Evaluation of the socio-economic benefits of natural reserves in France
Context
Natural reserves: more than just protection tools
Natural reserves are not just protected spaces: they are strategic ecological infrastructures for territories. They preserve biodiversity, support local economic activities, enhance attractiveness, and contribute to the implementation of environmental policies.
It is important to assess their value to go beyond mere protection logic, in order to reveal all the socioeconomic benefits they generate for communities, residents, and local stakeholders.
service
Analyzing funding and management levers for natural reserves
Vertigo Lab conducted an assessment of the socioeconomic benefits of six natural reserves as part of the project "Added Values of Natural Reserves for Their Territory," aimed at demonstrating the benefits related to the protection of a site in the form of a reserve.
This assessment was structured around three axes of investigation, each axis being the subject of two case studies.
Axis 1 focused on the issue of funding. Through the study of two sites, the Regional Natural Reserve of Wet Meadows of Courteranges and the National Natural Reserve of the Gorges of the Ardèche, the aim was to think about tools for stable, sustainable, and sufficient funding to achieve the environmental objectives pursued by reserve managers.
Axis 2, related to management support, aimed to highlight the socioeconomic benefits of certain management choices, with the National Natural Reserves of Chastreix-Sancy and the Marais d'Orx serving as study grounds.
BENEFITS
Supporting the contribution of natural reserves to public policies
Axis 3 allowed for the appreciation of arguments to support the contribution of natural reserves to the implementation of environmental public policies, through the study of the National Natural Reserves of Nohèdes and Passy.
The study thus provides concrete elements to strengthen the recognition of natural reserves as structuring tools of environmental policies in France.
The + Vertigo Lab
We leveraged our past experiences on projects evaluating socioeconomic benefits and analyzing environmental policies to enhance the value of protected areas.
studied natural reserves
axes of investigation
territorial case studies
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