A transdisciplinary approach to conservation land acquisition

Land acquisition is one of the keys to biodiversity conservation, and it is a transdisciplinary endeavor requiring consideration of natural and social phenomena. I integrated principles of conservation biology, ecological economics, and political science to outline an approach to conservation land acquisition in the United States. American political economy, especially, has profound implications for conservation land acquisition, yet these implications have been largely neglected by public land conservation agencies. I derived three general recommendations for the conservation of biodiversity via land acquisition: ( 1) relatively inexpensive lands in relatively intact ecosystems should be prioritized for acquisition, ( 2) fee-title acquisition should be favored over easement acquisition, and ( 3) low-lying coastal properties should receive lower priority. These recommendations contribute to an ecologically macroeconomic approach to conservation land acquisition, and each will become more appropriate as the sizes of the U. S. and global economies increase. Ultimately, however, the conservation of biodiversity will require a new political economy predicated on sustainability rather than growth.