[LUM#11] Green by Nature
Voting for green parties, citizen science, or joining organizations dedicated to protecting … These indicators of greater environmental awareness are more common among people living near a natural park. Did you suspect as much? It has now been proven by 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, benefited from the positive effects of protected natural areas? That is the original question posed by Victor Cazalis, a doctoral student at the CEFE in Montpellier. While working on his dissertation about the effectiveness of protected areas for birds, this young ecologist ventured into the social sciences by proposing “to apply the same methodology to humans as we do to birds. In other words, to compare behaviors inside and outside protected areas to see what impact they might 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), examined 16,000 French municipalities with more than 500 residents. “For each of them, we measured the distance to the nearest natural park, including both national and regional parks. We then analyzed behavior based on that distance,” explains Victor Cazalis.
The two researchers examined three types of behavior that may indicate environmental awareness: voting for a green party; joining organizations dedicated to nature conservation, specifically the League for the Protection of Birds (LPO) and the WWF; and signing up for the “Garden Birds” citizen science program, which invites non-scientists to contribute to bird censuses by observing birds in their own gardens.
Twice as many LPO memberships
“It’s not a matter of saying that these behaviors are more environmentally friendly than others, but simply of presenting a broad and complementary spectrum of residents’ attitudes,” the researcher explains. “Citizen science reflects an interest in very local biodiversity, such as membership in the LPO. The WWF operates on a more international scale, while voting is much more cross-cutting, with broader societal implications,” the student explains.
And the model works. The results are clear-cut and consistent: “We observe a very marked decrease in all these behaviors as we move farther away from the protected area,” notes Victor Cazalis. For example, there are twice as many LPO members in a village located within a protected area as in a town 100 km away. The proportions are nearly identical for the WWF and citizen science programs. As for voting for environmentalist candidates, 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 controlled for this ‘nature’ effect by comparing villages located within a protected area with villages located farther from a park but with a similar level of naturalness,” explains the ecologist. This comparison confirms the impact of natural parks—and not just nature itself—on our behavior.
Another interesting variable: age, and in particular the proportion of retirees. “There is greater participation in organizations and citizen science programs in cities with large populations of retirees; conversely, there are fewer votes for environmentalist candidates.” ” The same holds true for city size, as researchers found that “the larger the cities, the more votes for environmentalist candidates and the more WWF memberships there are, ” whereas citizen science and organizations like the LPO are more prevalent in villages. The socioeconomic status of municipalities must also be taken into account, since“we know that the higher the average income, the more pro-environmental behaviors we see,” notes the researcher.
Reducing the 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 sense 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, lectures, informational signs… Just the simple act of entering a park and reading, ‘ You are entering the Cévennes Nature Park’— that alone makes you realize you’re in a special place.” So, what are your plans for your next vacation?
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