO). She conducted this work under her Pew Marine Fellowship (2016) focused on improving marine protected area (MPA) management in the WIO. She is a marine community ecologist focused on how human disturbance and environmental variability affect persistence and recovery of marine systems, and how marine systems can be managed for long term sustainability. Her interests in the region include MPA and artisanal fisheries management as well as coral reef and seagrass ecological dynamics.
Maurice Goodman is a PhD candidate at Stanford University, focusing on quantitative ecology and biogeography. His research aims to understand the ecological consequences of climate-induced species range shifts. He has contributed to work on marine protected areas in the Western Indian Ocean via data analysis and visualization.
Arthur Tuda is a marine social scientist and the former Assistant Director of the Kenya Wildlife Service. He is now the Executive Secretary at the Western Indian Ocean Marine Science Association. He facilitates and leads regional work on marine science and management, and has been a leader in marine protected area management effectiveness in the Western Indian Ocean region.
Lindsey West is the former Executive Director and current Technical Advisor to the Tanzanian NGO Sea Sense. She is a Ph.D. candidate in Biodiversity Management at the Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology (DICE), University of Kent, U.K. Her research interests include community engagement in marine biodiversity conservation and the influence of socio-cultural values on local stewardship of marine wildlife.
Milali Machumu is a marine ecologist, aquatic resources conservationist and former Manager and Chief Executive of the Tanzania Marine Parks & Reserves Unit of Tanzania. He has done extensive work on management of marine protected areas and social and ecological aspects of marine conservation in Tanzania. He is currently working with Fisheries Education and Training Agency as a Principal Tutor and Head of Research, Consultancy and Publications Unit.