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 School of Geography and the Environment

Dr Paul Jepson

Paul Jepson

Position:

Senior Research Fellow in Conservation Practice
Course Coordinator of the MSc in Nature, Society and in Environmental Policy

Contact:

e: paul.jepson@eci.ox.ac.uk
t: 01865 275896

Member:

School of Geography and the Environment Biodiversity Research Cluster
ECI Ecosystems Research Theme

Profile

I spent the first part of my career as a conservation practitioner, first as a local government officer working on urban conservation and recreation projects in Manchester and Shrewsbury before moving into international conservation in 1991 as head of the BirdLife International - Indonesia Programme. In 1997, I came to Oxford to conduct doctoral research on protected area policy in Indonesia (awarded in 2001) and at the same time broadened my practical field and policy experience with free-lance assignments for the World Bank and various international NGOs.

In my current work for ECI, I seek to bridge academic, and practice and synthesize perspectives from the natural and social sciences in an effort to develop innovative new approaches to conservation delivery. I retain an active research and professional engagement in conservation practice. I currently hold senior research fellowships with the ECI and The Skoll Centre for Social Entrepreneurship at the Said Business School.

Research Interests

My research explores questions relating to conservation governance: in particular how the power to deliver conservation action and social change is structured, what knowledges, worldviews and voices frame conservation policy and practice, and the relationship between legitimacy, social acceptability and the long-term impact of conservation interventions. My research is motivated by a desire to help the conservation movement maintain and extend its cultural relevance and to enhance the performance and impact of conservation policy and practice.

I pursue these broad questions through my long-term research and professional engagement in five thematic areas of conservation: i) history of the conservation as a social movement ii) public attitudes and values relating to nature; iii) protected area planning and governance; iv) origins and management of wildlife trade and v) ENGO leadership, management, legitimacy and accountability.

Teaching

I teach a number of modules and classes on the MSc. in Biodiversity, Conservation and Management. These include core modules titled ‘Strategic Conservation Planning’ and ‘Professional Skills for Conservationists’ and an option module titled ‘Social Survey Skills for Conservationists’. Read More.

Recent Publications

Teaching: MSc in Biodiversity, Conservation and Management.

Strategic Conservation Planning

This module of eight, 2 hr sessions, aims to equip participants with a critical understanding of protected area planning in the terrestrial realm. To this end it explores the history and meaning of protected area categories, the main schools of thought on protected area system planning , and a range of management approaches using international case studies. The module structure is based on the premise that we need to be clear why we (people) want protected areas before we can plan where to locate them and how to manage them.

Professional Skills for Conservationists

The effective environmental professional combines academic and technical knowledge with a suite of key professional skills. This module of six, three hour is designed to provide an overview of the key skill areas as applied in the conservation work environment and to act as a portal to further learning resources that students can turn-to when they embark on their careers. Its focus is approaches and tools that are common in the conservation field, particularly those that have stood the test of time for the conservation practitioners. It does not cover what are commonly termed transferable skills, e.g. effective communication, time management, IT skills etc., as these can be acquired through other courses available in the University.

Social Survey Skills for Conservationist

This module of four, 2 hour sessions provides an introduction to the theory and practice of social surveys. The course commences with an examination of the role and value of attitude surveys for enhancing the performance and impact of conservation policy and practice. Then it compares the questionnaire, key informant interview and focus group approaches, provides guidance of good practice and pitfalls in questionnaire design, and tips on effective execution. The next part covers data analysis and the concluding part explores the theory and practice of effectively communicating survey findings.