Feasibility and dominance rules in the electromagnetism-like algorithm for constrained global optimization

This paper presents the use of a constraint-handling technique, known as feasibility and dominance rules, in a electromagnetismlike (ELM) mechanism for solving constrained global optimization problems. Since the original ELM algorithm is specifically designed for solving bound constrained problems, only the inequality and equality constraints violation together with the objective function value are used to select points and to progress towards feasibility and optimality. Numerical experiments are presented, including a comparison with other methods recently reported in the literature

An artificial fish swarm filter-based Method for constrained global optimization

Ana Maria A.C. Rocha, M. Fernanda P. Costa and Edite M.G.P. Fernandes, An Artificial Fish Swarm Filter-Based Method for Constrained Global Optimization, B. Murgante, O. Gervasi, S. Mirsa, N. Nedjah, A.M. Rocha, D. Taniar, B. Apduhan (Eds.), Lecture Notes in Computer Science, Part III, LNCS 7335, pp. 57–71, Springer, Heidelberg, 2012.An artificial fish swarm algorithm based on a filter methodology for trial solutions acceptance is analyzed for general constrained global optimization problems. The new method uses the filter set concept to accept, at each iteration, a population of trial solutions whenever they improve constraint violation or objective function, relative to the current solutions. The preliminary numerical experiments with a wellknown benchmark set of engineering design problems show the effectiveness of the proposed method.Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT

Gender differentiated preferences for a community-based conservation initiative

Community-based conservation (CBC) aims to benefit local people as well as to achieve conservation goals, but has been criticised for taking a simplistic view of "community" and failing to recognise differences in the preferences and motivations of community members. We explore this heterogeneity in the context of Kenya's conservancies, focussing on the livelihood preferences of men and women living adjacent to the Maasai Mara National Reserve. Using a discrete choice experiment we quantify the preferences of local community members for key components of their livelihoods and conservancy design, differentiating between men and women and existing conservancy members and non-members. While Maasai preference for pastoralism remains strong, non-livestock-based livelihood activities are also highly valued and there was substantial differentiation in preferences between individuals. Involvement with conservancies was generally perceived to be positive, but only if households were able to retain some land for other purposes. Women placed greater value on conservancy membership, but substantially less value on wage income, while existing conservancy members valued both conservancy membership and livestock more highly than did non-members. Our findings suggest that conservancies can make a positive contribution to livelihoods, but care must be taken to ensure that they do not unintentionally disadvantage any groups. We argue that conservation should pay greater attention to individuallevel differences in preferences when designing interventions in order to achieve fairer and more sustainable outcomes for members of local communities

Incorporating social-ecological complexities into conservation policy

In the process of developing new conservation policies, policymakers must have access to information which will inform their decisions. Evidence rarely considers the complexities of social-ecological systems. The Social-Ecological Systems Framework (SESF) is an adaptable yet structured approach for understanding the processes that lead to changes in natural resources, using a systems-based approach that aims to treat ecological and social components equally. Few conservation planning and policy initiatives have implemented the SESF to assess the interlinked social and ecological consequences of conservation policies. We apply the SESF to explore the barriers to the potential implementation of a policy of consumptive utilisation of wildlife in Kenya, a policy regarded as successful in several southern African countries. Using secondary data and expert review we developed a conceptual model of the social-ecological system associated with consumptive utilisation of wildlife in Kenya. We then analysed how different combinations of first and second-tier variables interacted to create focal action situations, and subsequently identified seven barriers to this policy. Our analysis revealed that game ranching would require large-scale investment in effective monitoring systems, new regulations, training, market development and research, considerations about equity, and devolved ownership of wildlife. The least barriers existed for game farming. The SESF appears to be a useful framework for this purpose. In particular, it can help to reveal potential social and ecological barriers which conservation policies might face in attempting to meet intended goals. The information required to implement the SESF are necessarily cross-disciplinary, which can make it challenging to synthesise

The Mara-Serengeti Ecosystem and Greater Maasailand: Building the Role of Local Leaders, Institutions, and Communities

Much of the effort to include communities in conservation of large landscapes has been driven by interests outside the savannas, either by national governments, NGOs, or foreign conservationists (Neumann 2002, Brockington et al. 2008). Once included in conservation planning only as an afterthought, local communities are now major stakeholders. However, initiatives driven, led, and managed by local leaders, communities, and institutions to meet the needs of both wildlife and people remain rare. The science of community- based conservation rarely answers the questions posed by local communities, integrates local knowledge, or builds the capacity of communities to do their own research. This chapter is the story of our efforts to turn community- based conservation around so that it is driven, led, and managed by local interests, needs, and people in Kenya’s northern Serengeti- Mara ecosystem, or the Mara