Image Credit: IUCNWhat are protected areas?
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) defines protected areas as a defined geological space, which is to be managed through any means, to achieve long term conservation goals.
Protected areas are a mainstay of biodiversity conservation, while also contributing to people’s livelihoods. Protected areas are at the core of efforts towards conserving nature and the services it provides us.
Southeast Asia Efforts
Since the 1990s, efforts into creating protected areas for conservation have been implemented. Protected areas are defined as geographical spaces which have been recognized, and any effective means would be used to achieve long term conservation goals. Despite the fact that countries in South East Asia have been setting up protected areas actively, the effectiveness of their effort is still deemed insufficient.
Issues with protected areas
Till date, protected areas still face threats from illegal hunters and poor practices of forest conversion. In addition, the resources allocated to protecting these areas remain minimal at best. In order for protected areas to be effective, there is a need for consistent and strict enforcement of rules. However, such efforts would require large amount of resources.
Effectiveness of protected areas
Despite the flaws of protected areas, the system did manage to cause a significant slowdown in the level of forest degradation when compared to unprotected areas.
“Southeast Asia’s biodiversity has never been more threatened” (Hughes, 2017)
However, the results are far from satisfactory as the rate of degradation is still perceived as a threat to the biodiversity in Southeast Asia.