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Conservation Research Institute

 

When: 1 – 2pm, Wednesday 16 June

Meeting ID: 115 814 437
Password: 022424

Speaker: Thalassa McMurdo Hamilton, Institute of Zoology, Zoological Society of London & Centre for Biodiversity and Environment Research, UCL.

Title: A structured and values-focused approach to recovery planning for New Zealand’s rarest breeding bird

Abstract: Threatened species recovery is challenging because of multiple stakeholders who hold different management objectives, and the diverse management alternatives that they often propose. These factors are compounded by uncertain outcomes of interventions in data-poor species. Management of New Zealand’s (NZ) rarest breeding bird, tara iti (NZ fairy tern, Sternula nereis davisae), is a typical example of these complexities. There are only approximately 10 breeding pairs of tara iti and the population has barely grown over the last decade. Furthermore, the tara iti community had reached a deadlock, with no clear direction forward to recover the population. Structured Decision Making (SDM) is a powerful, values-focused process that can work through these challenges. We applied SDM to develop a recovery plan for tara iti, working with diverse stakeholders, including the dual decision makers of NZ government and Māori (NZ’s indigenous people). We found that the process provided a platform for dialogue between frequently opposed stakeholder groups, allowing all voices to be heard. Focusing on values first provided the required context to develop and compare possible management alternatives, which prevented decisions being driven by unclarified individual beliefs. Most powerfully, this allowed the decision makers to have the appropriate information to make an informed choice..

 

Date: 
Wednesday, 16 June, 2021 - 13:00