This document discusses United Kingdom protected areas and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONBs). It addresses who designates AONBs, the differences between conservation approaches, and how AONBs involve both natural and human factors. Specifically, it notes that AONBs focus on landscape, people, and facilitating natural and human interactions. It also discusses AONB governance models and how the areas fit into protected area categories.

1. IUCN UK 2012 Conference
UK Protected Areas - Natural Solutions
Howard Davies

2. Who designates an AONB?
• Protected areas provide a focus for conservation activities
• They are designed to protect what we cherish because
a) as a group of nations we have decided we should, or
b) subsections of society, often with a specialist interest, have advised us that we
should.

3. Differences of opinion
• A focus for forward-thinking, mechanisms for engagement, shared outcomes
• Flawed tools supporting retrograde thinking , alienation, resentment
Why the two extremes and why is this relevant to AONBs and the Putting Nature on
the Map project?

4. People and Place
• AONBs are about people and the land
• Critical issues
a) perception
b) interaction of natural and human factors.

5. Nature conservation
• Landscape designations are about much more than a large scale approach to
nature conservation.
• Conserving and enhancing natural beauty is about facilitating the interaction of
natural and human factors such that landscape character is enhanced positively.
The landscape approach is far more than just nature conservation.

6. Governance models
• Governance is about power, relationships, responsibility and accountability. It is
about who has influence, who decides, and how decision-makers are held
accountable.
• AONBs are co-managed – managed by a partnership that represents the interests
of the local community

7. The old Category V
AONBs have long sat comfortably in Category V
Areas….where the interaction of people and nature over time has produced an area of
distinct character with significant aesthetic, ecological and/or cultural value, and often
with high biological diversity

8. Protected Areas and the new Category V
Protected Area - Yes
Category V - Yes

9. Upping the biodiversity ante
AONB Partnerships are rising to the challenges of better biodiversity conservation
delivery

10. Back to governance
• AONBs are governed “by local communities” so how will this be factored into the
process of re-categorisation?
• But, we all value international recognition.