Strategic Methods in Community Engagement for UNESCO Biosphere Reserves

Abstract: This research aimed to find strategic methods in community engagement related to regional sustainable development, specifically within the context of regions in Europe and North America that are applying for the UNESCO Biosphere Reserve designation. The Framework for Strategic Sustainable Development was presented as a planning framework that can fill gaps in the current Biosphere Reserve planning process. A tool for assessing community engagement based on the five Process Characteristics of transparency, cooperation, openness, inclusiveness, and involvement was created and used to explore community engagement practices in six UNESCO Biosphere Reserve regions in Sweden and Canada. The assessment of methods used in those six regions yielded a list of nine methods which stood out in contributing to community engagement.