Changing Climate in Protected Areas? Risk Perception of Climate Change by Biosphere Reserve Managers

Abstract

Since protected areas (PAs) comprise about twelve percent of the world's surface, PA managers are in a key position regarding in situ biodiversity conservation against the background of emerging climate change. PAs can exemplify progress in climate change mitigation and adaptation. What role do PA managers – and their risk perception and response – play in this context? A global survey with biosphere reserve (BR) managers investigated this issue using a combined quantitative and qualitative approach. Results suggest that climate change risk perception is largely linked to economic power: in non-high-income countries climate change was perceived as being significantly less relevant than in high-income countries. In non-high-income countries, other threats such as illegal activities are regarded as being much more important than climate change impacts. Thus, socio-political factors and the connection between management and science seem to play an important role in risk perception of BR managers. In situ biodiversity conservation efforts with regard to climate change mitigation and adaptation must inform BR managers about likely climate change impacts, involve them in transdisciplinary research activities, and speed up necessary mitigation and adaptation measures.