A tool for the in-depth understanding of social impacts of nature Protected Areas

SOCIAT is a tailored questionnaire that measures:

• Social outcomes of a Protected Area for local communities
• The sociodemographic profile of the local community including place attachment, socio-environmental values and demographics
• Attitudes towards the governance system and levels of pro-environmental behaviour

Data collected via SOCIAT can assist in:

• Promoting the equal distribution of social impacts of protected areas
• Building trusted relationships with local communities
• Increasing engagement and empower local communities
• Incorporating local values in decision-making

The benefits of using SOCIAT

The SOCIAT tool helps conservation practitioners and scientists to plan actions that will assist in increasing the level of public support for protected areas in the context of a post 2020 Biodiversity Strategy and the new Green Deal.

Protected areas can be a significant source of tensions between local communities, visitors and conservationists because their governance frameworks often impose restrictions on those who use these areas, limiting or at least regulating activities within their boundaries. Rather than shortfalls in funding, the failure to have the support of all categories of stakeholder is a key reason why some European PAs have been unsuccessful and have a low level of public support. SOCIAT helps to address this challenge.