Governance at the IUCN World Parks Congress
The IUCN World Parks Congress is held once every decade. Since the Congress inGovernance Diversity
Governance diversity for protected and conserved areas is when decisions are made by a variety of actors who enrich and strengthen conservation in practice. For instance, a national system of protected areas can “enhance governance diversity” by including in the system areas governed by different types of players and under different arrangements, and/or by providing better recognition and support to conserved territories and areas outside the system.Four main governance types
TheICCAs
ICCAs is an abbreviation that refers to the territories and areas conserved by indigenous peoples and local communities. There are three essential characteristics common to ICCAs: * an indigenous people or local community possesses a close and profound elation with a site (territory, area, or habitat) * the people or community is the major player in decision-making related to the site and has ''de facto'' and/or ''de jure'' capacity to develop and enforce regulations. * the people's or community's decisions and efforts lead to the conservation of biodiversity, ecological functions, and associated cultural values, regardless of original or primary motivations. Management categories and governance types are independent and can be juxtaposed in the “IUCN Matrix”, visualizing a spectrum of area-based options to conserve nature in a given region/system. The IUCN Matrix can be used to situate protected areas but also conserved territories and areas (the management category, in such case, would not correspond to a key objective but to an observed result). Conservation depends on well-governed systems of protected and conserved areas in the landscape and seascape and systems are made stronger by governance diversity.Conserved Territories or Areas
Conserved territories or areas are “…area-based measures that— regardless of recognition and dedication and at times even regardless of explicit and conscious management practices— achieve conservation ''de facto'' and/or is in a positive conservation trend and likely to maintain this trend in the long term…”. This definition applies equally to land, inland waters, and coastal and marine territories and areas. The governance types apply to both protected areas and conserved territories and areas that are NOT recognized as “protected” by the IUCN or any specific national government. In this sense, the terms “Privately Conserved Areas” and “ICCAs” encompass extents of land, inland waters, and coastal and marine territories and areas that go beyond those recognized as “protected” by either the national government or the IUCN.Voluntary and ancillary conservation
Many systems of land and water management support high levels of biodiversity, including critical biodiversity, outside the formal system of protected areas, in sites such as tourism and commercial hunting reserves, private estates, or village forests. The term voluntary conservation captures the idea that those who exercise governance do so consciously and without restriction, in ways that are fully compatible with conserving biodiversity values while they may or may not see conservation as the primary objective of their management efforts. In other cases, as in military no-go areas or areas abandoned after a natural or man-made disaster, the term ancillary conservation is more appropriate, since conservation is an entirely unintended (though welcome) consequence of management for other purposes. Conservation in the landscape and seascape is the result of various area-based and non-area-based measures. Among area-based measures, there are both protected areas and conserved territories and areas. Crucially, those should be biologically, but also socially, well connected.Systems of protected and conserved areas
A well-functioning system of protected and conserved areas is complete and well-connected in conserving the representative features and functions of nature in a given environment. Each protected area governance type can also contribute in different ways towards conservation goals, with the complementary and/or overlapping management of conservation features.Other effective area-based conservation measures (OECMs)
The term “other effective area-based conservation measures”– abbreviated as OECMs—is used by the Convention on Biological Diversity to refer to territories and areas that are effectively conserved but not part of the official protected area system of a given country. In this sense, OECMs can be seen as “clearly defined geographical space where de facto conservation of nature and associated ecosystem services and cultural values is achieved and expected to be maintained in the long-term regardless of specific recognition and dedication” (11). OECMs can include the following: * Primary voluntary conservation that the national government does not wish to recognize as a protected area * Primary voluntary conservation that refuses the protected area label and/or inclusion in the national system (e.g. because of self-determination and self-governance issues) * Secondary voluntary conservation * Ancillary conservation with a reasonable expectation to be maintained in the long-term The following Table summarizes various ways of classifying conservation efforts and results:Governance quality
IUCN principles of good governance for protected areas
We speak of governance quality when decisions are made while respecting the “good governance” principles developed through time by a variety of peoples, nations, and UN agencies. A simple and compact formulation of the “IUCN principles of good governance for protected areas”, includes: * Legitimacy and voice— i.e. enjoying broad acceptance and appreciation in society; ensuring procedural rights of access to information, participation, and justice; fostering engagement and diversity; preventing discrimination; fostering subsidiarity, mutual respect, dialogue, consensus, and agreed rules... * Direction— i.e. following an inspiring and consistent strategic vision grounded on agreed values and an appreciation of complexities; ensuring consistency with policy and practice at various levels; ensuring clear answers to contentious questions; ensuring properEquitable and effective governance
The IUCN good governance situation can also be summed up as “equitable and effective governance”. The criteria of legitimacy, voice, fairness, and (procedural and substantive) rights contribute to equitable governance. The criteria of direction, performance, and accountability lead to governance that is effective.Substantive and procedural rights
Rights are usefully distinguished between substantive and procedural. Procedural rights, such as the rights to information, participation, and access to justice, govern the process of determining and adjudicating substantive rights. In turn, substantive rights refer to the specific powers and obligations of individuals and collective bodies under accepted customs and legislation. They span from basic human rights (e.g. life, liberty) to material and financial rights under specific contractual conditions (e.g. access to a given territory). Procedural and substantive rights deserve respect in relation to both protected and conserved areas and territories.Governance vitality
Governance vitality is when decision-making actors and institutions are functional, responsive, and thriving, meeting their roles and responsibilities in timely and appropriate ways. Vitality is expressed by several of these properties. * Integration and connectivity —i.e. having abundant and meaningful interactions with diverse actors, sectors, and levels of decision-making in society, including those interactions that characterize a system versus scattered and isolated single protected areas, and those interactions that render decisions effective through the generation of political, social and financial support. * Adaptability –i.e. being reflexive and flexible, able to accommodate circumstances, integrate knowledge from different cultures, learn from experience, and weigh options through dialogue, exchanges, experiment, and debate... able to take rapid and meaningful decisions even under challenging circumstances... * Wisdom —i.e. being aware and respectful of the socio-ecological history and traditional worldviews, knowledge, and values of the relevant environment and communities; governing situations of meaningful scope (e.g. regarding the size and coherence of the units to manage, the number of actors to involve...) and in line with solidarity rather than self-interest only (e.g. sharing benefits, avoiding accumulation and waste, keeping in mind future generations); not only allowing, but fostering the engagement of as many relevant actors in society as possible... * Innovation and creativity — i.e. openness to new IDs, ability to re-invent and renew itself as only a living system does, ability to conceive and implement new solutions, support the emergence of new rules and norms, respond positively to change, and continue to develop... * Empowerment – i.e. being self-conscious, self-directed, willing, and capable of demonstrating leadership, such as by organizing timely responses to emerging environmental conditions, problems, and opportunities... but also being self-disciplined and self-critical, able to take on responsibilities in effective and dependable ways... While governance diversity and quality have been explored rather exhaustively, the concept of governance vitality has only recently been identified for further consideration. All governance properties are open to enrichment and debate.How does governance improve?
The IUCN and CBD have recently published a volume of guidelines for assessing, evaluating, and planning for action with a view to improving governance for a system of protected areas or a specific site.Borrini-Feyerabend, G., N. Dudley, T. Jaeger, B. Lassen, N. Pathak Broome, A. Phillips and T. Sandwith, Governance of Protected Areas: From understanding to action, Best Practice Protected Area Guidelines Series No. 20, IUCN, Gland (Switzerland), 2013 In both cases, the methodology begins with an analysis of the historical, socio-cultural, institutional, and legal contexts. It then proceeds with a spatial analysis of governance in regard to the status of the conservation of nature. This requires a large, territorial view of the region or area under consideration, including an assessment of biological, ecological, and cultural values and their potential association with governance diversity, quality, and vitality. From that, valuable lessons can be derived and action plans for improvement can be drawn. Globally, there remains a need to initiate such systematic governance assessments and evaluation processes in a range of contexts, with the aim and expectation that they will catalyse enhanced diversity, quality, and vitality. A structured program of governance assessments, supported by learning and capacity development networks is a short- and medium-term priority to strengthen both conservation policies and results.See also
* Bennett, A.F., Linkages in the Landscape: The Role of Corridors and Connectivity in Wildlife Conservation, IUCN, Switzerland) and Cambridge (UK), 1999. * Deaden, P., M. Bennett, J. Johnston, “Trends in Global Protected Area Governance 1992-2002”. In: Environmental Management, Volume 36, July 2005, pp. 89–100. * IUCN WCPA, Trans boundary Conservation: A systematic and integrated approach, Best Practice Protected Area Guidelines Series, Gland, Switzerland, 2014 (forthcoming). * Jaireth, H. and D. Smyth, Innovative Governance, Anne Books, Delhi, 2003. * Kothari, A., “Protected areas and people: the future of the past”, Parks, 17, 2:23-34, 2006. Stolton, S., K. Redford and N. Dudley, The Futures of Privately Protected Areas, Best Practice Protected Area Guidelines Series Gland, Switzerland, 2014 (forthcoming). * CBD Secretariat http://www.cbd.int/protected/ * ICCA Consortium: http://www.iccaconsortium.org/ * IUCN-Global Protected Area Programme (GPAP) on Governance: www.iucn.org/pa_governance * UNEP WCMC protected area database http://www.protectedplanet.net/References
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