onur doğan

A recent Nature editorial argues that biodiversity conservation has an evidence problem. At first, that sounds pretty straightforward. If we are funding protected areas, restoration projects, species recovery programmes, sustainable-use plans, or schemes where farmers are paid to change agricultural practices, then yes, obviously, we should know whether those interventions works. The editorial puts the problem bluntly: too often, interventions meant to project biodiversity are “not rooted in robust research.” That is worrying sentence. Conservation is not a vibes-based activity. You cannot just sprinkle restoration money on a landscape and hope the frogs come back.

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