n.b.: if interested in this, you should see the research page here.

 

Abstract:

Coordination of protected areas is challenging even under optimal conditions, but particular problems arise with a more complex scenario.   An example is the East Carpathians of western Ukraine and adjacent Slovakia and Poland, where a strong conservation tradition and scientific competency is attenuated by conditions of difficult economic, social, and political changes.   This mountainous area, ca. 20,000km2, has a representative and well arranged "archipelago" of protected areas.   These "islands" of protection are ineffective if left isolated within a "sea" of unregulated land use, and are likewise ill-fated if they have no relevance to local populations.   Unfortunately, conservation structures do not always coordinate effectively, and these protected areas are not necessarily the only landscape conservation possibilities for a changing Ukraine   Now is the critical moment for sound conservation planning at the landscape scale, while Ukraine still has the possibility to institute effective measures before further degradation occurs.   My study of the conservation regimes of the areas and the "islands" of protected areas separated by fragmented landscapes and administrative and international boundaries emphasizes the current problems and possible optimization of the reserves and surroundings as well as potential complications to the area's conservation with future cultural and environmental change.   The natural features of the region are viewed as inseparable complements to the local culture; one dependent on the other.   Ideas will be suggested for integrative and landscape conservation measures to enhance the viability of the reserves in a way which also involves and promotes local culture.