Surface-induced charge state conversion of nitrogen-vacancy defects in nanodiamonds

We present a study of the charge state conversion of single nitrogen-vacancy (NV) defects hosted in nanodiamonds (NDs). We first show that the proportion of negatively-charged NV$^{-}$ defects, with respect to its neutral counterpart NV$^{0}$, decreases with the size of the ND. We then propose a simple model based on a layer of electron traps located at the ND surface which is in good agreement with the recorded statistics. By using thermal oxidation to remove the shell of amorphous carbon around the NDs, we demonstrate a significant increase of the proportion of NV$^{-}$ defects in 10-nm NDs. These results are invaluable for further understanding, control and use of the unique properties of negatively-charged NV defects in diamondComment: 6 pages, 4 figure

Challenging the win-win discourse on conservation and development: Analyzing support for marine protected areas

This is the final version of the article. Available from Resilience Alliance via the DOI in this record.Conservation designations such as protected areas are increasing in numbers around the world, yet it is widely reported that many are failing to reach their objectives. They are frequently promoted as opportunities for win-win outcomes that can both protect biodiversity and lead to economic benefits for affected communities. This win-win view characterizes the dominant discourse surrounding many protected areas. Although this discourse and the arguments derived from it may lead to initial acceptance of conservation interventions, this study shows how it does not necessarily result in compliance and positive attitudes toward specific protected areas. Consequently, the discourse has important implications not just for making the case for protected area implementation, but also for the likelihood of protected areas reaching their objectives. We explain how the win-win discourse influences support for marine protected areas (MPAs) and, ultimately, their success. Using data from focus groups, questionnaires, and in-depth interviews at three MPA sites in the Philippines, we identified three reasons why the win-win discourse can negatively influence prolonged support for MPAs: dashed expectations, inequity, and temptation. Through an understanding of these issues, it becomes possible to suggest improvements that can be made pre-MPA implementation that can lead to prolonged support of MPAs. A focus on less tangible and economic MPA benefits, aligning MPA goals with cultural and social values, and higher levels of transparency when describing MPA outcomes are all ways in which prolonged support of MPAs can be bolstered.This work was supported by an Economic and Social Research Council/Natural Environment Research Council (ESRC/NERC) interdisciplinary studentship and by the ESRC/NERC Ecosystem Services and Poverty Alleviation programme (grant number NE/K010484-1)

Incorporating basic needs to reconcile poverty and ecosystem services

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Wiley via the DOI in this recordConservation managers frequently face the challenge of protecting and sustaining biodiversity without producing detrimental outcomes for (often poor) human populations that depend upon ecosystem services for their wellbeing. However, win-win solutions are often elusive and can mask trade-offs and negative outcomes for the wellbeing of particular groups of people. To deal with such trade-offs, approaches are needed to identify both ecological as well as social thresholds to determine the acceptable 'solution space' for conservation. Although human wellbeing as a concept has recently gained prominence among conservationists, they still lack tools to evaluate how their action affects human wellbeing in a given context. This paper presents the Theory of Human Needs in the context of conservation, building on an extensive historical application of needs approaches in international development. We detail an innovative participatory method, to evaluate how human needs are met, using locally relevant thresholds. We then establish the connections between human needs and ecosystem services. An application of this method in coastal East Africa identifies households who are in serious harm through not meeting different basic needs, and uncovers the role of ecosystem services in meeting these. Drawing from the international development and wellbeing literature, we suggest that this methodological approach, can help conservationists and planners balance poverty alleviation and biodiversity protection, ensure that conservation measures do not, at the very least, push individuals into serious harm and as a basis for monitoring the impacts of conservation on multidimensional poverty. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.This paper results from the project Sustainable Poverty Alleviation from Coastal Ecosystem Services (SPACES) project number NE-K010484-1, funded by the Ecosystem Services for Poverty Alleviation (ESPA) programme. The ESPA programme is funded by the Department for International Development (DFID), the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), and the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)

Strategies for tropical forest protection and sustainable supply chains: challenges and opportunities for alignment with the UN sustainable development goals

Governance for sustainable development increasingly involves diverse stakeholder groups, with the promise of enhanced legitimacy and effectiveness in decision-making and implementation. The UN sustainable development goals (SDGs) emphasise the important role of multiple (non-state) actors, including businesses and non-governmental organisations, including in efforts to ensure the sustainability of supply chains, and to reduce tropical deforestation and forest degradation. This paper critically analyses sustainability strategies to examine how the UN SDG agendas related to ‘sustainable supply chains’ and ‘tropical forest protection’ are framed and enacted by two contrasting non-state actors: (1) Instituto Centro de Vida (ICV), an NGO in Brazil working to address deforestation, including by supporting farmers to produce commodities, and (2) Unilever, a global consumer goods manufacturer and major buyer of such commodities. By identifying areas of variability in the discursive techniques used by ICV and Unilever, we unearth particular power dynamics that can shape the processes and outcomes of sustainability strategies. This paper finds that the two organisations use diverse strategies at different levels of governance, both participate actively in multi-stakeholder forums to advance their organisations’ goals, but have divergent framings of ‘sustainability’. Despite being considered ‘non-state’ actors, the strategies of the two organisations examined both reflect, and influence, the structural effects of the state in the implementation of non-state organisations’ strategies, and progress towards the SDGs. Although there is alignment of certain strategies related to tropical forest protection, in some cases, there is a risk that more sustainable, alternative approaches to governing forests and supply chains may be excluded

Revisiting the relationships between human well-being and ecosystems in dynamic social-ecological systems: Implications for stewardship and development

This is the final version. Available from Cambridge University Press via the DOI in this record.Non-technical summary We argue that the ways in which we as humans derive well-being from nature - for example by harvesting firewood, selling fish or enjoying natural beauty - feed back into how we behave towards the environment. This feedback is mediated by institutions (rules, regulations) and by individual capacities to act. Understanding these relationships can guide better interventions for sustainably improving well-being and alleviating poverty. However, more attention needs to be paid to how experience-related benefits from nature influence attitudes and actions towards the environment, and how these relationships can be reflected in more environmentally sustainable development projects. Technical summary In the broad literatures that address the linked challenge of maintaining ecosystem integrity while addressing poverty and inequality, there is still a need to investigate how linkages and feedbacks between ecosystem services and well-being can be taken into account to ensure environmental sustainability and improved livelihoods. We present a conceptual model towards a dynamic and reciprocal understanding of the feedbacks between human well-being and ecosystems. The conceptual model highlights three mechanisms through which people derive benefits from ecosystems (use, money and experience), and illustrates how these benefits can affect values, attitudes and actions towards ecosystems. Institutions and agency determine access to and distribution of benefits and costs, and also present barriers or enabling factors for individual or collective action. The conceptual model synthesises insights from existing but mostly separate bodies of literature on well-being and the benefits humans derive from ecosystems, and reveals gaps and areas for future research. Two case studies illustrate how recognizing the full feedback loop between how ecosystems support human well-being and how people behave towards those ecosystems, as well as intervention points within the loop, can guide better action for sustainable poverty alleviation and stewardship of the biosphere.Swedish Research CouncilSwedish Research Counci

The Gendered Nature of Ecosystem Services

This is the final version. Available from Elsevier via the DOI in this record. This article assesses the extent to which our conceptualisation, understanding and empirical analysis of ecosystem services are inherently gendered; in other words, how they might be biased and unbalanced in terms of their appreciation of gender differences. We do this by empirically investigating how women and men are able to benefit from ecosystem services across eight communities in coastal Kenya and Mozambique. Our results highlight different dimensions of wellbeing affected by ecosystem services, and how these are valued differently by men and women. However, it is not just the division of costs and benefits of ecosystem services that is gendered. Using a heuristic device of the ‘ecosystem-wellbeing chain’ we explain patterns within our primary data as an outcome of gendered knowledge systems, gendered behavioural expectations, gendered access to resources and gendered institutions. We conclude that this holistic, gendered understanding of ecosystem services is important not just for how ecosystem services are conceptualised, but also for the development and implementation of sustainable and equitable policy and interventions.Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)Ecosystem Services for Poverty Alleviation (ESPA)Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC

Save reefs to rescue all ecosystems

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Nature Research via the DOI in this recor

Planck pre-launch status : The Planck mission

Peer reviewe