Identifying synergies and differences in multistakeholder conservation priorities using participatory mapping interviews

Broad-scale deforestation has reduced habitat area and connectivity for wildlife in the Neotropics. Costa Rica has attempted to reverse this trend by developing a network of biological corridors to connect protected areas. However, individual corridors consist of diversely managed, privately owned land, and corridor councils lack the authority to implement management policies. Thus, locally operating organizations play critical roles in executing conservation initiatives, but little research has examined whether their actions support corridor objectives. To explore how organizations’ conservation priorities align with corridor goals, we conducted semi-structured interviews about land management practices, conservation initiatives, and conservation constraints with key informants from 20 organizations operating within the upper Guacimal watershed, located within the Corredor Biológico Pájaro Campana (CBPC) in northwestern Costa Rica. The interviews included a participatory mapping activity in which participants identified up to five conservation priorities by drawing polygons on a map. Analysis of locations where significant numbers of participant-identified polygons overlapped (hotspots) showed that organizations’ conservation priorities aligned with the primary goal of the CBPC, which is to enhance downslope forest connectivity. Hotspots occurred in middle-elevation areas of moderate to low forest cover that are downslope adjacent to the well-protected high-elevation zone within the study area. Theme-based analysis of interviews provided contextual information describing why places were selected, complementing the spatial information about where priorities were located. Interviews revealed that lowland areas were not prioritized for conservation due to perceived constraints to working in that zone. Qualitative analysis of interviews also ensured that non-dominant opinions were identified, which revealed trade-offs between prioritizing conservation expansion and maintaining currently protected areas. By coupling participatory mapping with semi-structured interviews, we present an approach that can increase effectiveness for identifying conservation priorities and represent diverse perspectives

Biology · Citizen journalism · Citizen science · Environmental planning · Environmental resource management · Geography · Habitat · Marine protected area · Nature Conservation · Political science · Conservation, Biodiversity, and Resource Management · Environmental Science · Ecology