Conference:
Abstract: "As the conservation of Earth's natural resources gains more importance in the international arena, conflicts regarding indigenous/resident populations and protected areas are becoming increasingly common. The establishment of protected areas often results in the displacement of resident peoples from the subsistence bases, thereby disrupting and sometimes destroying their cultures. While some resident populations have learned to sustainably utilize their resource bases, their knowledge and traditional lifestyles are often disregarded in favor of a conservation which restricts or outlaws traditional human uses but which sometimes allows other access to the region and its resources.
"This paper will address the issues in exploring protected areas as commons. It will also examine the apparently conflicting issues of conservation and locals' access to traditionally used resources in Indian's Sundarbans National Park and Tiger Reserve. Shared by India and Bangladesh, the Sundarbans is a dynamic mangrove ecosystem characterized by great biodiversity. India's recognition of the area's importance resulted in the creation of the Park and core Reserve in 1984 and an elevation of its status to World Heritage Site and Biosphere Reserve in 1990. While the establishment of protected areas such as Sunderbans National Park has offered some security to species and ecosystems, conflicts between resident populations and officials mirror the fact that conservation and human use rights are still viewed as somewhat mutually exclusive."
(Workshop Abstract by Paul Turner)
"This piece is about conservation, common property, and India's Sundarbans National Park. The author begins by describing the Sundarbans and giving a brief history of its conservation and land use. She then discusses the National Park and Biosphere Reserve and its three different levels as a common property resource-local, national, and global commons. She stresses that the real issue is one of globally sustainable land use, including both protected areas and private lands. In her conclusion, she says that, throughout its history, the Sandarbans has been characterized by transformation-not only physical, but also perpetual. In protecting the global commons, parks, and protected areas are not the only answer. Living sustainably is. Commons issues and long-term land use cannot be realistically addressed outside the context of sustainability. Finally, she writes, in protecting the global commons, we must be sure to focus not only on protected areas rich in biodiversity but also on restoring and sustainably inhabiting degraded areas."