Cultural Ecosystem Services in Estuary Stewardship and Management - NERRS/NSC(NERRS Science Collaborative)

Conducted in partnership with the He'eia and Kachemak Bay Reserves, this project worked to advance the equitable representation of cultural ecosystem services in estuary stewardship by providing practical information and opportunities for facilitated exchange.

Ecosystem service assessments are a valued resource management tool, including among the many reserves in the National Estuarine Research Reserve System. However, within ecosystem services research, there is a critical gap surrounding the equitable representation of cultural ecosystem services (CES) one of four main categories of ecosystem services due, in part, to practical gaps in identification and evaluation. This omission is problematic because CES can reveal human dimensions information critical to resource management, such as the diverse suite of interactions between humans and the environment that maintain place-based values, worldviews, cultural identity, and well-being.

This project used collaborative methods and diverse engagement approaches to reach estuary users, stewards, and resource managers within the two partner Reserves (He'eia and Kachemak Bay), across the Reserve system, and in related stewardship efforts at the local and national scale. Key takeaways from this project include the importance of trust and relationship building and maintenance in any collaborative project, in particular ones that engage community partners. The team also learned the CES methods can be valuable engagement methods in addition to aiding in the identification and monitoring of specific CES within a Reserve. The information, dialogue, and exchange resulting from this project has, and continues to, advance collaborative science by creating a strong foundation for site-relevant, tailored application in engagement and assessment efforts across the NERR System.

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Pua'ala Pascua, Hawai'i Conservation Alliance Foundation, puaala.pascua@gmail.com

Partners:

Hawai'i Conservation Alliance, Hawai'i Institute of Marine Biology, Center for Biodiversity and Conservation - American Museum of Natural History

The distributor does not assume liability.

None

Cite this dataset when used as a source: NOAA retains the right to analyze, synthesize and publish summaries of the NERRS/NSC data. The NERRS/NSC retains the right to be fully credited for having collected and process the data. Following academic courtesy standards, the NERR site where the data were collected should be contacted and fully acknowledged in any subsequent publications in which any part of the data are used. The data enclosed within this package/transmission are only as accurate as the quality assurance and quality control procedures that are described in the associated metadata reporting statement allow. The user bears all responsibility for its subsequent use/misuse in any further analyses or comparisons. The Federal government does not assume liability to the Recipient or third persons, nor will the Federal government reimburse or indemnify the Recipient for its liability due to any losses resulting in any way from the use of this data. Requested citation format: NOAA National Estuarine Research Reserve System (NERRS) Science Collaborative(NSC).

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This information is detailed within the project links.

This information is detailed within the project links.