Long-Term Regeneration

The Issue of Communities:

It is important to understand that human communities and protected areas are very often linked in their sustainability. When the integrity of one is compromised, the other often experiences very real and long-lasting consequences. The impact on a community is not unlike when the local mill closes or what would happen to the tourist industry if, for example, the Grand Canyon "closed for repairs". GLCF and IUCN are concerned with enabling the better understanding of the linkage between protected areas and local communities. The question then is, "What, if any, impact does large scale land cover conversion in and around protected areas have on the sustainability of local communities?"

The Issue of Conservation:

Protected areas are usually designated as such for specific reasons: perhaps they are critical to the survival of a given species, perhaps they are rich in biodiversity or, perhaps they are a unique part of an ecological network. An excellent example is the case of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites where natural protected areas must meet the following criteria:

• Be outstanding examples representing major stages of the earth's history, including the record of life, significant ongoing geological processes in the development of landforms, or significant geomorphic or physiographic features, or
• Be outstanding examples representing significant ongoing ecological and biological processes in the evolution and development of terrestrial, fresh water, coastal and marine ecosystems and communities of plants and animals,
• Contain superlative natural phenomena or areas of exceptional natural beauty and aesthetic importance, or
• Contain the most important and significant natural habitats for in situ conservation of biological diversity, including those containing threatened species of outstanding universal value from the point of view of science or conservation.

Initial reports from the field, although at times contradictory, indicate that the December 2004 tsunami has affected coastal and marine protected areas. The partners here are concerned about this and about how the protected areas are recovering. The regeneration process is a long-term one and we hope that our efforts will add to the body of knowledge on coastal ecosystem regeneration. GLCF is specifically seeking to enable the research community to better understand the impact of the tsunami on these ecosystems through the provision of data, information and resources. The question being asked is, "What is the regenerative process in natural protected areas following devastating events such as the tsunami and what previously supported elements and services of the protected areas will recover?"