Governing Multi-level Transformations in Biodiversity Conservation: Politics, Policy and Practice

Student thesis: Phd

Abstract

Levels of biodiversity loss are continuing to accelerate despite multiple efforts to conserve biodiversity. There is a growing consensus both within the academic literature and in policy circles for the need to transform biodiversity conservation. This thesis asks: to what extent are transformations in biodiversity conservation occurring? It analyses transformations in biodiversity conservation with an empirical focus on coral reef conservation. Coral reefs are one of the most at-risk ecosystems on Earth and there is a consensus that conventional approaches to coral reef conservation are no longer effective. This thesis undertakes a multi-level governance analysis of coral reef conservation by examining three case studies at the global, national and sub-national levels drawing on policy documents, semi-structured interviews, and other sources of data. Using a dual focus approach to transformations in biodiversity conservation, this thesis argues that there is no evidence of a complete transformation in biodiversity conservation in any of the case studies analysed in this thesis. This thesis argues that there is evidence of short-term incremental changes in the values, structures and systems of coral reef conservation policy and practice in these case studies. These short-term incremental changes, however, also need to be accompanied by a high-level vision and long-term changes in the values, structures and systems to constitute transformations in biodiversity conversation. At present, there is limited evidence of long-term changes in the case studies. As such, whilst the case studies evidence important shifts in the values, structures and systems of coral reef conservation, they do not currently evidence transformations in biodiversity conservation. This thesis makes three broad contributions. First, this thesis contributes to the small but emerging literature that focuses specifically on transformations in biodiversity conservation. Moreover, I contribute to the literature on transformative governance by applying a dual focus approach to analyse transformations in biodiversity conservation. Second, I make a theoretical contribution by articulating public policy with political ecology. I argue there is an analytical value to political ecologists engaging more deeply with public policy scholarship, methods and empirics to better explain environmental change. In doing so, I argue substantive engagement with public policy reformulates political ecology. Third, this thesis makes a theoretical contribution to political ecology by problematising its terrestrial bias. Empirically, this thesis increases the scope of political ecology by focusing on the marine environment, which is severely underrepresented. Theoretically, this thesis contributes to political ecology by drawing on ‘wet ontologies’ (Steinberg and Peters, 2015), to reframe environmental change in light of the specific materiality of the oceans which are contrary to terrestrial geographies.
Date of Award1 Aug 2024
Original languageEnglish
Awarding Institution
  • The University of Manchester
SupervisorPaul Tobin (Supervisor) & Carl Death (Supervisor)

Keywords

  • transformations to sustainability
  • political ecology
  • coral reefs
  • biodiversity
  • conservation

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