[LUM#11] Eco-friendly by nature
Green voting, participatory science, or membership in associations fighting for the protection nature... These indicators of greater environmental awareness are more prevalent among people living near a nature park. Did you suspect as much? It has now been proven thanks to an original study co-published by Victor Cazalis, a doctoral student at the Center for Functional and Evolutionary Ecology in Montpellier.
What if humans, like animal and plant species, could benefit from the positive effects of protected natural areas? This is the original question posed by Victor Cazalis, a doctoral student at CEFE in Montpellier. While working on his thesis on the effectiveness of protected areas for birds, this young ecologist ventured into the social sciences by proposing "applying the same methodology to humans as to birds. In other words, comparing behavior inside and outside protected areas to see the impact they can have."
The same method as for birds
The study, conducted with Anne-Caroline Prévot, a psychology researcher at the Center for Ecology and Conservation Sciences (CESCO), covered 16,000 French municipalities with more than 500 inhabitants. "For each of them, we measured the distance to the nearest natural park, taking into account national and regional parks. We then analyzed behavior based on this distance," explains Victor Cazalis.
The two researchers examined three types of behavior that could indicate ecological awareness: voting for a green party, joining associations that fight for nature conservation, in this case the League for the Protection of Birds (LPO) and the WWF, and signing up for the participatory science program Birds in Gardens, which invites non-scientists to contribute to bird censuses by observing birds in their own gardens.
Twice as many memberships to the LPO
"It's not about saying that these behaviors are more environmentally friendly than others, but rather about creating a broad and complementary range of awareness among residents," explains the researcher. "Citizen science will demonstrate an interest in very local biodiversity, such as membership of the LPO( League for the Protection of Birds ). The WWF operates on a more international scale, while voting is much more cross-cutting, with societal involvement," explains the student.
And the model works. The results are clear and consistent: "We see a very clear decrease in all these behaviors as we move away from the protected area," notes Victor Cazalis. There are twice as many members of the LPO (League for the Protection of Birds ) in a village located in a protected area than in a town 100 km away. The proportions are almost identical for the WWF and participatory science programs. As for the green vote, it is 31 times higher in protected areas than outside them.
A direct effect of protection
During this study, the two researchers were also able to isolate certain interesting variables. For example, they wondered whether these results were due to the protected areas themselves or simply to proximity to nature. "We removed this 'nature' effect by comparing villages located in a protected area with villages far from a park but enjoying a similar level of naturalness," explains the ecologist. This comparison confirms the impact of natural parks, and not just nature, on our behavior.
Another interesting variable is age, particularly the proportion of retirees. "There is greater participation in associations and participatory science programs in cities with large numbers of retirees, but fewer votes for environmentalist parties. " The same is true of city size, as researchers have found that "the larger the city, the more green votes and WWF memberships there are, " while participatory science and associations such as the LPO (League for the Protection of Birds) are more prevalent in villages. The socio-economic level of municipalities must also be taken into account, since"we know that the higher the average salary, the more pro-environmental behavior we see," notes the researcher.
Reduce psychological distance
How should we interpret this extensive study? According to Victor Cazalis, protected areas "provide those who live there with more opportunities to experience nature, which reduces what is known as psychological distance, that feeling of disconnection from nature that influences our ecological awareness and behavior."
He also sees the positive effects of the communication and educational initiatives implemented by the parks. "There are lots of organized outings, conferences, explanatory signs... Just walking into a park and reading ' You are entering the Cévennes Natural Park' makes you realize that you are in a special place." So what are you doing for your next vacation?
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