Assessing demand reduction measures for rhino horn consumption

A review of studies that segmented consumers based on their willingness to consume rhino horn are given to identify the various motivational drivers and deterrents of illegal wildlife consumption in China and Vietnam. Medicinal motivations are the most significant stimuli for both Vietnamese and Chinese consumers who believe that the horn treats ailments. A review of campaigns that were developed to generate an awareness of the plight of this endangered species is conducted to highlight the problems of the celebrity-product degree of fit and eclipsing in the advertisements. We recommend that additional consumer behavior research on demand-reduction strategies for rhino horn should examine gateway behaviors that initiate consumption; evaluate the viability of diverting demand to substitute products (e.g., synthetic alternatives); investigate the counterfeit market for rhino horn and draw analogies from anticounterfeiting messages to decrease demand for an illicit product; and employ benchmarks to implement and assess the validity of campaigns targeted at Asian consumers to decrease demand. A few research methods are suggested based on the recommendations for future research.     

Death imagery in antipoaching advertising

In three studies, death imagery and regulatory focus are examined for their effects in wildlife protection campaigns. Images of death are found to lead to positive intentions to conserve wildlife through fear, but only when ads are prevention-focused rather than promotion-focused. In Study 1, participants who view an image of a dead elephant indicate feeling fear and stronger intentions to conserve wildlife. In Study 2, participants who view a prevention-focused ad depicting a dead rhino indicate stronger intentions to sign a wildlife conservation pledge, but the effect is attenuated when the ad is promotion-focused. Study 3 finds similar results using the image of a dead tiger. Theoretical insights and practical implications are discussed.     

A Survey of Tourist Expectations and Economic Potential for a Proposed Wildlife Sanctuary in a Maasai Group Ranch near Amboseli,Kenya

This paper looks at the ethical, ecological, community, economic and management issues in extending wildlife tourism and conservation beyond national park boundaries in Kenya. It specifically examines the proposed Kuku Community Conservation Area (KCCA). Prerequisites, including the availability of diverse tourist attractions, local community support, the support of tourism investors and other stakeholders are considered. Research focused on interviews with tourists and tour operators visiting the Tsavo-Amboseli Ecosystem. Wildlife was the number one attraction for over 75% of tourists, though some were attracted by the Maasai culture. Most of the tourists (over 75%) were willing to visit a community wildlife sanctuary. This willingness was independent of their belief that the Maasai were actually benefiting from wildlife resources (p > 0.20) but was dependent (p < 0.001) on their desire to have the Maasai benefit. Most of them (over 70%) wanted the Maasai Community to benefit from wildlife and tourism, even though a majority (over 70%) did not know the role the community played in conservation, or (over 80% of them) the socio-economic burden that wildlife places on local communities. A majority (over 60%) of tourists had not visited a Maasai cultural centre, but most (over 70%) would have visited if they knew what was presented there. Based on a simple management model of 46 staff, KCCA could potentially generate a net Ksh10.35 million (US$147,867) annually, in addition to revenue from a proposed cultural centre and resource access benefits for the local community. With the existing tourist attractions in the area and with potential partnerships with tour companies, maximum benefit to the community from the successful tourism industry already operating in the area can be realised, hence legitimising wildlife conservation for the community.     

What goes up must come down: an evaluation of a zoo conservation-education program for balloon litter on visitor understanding,attitudes, and behaviour

Abstract

Balloons used outdoors can fly away, posing ingestion and entanglement hazards to wildlife. “When Balloons Fly” (WBF) conservation-education program seeks to educate zoo visitors about these threats and encourage the use of wildlife-friendly bubbles at outdoor events. We examined the effect of WBF on visitor knowledge, attitudes, and behaviours (intentions and actions) over 6?months (N?=?624). We compared outcomes among visitors who viewed a presentation and exhibit, to viewing the exhibit-only, and investigated the priming influence of completing a survey before entering the exhibit (pre-survey). Visitors had greater depth of understanding about the impact of balloons immediately following the visit, but post-visit message recall was low. General Linear Models revealed that over 6?months WBF significantly (p < .05) influenced positive attitudes concerning balloon use, increased likelihood to use bubbles, and reduced likelihood to use balloons. Completion of a pre-survey significantly influenced positive attitudes and reduced likelihood to use balloons. WBF is promoting conservation behaviour, with two-thirds of the follow-up sample reporting that behaviours they changed while hosting or attending an outdoor event since their visit were influenced by the zoo experience. Future work can investigate materials that might mimic a priming effect (e.g., worksheets).     

Stakeholders,industry knowledge and adaptive management in the Australian whale-watching industry

Whale watching has become an economically valuable tourism sector. The whale-watching industry is complex, involves multiple stakeholders and can involve multilevel governance. This paper uses the concept of adaptive management to underpin an investigation of industry knowledge and information exchange between two key stakeholder groups in whale watching in Australia – whale-watching operators and environmental resource managers. Twenty commercial operators and nine environmental resource managers were interviewed using both quantitative and open-ended questions. Findings showed key differences between stakeholders involved, and inconsistent perspectives across the industry. Resource managers found biological issues, species health and numbers and interpretation important; operators sought clear and consistent knowledge on compliance, legislation and rules. Only half of the operators had direct access to research and researchers. Managers found the industry to be relatively unprofessionally qualified, especially small and non-specialised operators. Whale-watching operators did not specify that any information (about new knowledge, regulations or policy) was obtained from environmental resource managers through information exchanges. There was inconsistent contact between stakeholders, limiting information exchange and the knowledge-building potential of the industry. Improved dialogue between these groups may not only address existing uncertainties, but also lead to more sustainable outcomes across the industry.     

Trade policy and ecology

Trade sanctions on product exports are often used as measures for conservation of stocks of living resources. Two opposing approaches are investigated. The harvest approach argues that sanctions reduce the harvest, and thus protects the stock. It is shown that this does not consider the long run effects nor the effects of sanctions on the management system. The investment approach argues that increased price protects the stock, making the species a profitable investment. It is shown that this approach does not consider the asset effects of price changes, and that the sanctions usually increase the stock in an one species analysis. If the wildlife competes for land the conclusions may be different, but still sanctions usually works. If the manager has a joint management of several species, the stock effects of sanctions are ambiguous, depending on both the species interaction, and the profitability of the harvesting from each of them. In this case it is not possible to use intuitive reasoning, sanctions give distortions to all stocks simultaneously. The threat of extinction depends crucially on the unit cost in harvesting of depleted stocks. The paper concludes that trade policy is a too general measure for the management of living resources, and may implicate important economic distortions to the ecological system.This study is partially funded by the Research Council of Norway (Environment and Development). I thank Derek Clark, Tore Thonstad, Frode Steen and two anonymous referees for helpful comments.     

基于民法的野生动物驯养权问题研究

随着经济社会的不断进步和发展,对于人类赖以生存的野生动物资源实施依法开发利用保护,在永续发展战略中愈加体现出重要的意义和作用。特别是施行新的《物权法》,使我国野生动物资源地位得以确立和发生变化,充分反映了现代野生动物资源保护立法的发展趋势。但物权法未确认野生动物用益物权制度,亟待立法和实践进一步调整和完善,以增强和提高对野生动物的民法保护效力。     

Discovering wildlife tourism: a whale shark tourism case study

This paper investigates the different sources of information used by tourists to learn about a particular wildlife tourism activity, specifically, whale shark tourism at Ningaloo Marine Park in Western Australia. The findings from this research concur with previous studies of wildlife tourism showing that wildlife tourism operations are reliant on more informal and general forms of promotion, in particular word of mouth and guide books. Conversely, more deliberate marketing mechanisms, such as the internet and documentaries, are not extensively utilised. To disaggregate consumer preferences for various information sources, this article segments the population into more homogenous groups, thereby demonstrating distinct differences in the choice of information source based on the participants’ normal place of residence.