Michael ‘t Sas-Rolfes
Biographic Data
| ID | 5587642 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Michael ‘t Sas-Rolfes |
| GIVEN NAMES | Michael ‘t |
| FAMILY NAME | Sas-Rolfes |
| SIGNATURE | SAS-ROLFES M ‘T |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Oxford |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-2220-6072 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 9 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 14 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 9 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2017 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2024 |
| H-INDEX | 1 |
A conflict of visions
Among factors that threaten wild populations of African megafauna, wildlife trade has gained prominence as a global policy issue, with concerted international campaigns aiming to influence the trade of species such as elephants, rhinos and lions. Trade policy is strongly contested, confounding attempts to develop coherent approaches across jurisdictions and through international mechanisms such as the Convention on International Trade in Endanger…
Risky conclusions regarding shrinking rhino horns
Image‐based analyses from an online repository on rhino horns asserted that declines in size over time could be the consequence of poaching and hunting. We provide reflections on whether the sample was representative enough to make generalizations, the study adequately accounted for the main sources of horn‐size variation and the statistical methods were adequate to be confident in the results. The sample had a limited representation, most coming…
African Rhino Conservation and the Interacting Influences of Property, Prices, and Policy
Conserving terrestrial megafauna presents distinct challenges to policymakers. Despite decades of evolving regulatory measures, wild rhinoceros populations remain threatened by illegal killing to acquire rhino horn, a valuable commodity in East Asian markets. In Africa, rhino conservation performance has varied with geography and over time. This research draws on institutional economic theories to seek plausible explanations for such variable con…
Influencing consumer demand is vital for tackling the illegal wildlife trade
Consumer demand is an integral part of any market system, and the markets involving wildlife products are no exception ('t Sas-Rolfes et al., 2019). Tackling the illegal wildlife trade (IWT) for the benefit of biodiversity conservation requires understanding and influencing consumer demand (Veríssimo et al., 2020). While demand reduction activities are increasing (Veríssimo & Wan, 2019), they remain poorly funded, with only 6% of the funds commit…
Wild assumptions? Questioning simplistic narratives about consumer preferences for wildlife products
That wildlife consumers prefer wild products to farmed alternatives is a widely reported finding in the conservation literature. These reported preferences for wild products have been interpreted as evidence that farming and associated trade undermine conservation efforts. These conclusions have then been used to influence policy recommendations and the design of conservation interventions related to use of farming itself, as well as to underpin …
A review of critical perspectives on private land conservation in academic literature
In recent years, private land conservation has increased in profile among policymakers and academics. Conservation initiatives on privately owned land help to mitigate global biodiversity loss and introduce new actors to conservation. However, they have also been the subject of numerous critical accounts. This review catalogs issues that emerge in critical literature, identifying 25 themes, classified into three groups: Implementation Effectivene…
Theoretical analysis of a simple permit system for selling synthetic wildlife goods
We present an economic model of a market for wildlife products. We use it to study theoretically the potential impact on the poaching of wildlife animals if a legal market for synthetic wildlife products is created. We show that allowing for a legal trade in synthetic substitutes in general has two opposing effects on poaching level: a price effect that reduces poaching by lowering the revenue generated from poaching; and a laundering effect that…
Beyond banning wildlife trade
African wildlife conservation and the evolution of hunting institutions
Hunting regulation presents a significant challenge for contemporary global conservation governance. Motivated by various incentives, hunters may act legally or illegally, for or against the interests of conservation. Hunter incentives are shaped by the interactions between unevenly evolving formal and informal institutions, embedded in socio-ecological systems. To work effectively for conservation, regulatory interventions must take these evolvi…
Beyond banning wildlife trade
African Rhino Conservation and the Interacting Influences of Property, Prices, and Policy
Conserving terrestrial megafauna presents distinct challenges to policymakers. Despite decades of evolving regulatory measures, wild rhinoceros populations remain threatened by illegal killing to acquire rhino horn, a valuable commodity in East Asian markets. In Africa, rhino conservation performance has varied with geography and over time. This research draws on institutional economic theories to seek plausible explanations for such variable con…
African wildlife conservation and the evolution of hunting institutions
Hunting regulation presents a significant challenge for contemporary global conservation governance. Motivated by various incentives, hunters may act legally or illegally, for or against the interests of conservation. Hunter incentives are shaped by the interactions between unevenly evolving formal and informal institutions, embedded in socio-ecological systems. To work effectively for conservation, regulatory interventions must take these evolvi…
Influencing consumer demand is vital for tackling the illegal wildlife trade
Consumer demand is an integral part of any market system, and the markets involving wildlife products are no exception ('t Sas-Rolfes et al., 2019). Tackling the illegal wildlife trade (IWT) for the benefit of biodiversity conservation requires understanding and influencing consumer demand (Veríssimo et al., 2020). While demand reduction activities are increasing (Veríssimo & Wan, 2019), they remain poorly funded, with only 6% of the funds commit…
Wild assumptions? Questioning simplistic narratives about consumer preferences for wildlife products
That wildlife consumers prefer wild products to farmed alternatives is a widely reported finding in the conservation literature. These reported preferences for wild products have been interpreted as evidence that farming and associated trade undermine conservation efforts. These conclusions have then been used to influence policy recommendations and the design of conservation interventions related to use of farming itself, as well as to underpin …
A review of critical perspectives on private land conservation in academic literature
In recent years, private land conservation has increased in profile among policymakers and academics. Conservation initiatives on privately owned land help to mitigate global biodiversity loss and introduce new actors to conservation. However, they have also been the subject of numerous critical accounts. This review catalogs issues that emerge in critical literature, identifying 25 themes, classified into three groups: Implementation Effectivene…
Theoretical analysis of a simple permit system for selling synthetic wildlife goods
We present an economic model of a market for wildlife products. We use it to study theoretically the potential impact on the poaching of wildlife animals if a legal market for synthetic wildlife products is created. We show that allowing for a legal trade in synthetic substitutes in general has two opposing effects on poaching level: a price effect that reduces poaching by lowering the revenue generated from poaching; and a laundering effect that…
Beyond banning wildlife trade
A conflict of visions
Among factors that threaten wild populations of African megafauna, wildlife trade has gained prominence as a global policy issue, with concerted international campaigns aiming to influence the trade of species such as elephants, rhinos and lions. Trade policy is strongly contested, confounding attempts to develop coherent approaches across jurisdictions and through international mechanisms such as the Convention on International Trade in Endanger…
Risky conclusions regarding shrinking rhino horns
Image‐based analyses from an online repository on rhino horns asserted that declines in size over time could be the consequence of poaching and hunting. We provide reflections on whether the sample was representative enough to make generalizations, the study adequately accounted for the main sources of horn‐size variation and the statistical methods were adequate to be confident in the results. The sample had a limited representation, most coming…
African Rhino Conservation and the Interacting Influences of Property, Prices, and Policy
Conserving terrestrial megafauna presents distinct challenges to policymakers. Despite decades of evolving regulatory measures, wild rhinoceros populations remain threatened by illegal killing to acquire rhino horn, a valuable commodity in East Asian markets. In Africa, rhino conservation performance has varied with geography and over time. This research draws on institutional economic theories to seek plausible explanations for such variable con…
Business (8 works) · Ecology (7 works) · Economics (7 works) · Wildlife (6 works) · Wildlife Ecology and Conservation (6 works) · Political science (5 works) · Forest Management and Policy (4 works) · Geography (4 works) · Natural resource economics (4 works) · Computer Science (3 works)