Environmental solutions sparked by environmental history

• Published in: Conservation biology 2020-04, Vol.34 (2), p.386-394
• Main Authors: McAfee, Dominic, Alleway, Heidi K., Connell, Sean D.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Benchmarks; collaborative governance; Conservation; Decision making; Decisions; ecological baseline; Ecological function; Ecology; ecología histórica; Environmental history; Environmental impact; Environmental policy; Environmental restoration; gobernanza colaborativa; Government policy; historical ecology; History; Legitimacy; legitimidad; línea base ecológica; política ambiental; Public policy; Social behavior; 协同治理; 历史生态学; 正当性; 环境政策; 生态基准
• ISSN: 0888-8892; 1523-1739
• DOI: 10.1111/cobi.13403

Environmental solutions require a decision‐making process that is ultimately political, in that they involve decisions with uncertain outcomes and stakeholders with conflicting viewpoints. If this process seeks broad alignment between the government and public, then reconciling conflicting viewpoints is a key to the legitimacy of these decisions. We show that ecological baselines can be particularly powerful tools for creating a common understanding for public support (legitimacy) and conformity to new rules or regulations (legality) that enable the solution. They are powerful because they move the discussion of solutions from the to the concrete by providing a conceptual model for a common expectation (e.g., restoring habitat). They provide narratives of the past (ecological histories) that readjust the future expectations of individuals on how to perceive and respond to new policy. While ecological baselines offer scientists benchmarks for reinstating ecological functions, they also normalize public and government discussion of solutions. This social normalization of public issues may assist government policy and influence social views, practices, and behaviors that adopt the policy. For science to more effectively inform conservation, we encourage interdisciplinary thinking (science‐ and human‐centered) because it can provide public support and government legitimacy for investing in environmental solutions. Article impact statement: Ecological history provides legitimacy and confidence for government to collaborate on finding new policies for environmental conservation. Soluciones Ambientales Detonadas por la Historia Ambiental Resumen Las soluciones ambientales requieren un proceso de toma de decisiones que es básicamente político ya que involucra decisiones con resultados inciertos y actores con puntos de vista discrepantes. Si este proceso busca una alineación sólida entre el gobierno y el público, entonces la reconciliación de los puntos de vista discrepantes es de suma importancia para la legitimidad de estas decisiones. Demostramos que las líneas base ecológicas pueden ser herramientas particularmente poderosas para la creación de un entendimiento común para el apoyo público (legitimidad) y para crear una conformidad con las nuevas reglas o regulaciones (legalidad) que posibilitan las soluciones ambientales. Las líneas base ecológicas son poderosas porque trasladan la discusión sobre las soluciones desde lo o hasta lo concreto al proporcionar un m