Preserving and restoring nature is critical, and conservation initiatives must be adopted and spread effectively at unprecedented rates. However, knowing how to scale-up conservation to meet this challenge remains elusive and understudied. The factors influencing adoption and spread of behaviours and technologies in other fields are well-researched and described through diffusion of innovation theory (hereafter, diffusion theory). Diffusion theory is used to increase the adoption and spread of behaviours and technologies in wide-ranging disciplines. Therefore, this thesis applies this long-standing and well-researched theoretical lens to advance scientific understanding of the diffusion of conservation initiatives.
Firstly, I examine what characteristics of Locally Managed Marine Areas (LMMAs) in Madagascar - a community-based conservation initiative - help and hinder their adoption, using choice experiments. I then use customer satisfaction research methods to measure the likely spread of these initiatives. Next, I test for correlations between the adoption of carbon management priorities, policies, practices, and emissions over time.
The results support the application of diffusion theory to LMMAs in Madagascar, with some adaptations, as adopters were motivated more by pro-social values than typically reported in diffusion literature. However, adopters reported dissatisfaction with their LMMAs due to negative impacts that may hinder the spread of these conservation initiatives. Finally, I found that adopters of voluntary carbon offsets, co-adopted more carbon management practices than did non-adopters of VCOs, contrasting with some literature, but consistent with diffusion theory literature which describes the effectiveness of co-adopting innovations in mutually re-enforcing clusters.
This study contributes new insights into the adoption, spread, co-adoption, and outcomes of conservation and other environmental initiatives that can be used to advance both conservation science and practice to help conservation initiatives reach scale and ensure they do no harm.