Cross-border Conservation: Theory, Case Study, and a Role for Science in Policy and Action

Borders separate and divide. Territorial and administrative borders separate policy domains and often divide once-continuous ecosystems through the imposition of differing management regimes. These changes may compound to fragment and isolate once-continuous habitat, decouple ecosystem function, and thwart cooperation on conservation policy and action. I will discuss theory from research on ecological edge effects to explore analogs in policy development and planning, drawing on examples from Mexico, the US, and Canada.

Hope in the Anthropocene is co-sponsored by the Institute for Resources, Environment and Sustainability (IRES) at UBC.