The Nature Conservancy (TNC) in The Bahamas is working with partners to demonstrate how the implementation of marine ecosystem management measures can play a significant role in improving marine resources for people and nature now and into the future. It is hypothesized that improving trust among fishers, law enforcement, and environmental groups will reduce conflict and risks that can impact conservation outcomes. The goal of this study was to understand the current perceptions of trust among fishers and law enforcement with environmental NGOs with a focus on The Nature Conservancy. We used in-depth qualitative study and a semi-structured interview guide based on a multi-dimensional trust framework to guide focus groups discussions. We conducted 11 Focus Group Discussions with fishers and 7 Focus Groups with law enforcement resulting in a total of 133 community respondents across 7 islands in The Bahamas. To analyze the qualitative data, we used Grounded Theory methodology that helped consolidate emerging concepts and themes from the interviews.
Results/Conclusions
Results show fishers and law enforcement felt conservation agendas are constantly being forced on them without much input or collaboration. Before meeting The Nature Conservancy most respondents said they hadn’t heard anything about The Nature Conservancy. Most of the great comments about TNC’s ability to have rational trust is based in direct engagement with individuals such as Current TNC-Bahamas Staff A and others. This shows that while it is important to continue meeting goals and following through on promises, it is critical to have a person on the ground connection between TNC and the community. Individuals also were drawn to particularly successful projects such as conch, crawfish, and being engaged in interviews. There was uncertainty that TNC truly understood fisher and law enforcement values. Fishers also feel that local knowledge is not being considered. They are also concerned that policies and laws are being applied without considering regional knowledge and diversity in the ecosystem.
