UDTR Global Rights of Nature Radar

The value of elephants: A pluralist approach

Identification

Public canonical key

doi:10.1016/j.ecoser.2022.101488

Authors

Antoinette van de Water · Michelle Deborah Henley · Lucy A. Bates · Rob Slotow

Reported year

2022

Reported language

en

Source type

article

First detected

2026-11-10T13:56:29.741474+00:00

Last metadata observation

2026-11-10T13:56:29.741753+00:00

Last HTTP verification

Not checked

Institutions reported by the source

University College London · University of KwaZulu-Natal · University of Portsmouth · University of South Africa

Documentary abstract — original language

Biodiversity conservation strategies may prioritise certain values of nature over others. Whilst there will likely always be a need for compromise in conservation planning, the consequences of trade-offs depend on peoples’ relative perceptions of values that are promoted or neglected. In practice, not fully understanding or taking into account the value systems of all stakeholders, including local people, leads to contention, social inequality, and ineffectiveness. Elephants provide an excellent case study to illustrate the need for multidimensional valuation systems as they provide multiple overlapping services and benefits in ecological, socio-cultural, economic, and spiritual dimensions. Yet, their conservation is often highly contentious and fiercely debated. Here, we present a pluralist valuation system that identifies the varied services and benefits of elephants, but which adds important dimensions missing from current frameworks such as that of IPBES. Two key additions: (1) incorporating moral values alongside the services and benefits, and (2) incorporating a feedback loop to promote mutually reinforcing interactions, will better support holistic and equitable conservation. Additionally, to aid the interrogation of the kinds of problems that lead to contention in elephant conservation, we mapped the types of trade-offs that occur when different values are at stake, which allows us to identify balanced conservation solutions that will lead to unity. This pluralist valuation approach, which is similarly applicable to other species and ecosystems, clarifies the necessity of properly accounting for stakeholder values in decision making, and promotes fairer conservation decisions that will generate broader buy-in and support, uniting people, and facilitating socially just and sustainable conservation outcomes.

Identifiers

OPENALEX

W4306771875

DOI

10.1016/j.ecoser.2022.101488

Documentary context

Documentary family

Scholarship

Source-reported types

article

Natural entities mentioned

Ecosystem · Species

Entity mentions are not evidence of legal recognition. Jurisdiction studied is separate from author affiliation country.

Sources

OpenAlex · Record 1 · Record 2

• DOI · https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoser.2022.101488
• OpenAlex · https://openalex.org/W4306771875

Documented bibliographic relations

Source-declared references and links; they do not establish legal support or UGLC qualification. Up to 20 outgoing references are displayed.

• openalex:w110869425 · CITES
• openalex:w1230080156 · CITES
• openalex:w127294058 · CITES
• openalex:w1480313761 · CITES
• openalex:w1485084573 · CITES
• openalex:w1504116131 · CITES
• openalex:w1539681452 · CITES
• openalex:w1545566546 · CITES
• openalex:w1585427775 · CITES
• openalex:w1598459093 · CITES
• openalex:w1599774932 · CITES
• openalex:w1607825850 · CITES
• openalex:w1669798892 · CITES
• openalex:w1684253211 · CITES
• openalex:w1758976756 · CITES
• openalex:w1800525380 · CITES
• openalex:w1826044145 · CITES
• openalex:w187845611 · CITES
• openalex:w1902422090 · CITES
• openalex:w1906608808 · CITES

0 incoming references within the detected corpus

Documentary status

Relevance pending

Library

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