Natura 2000, biodiversity governance, nature protection, social learning, village commons, Italy, Trieste, Karst, Karstic landscape, Natural resource management, participatory approaches, participatory nature protection

1. Romina Rodela
Wageningen University and Research Centre, P.O. Box 8130, 6700 EW Wageningen (NL)
Invited presentation at the 2011 Karstological Summer School
held in Postojna, Slovenia
Managing the Karst landscape:
drafting the management plan with stakeholders
and local inhabitants

2. Introduction
Research question:
What are the “spill-over effects” of participatory
approaches to natural resource management ?
Research methodology:
a case study; participatory approach to the drafting of a
management plan / Natura 2000 sites in the Friuli
Venezia Giulia region (IT) – Karst area.

3. Participation and nature protection
26th May 3
What are participatory approaches ?
Are processes where besides the decision-maker, also the
scientist and the local community is involved
(stakeholders).
 Participatory decision-making e.g. park designation, management
plan (output oriented)
 Participatory management e.g. community co-management,
adaptive management (process oriented)

4. Introduction
What is the NATURA 2000 ecological network?
 It is a European Community nature protection initiative, a European
wide ecological network
 It aims to protect flora, fauna and its natural habitats
 Dates back to 1979 when the Member States adopted the Birds
directive and in 1992 when they adopted the Habitat directive
 These two directives have changed the approach in nature protection
within the European context from total protection to protection through
or including human activities.
26th May 4

5. Participation and nature protection
26th May 2011 5
EU
BIRDS DIRECTIVE HABITAT DIRECTIVE
MANAGEMENT PLAN
CONSERVATION
MEASURES
LAW ON CONSERVATION MEASURES FOR SPAs
GUIDE LINE FOR MANAGEMENT PLAN FOR SACs AND SPAs
ITALY
REGION FRIULI
VENEZIA GIULIA
REGIONAL LAW ON MANAGEMENT PLAN AND CONSERVAION
MEASURES FOR SACs n.7/2008
GUIDE LINE FOR MANAGEMENT PLAN (SARA MANUAL)
MANAGEMENT PLAN
FOR SACs AND SPAs
CONSERVATION
MEASURES FOR SACs

6. Background to the Case
Special protection areas / zone di protezione speciale (Z.P.S.) , IT3341002
AREE CARSICHE DELLA VENEZIA GIULIA
Special areas of conservation / siti d'importanza comunitaria (S.I.C.) ,
IT3340006 Carso Triestino e Goriziano

7. The 4 important fauna species
Calimorfa
quardipunctaria
Proteo
Osmoderma
Eremita
Ursus
Arctos
Pictures are a curtesy of:
http://www.carsonatura2000.it

8. Habitat
8310 Caves not
open to the public
3150 Natural eutrophic lakes
3140 Hard oligo-
mesotrophic
waters with
benthic
vegetation
Pictures: own archive
a curtesy of: http://www.carsonatura2000.it

9. Habitat
Pictures are a curtesy of: http://www.carsonatura2000.it
1170 Reefs
7220 Petrifying
springs with tufa
formation
8240 Limestone pavements
8210 Calcareous
rocky slopes with
chasmophytic
vegetation

10. Background to the Case
Participatory process
Participatory process
Informative phase Participative phase
Participatory workshops
1st cycle of workshops
2st cycle of workshops
3st cycle of workshops
Public consultations
1st consultation
2st consultation
3st consultation
4 st consultations
Etc.
web-
portal
printed material,
leaflets
public
forums
mngt plan: 1st
draft
mngt plan:2st
draft
Participatory processParticipatory process
• public tender,
• two pases,
• local NGO (association) with 5 experienced
facilitators who delivered the activities,
• from May 2009 to end September 2010.
Pictures are a curtesy of: http://www.carsonatura2000.it
currently under revision by a team of
experts from the regional authority

11. Methods of data collection
 No influence over the design of participatory methods,
facilitation, etc.
 Mixed- methods of data collection:
 April-May 2010: observation of workshops
 April-May 2010: ex-post questionnaire to public forums participants N= 64
 Oct-Dec 2010: ex-post questionnaire to workshops participants N=37
 May and July 2011: ex-post semi-structured interviews with locals

12. Results – questionnaire
Cognitive: acquired knowledge on issue at stake- Q 4.1, Q4.2, Q 4.4
Moral: shared underst. Q 5.1, Q5.2, Q5.3, Q5.4, Q5.5; legitimacy Q9.4,
position on nature protec. Q10.1,Q10.2
Relational: rapport - Q6.1,Q 6.2,Q 6.3
Trust: participants/process/moderator -Q8.1, Q8.2,Q8.3,Q8.4
• * * * * * * * *
Beyond: collaboration Q7.1,Q7.2,Q7.3, comm. interaction Q 9.1,Q9.2, Q9.3
Multidimensional variables:
use of 3 to 4 variables meant to capture the
multidimensionality of each aspect
Cognitive
Dimension
Moral
Dimension
Relational
Dimension
Trust
Dim.

13. Results questionnaire no.1
Tot_ knolwedge Tol
2 3
Stake Yes 3 28 31
No 0 3 3
missing 3
tot 3 32 37
Cognitive:
Moral:
71% states that a shared agreement was reached on the
issues being discussed
12% changed position on nature protection

14. Results: general trends
Relational:
83 % agreed that workshop helped to build relationships
between participants
32% started, or will, a collaboration with fellow participants
73% agreed that would call the same participants
Trust:
28 % stated low trust towards fellow participants before the
process
45% stated an increase in trust levels towards fellow
participants

15. Conclusion
 Participatory processes offer valuable support to
the management of natural resources.
 Participatory processes allow for sill-over effects:
knowledge, relational and trust dimension.
 Participatory processes allow for an improved
legitimacy of the final decision.

16. Thank you for your attention !
For further information: romina.rodela@wur.nl
Acknowledgments:
The research reporter here is funded under the MCActions-PEOPLE-FP7(project
titled Social Learning Processes in Natural Resource Management: the Role of
Learning, Negotiation and Social Capital for more Sustainable Natural Resource
Management). The research presented is done in collaboration with dr. Elena
Maiulini from the University of Udine.