"Death by a Thousand Cuts": Conservation Stakeholders' Perspectives on Protecting Lakes in a Tourist Region Surrounded by Agriculture

Austin Holland; Mary Skopec; Silvia Secchi

doi:10.1080/08941920.2023.2199382

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"Death by a Thousand Cuts": Conservation Stakeholders' Perspectives on Protecting Lakes in a Tourist Region Surrounded by Agriculture

Journal article

Peer reviewed

"Death by a Thousand Cuts": Conservation Stakeholders' Perspectives on Protecting Lakes in a Tourist Region Surrounded by Agriculture

Austin Holland, Mary Skopec and Silvia Secchi

Society & natural resources, Vol.36(8), pp.991-1010

2023

DOI: 10.1080/08941920.2023.2199382

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https://figshare.com/articles/journal_contribution/_Death_by_a_Thousand_Cuts_Conservation_Stakeholders_Perspectives_on_Protecting_Lakes_in_a_Tourist_Region_Surrounded_by_Agriculture/22647090View

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Abstract

Freshwater systems are complex social-ecological systems (SES) impacted by multiple activities within watershed boundaries beyond their shorelines. Since many of these systems provide important ecosystem services, are threatened, and are managed by complex governance structures, there is a need for empirical work to understand how social setting and interactions between stakeholders impact governance. This study assesses conservation stakeholders' perspectives in the Iowa Great Lakes region, a valuable freshwater system that is a popular tourist destination nested within an intense agricultural production region. Conservationists work within a polycentric governance structure to protect the Lakes. Using 23 semi-structured interviews and the SES Framework, we examine the environmental pressures facing the region, barriers to mitigation efforts, and solutions within a polycentric system. Our results highlight the difficulties in using voluntary conservation measures to mitigate environmental pressures and the challenges of involving non-conservation stakeholders given competing goals and limited resources.

Agriculture

Tourism

Conservation policy

governance

stakeholders

Details

Title: Subtitle: "Death by a Thousand Cuts": Conservation Stakeholders' Perspectives on Protecting Lakes in a Tourist Region Surrounded by Agriculture
Creators: Austin Holland - University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point
Mary Skopec - University of Iowa
Silvia Secchi - University of Iowa
Resource Type: Journal article
Publication Details: Society & natural resources, Vol.36(8), pp.991-1010
DOI: 10.1080/08941920.2023.2199382
ISSN: 0894-1920
eISSN: 1521-0723
Publisher: Routledge
Language: English
Electronic publication date: 04/13/2023
Date published: 2023
Academic Unit: Public Policy Center (Archive); Iowa Lakeside Laboratory; Geographical and Sustainability Sciences; University College Courses
Record Identifier: 9984398344302771

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