1. Protected area personnel and ranger numbers are insufficient to deliver global expectations
- Author
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Michael R. Appleton, Alexandre Courtiol, Lucy Emerton, James L. Slade, Andrew Tilker, Lauren C. Warr, Mónica Álvarez Malvido, James R. Barborak, Louise de Bruin, Rosalie Chapple, Jennifer C. Daltry, Nina P. Hadley, Christopher A. Jordan, François Rousset, Rohit Singh, Eleanor J. Sterling, Erin G. Wessling, Barney Long, Re:Wild, Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (IZW), Leibniz Association, Colorado State University [Fort Collins] (CSU), Fauna and Flora International [Cambridge, UK], Institut des Sciences de l'Evolution de Montpellier (UMR ISEM), Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (Cirad)-École Pratique des Hautes Études (EPHE), Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Institut de recherche pour le développement [IRD] : UR226-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université de Montpellier (UM), World Wide Fund (WWF), Hawai'i Institute of Marine Biology (HIMB), Department of Human Evolutionary Biology, and Harvard University
- Subjects
Urban Studies ,Global and Planetary Change ,Ecology ,Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment ,Geography, Planning and Development ,Management, Monitoring, Policy and Law ,[SDE.ES]Environmental Sciences/Environmental and Society ,Nature and Landscape Conservation ,Food Science ,Ecosystem services ,Interdisciplinary studies ,Sustainability ,Conservation biology - Abstract
The 2020 global spatial targets for protected areas set by the Convention on Biological Diversity have almost been achieved, but management effectiveness remains deficient. Personnel shortages are widely cited as major contributing factors but have not previously been quantified. Using data from 176 countries and territories, we estimate a current maximum of 555,000 terrestrial protected area personnel worldwide (one per 37 km2), including 286,000 rangers (one per 72 km2), far short of published guidance on required densities. Expansion by 2030 to 30% coverage of protected areas and other effective area-based conservation measures is widely agreed as a minimum for safeguarding biodiversity and ecosystem services. We project that effective management of this expanded system will require approximately 3 million personnel (one per 13 km2), including more than 1.5 million rangers or equivalents (one per 26 km2). Parallel improvements in resourcing, working conditions and capacity are required for effective, equitable and sustainable management.
- Published
- 2022
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