Unit Outline

This unit provides students with a practical understanding of key systems for protected area planning and management. Terrestrial, freshwater and marine protected areas are considered. The global context of protected areas is analysed, including issues of definition, scope and governance. As governance processes provide the institutional structures within which planning and management occurs, particular attention is given to public, private, community and collaborative arrangements. Systems and associated methods for addressing complexity, sustainable finance, management effectiveness, community engagement and landscape/seascape scale management are then considered. These topics are explored by drawing on the experiences of practitioners, case study examples and fieldwork.

Intended Learning Outcomes

As per the Assessment and Results Policy 1.3, your results will reflect your achievement against specified learning outcomes.

On completion of this unit, you will be able to:


1	Discuss the context and diverse forms of governance for protected areas.
2	Analyse systems and methods for addressing complexity in protected area governance and management.
3	Evaluate processes for planning and assessing developments and recreation opportunities within protected areas.
4	Reflect on supporting processes for effective protected area governance and management.

Alterations as a result of student feedback

This year we are encouraging everyone who is on campus to attend the in person weekly workshops to maximise opportunity to participate in group work. For distance students, live zoom and recorded classes are available but online students will need to set aside time to complete the group work component. Online students should get in touch with the Unit Coordinator to discuss group participation and must use the engagement tools such as the Discussion boards.

How will I be Assessed?

For more detailed assessment information please see MyLO.

Assessment schedule


ASSESSMENT TASK #	ASSESSMENT TASK NAME	DATE DUE	WEIGHT	LINKS TO INTENDED LEARNING OUTCOMES
Assessment Task 1:	AT1. Designing management interventions to leverage conservation outcomes	Week 5	40 %	LO1, LO2
Assessment Task 2:	AT2. Field trip case study analysis and personal reflections	Week 9	20 %	LO3
Assessment Task 3:	AT3. Critical essay on supporting processes for meeting protected area objectives	Week 14	40 %	LO4

Assessment details

Assessment Task 1: AT1. Designing management interventions to leverage conservation outcomes

Task Description:

Addressing complexity in protected areas case study report - you will be assigned a case study protected area group. For your case study, as a group you must develop a collective understanding of the basis of management and negotiate a choice of focal feature. As a group you will then design and finalize a shared conceptual model for the chosen focal feature which identifies key drivers of change likely to influence the state of the focal feature over the next 20 years. You will use the group conceptual model for the basis of your individual report where you will describe and justify the model and then use it to identify leverage points within the system. For the leverage point(s) design an intervention and justify how it will benefit to the state of your focal feature. See MyLO for full task description and steps.

Submission: Submit your case study report including final answers to the above, based on group discussion and work, to the MyLO submission link. You will be assessed on both the quality of your final answers as well as quality of contribution to your group discussions. The purpose of creating a group conceptual model is to develop the practical skills of negotiating a shared understanding of a complex system. You are not assessed on the 'correctness' of the conceptual model or individual contributions to it. Rather you are assessed on your ability to describe and explain the conceptual model and use it as the basis for management decisions. This reflects real world management plan contexts.

Note this is an individual assessment. You are taught group work skills through the group creation of a conceptual model but you are not assessed on these.

Students are responsible for understanding the UTAS policy on appropriate and ethical use of genAI software (e.g. ChatGPT). If you are unsure, confirm with your Unit Coordinator. If you do use genAI to help with background research, you will be expected to acknowledge if/when/how it was used. Text should never be copied and pasted from genAI and submitted as your own work. If work is submitted for an assessment that is not your own work, this will be investigated as a breach of academic integrity.

Task Length:

3500 words

Due Date:

Week 5

Weight:

40 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Describe the basis for management: describe the context of governance for your protected areas touching on all the key elements and argued for a focal feature in relation to the context.	LO1
2	Analyse system components and relationships: describe a logical conceptual model and analyse the system using this conceptual model.	LO2
3	Design strategic interventions: Use your conceptual model and identify leverage points in the system and analyse how to take advantage of these leverage points and who is best placed to implement these strategies.	LO1, LO2

Assessment Task 2: AT2. Field trip case study analysis and personal reflections

Task Description:

You will choose one of the topics and related sets of questions, all of which concern the field trip locations. Your task is to prepare a PowerPoint presentation with recorded ‘voice‐over’ that provides an evaluation of the relevant topic including evidence and reflections from the trip. See MyLO for full program and topic details.

Task Length:

10 minutes

Due Date:

Week 9

Weight:

20 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Effectively evaluate your chosen topic with evidence from the field trip	LO3
2	Present your work professionally	LO3

Assessment Task 3: AT3. Critical essay on supporting processes for meeting protected area objectives

Task Description:

Supporting Processes critical essay. You will choose one supporting process core topic as articulated in the global targets (governance, costs, management effectiveness, or connectivity) and critically analyze this topic and how it contributes to meeting protected area targets. In analyzing you must consider inter relationships to other topics. See MyLO for full essay prompts and details.

Students are responsible for understanding the UTAS policy on appropriate and ethical use of genAI software (e.g. ChatGPT). If you are unsure, confirm with your Unit Coordinator. If you do use genAI to help with background research, you will be expected to acknowledge if/when/how it was used. Text should never be copied and pasted from genAI and submitted as your own work. If work is submitted for an assessment that is not your own work, this will be investigated as a breach of academic integrity.

Task Length:

3500 words

Due Date:

Week 14

Weight:

40 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Identify and address the key elements relevant to your topic	LO4
2	Construct well-reasoned arguments and recommendations regarding your topic	LO4
3	Write an essay in good English that is correctly referenced	LO4

How your final result is determined

To pass this unit, you need to demonstrate your attainment of each of the Intended Learning Outcomes, achieve a final unit grade of 50% or greater, and pass any hurdle tasks.

Submission of assignments

Where practicable, assignments should be submitted to an assignment submission folder in MYLO. You must submit assignments by the due date or receive a penalty (unless an extension of time has been approved by the Unit Coordinator). Students submitting any assignment in hard copy, or because of a practicum finalisation, must attach a student cover sheet and signed declaration for the submission to be accepted for marking.

Academic integrity

Academic integrity is about acting responsibly, honestly, ethically, and collegially when using, producing, and communicating information with other students and staff members.

In written work, you must correctly reference the work of others to maintain academic integrity. To find out the referencing style for this unit, see the assessment information in the MyLO site, or contact your teaching staff. For more detail about Academic Integrity, see Important Guidelines & Support.

Requests for extensions

If you are unable to submit an assessment task by the due date, you should apply for an extension.

A request for an extension should first be discussed with your Unit Coordinator or teaching support team where possible. A request for an extension must be submitted by the assessment due date, except where you can provide evidence it was not possible to do so. Typically, an application for an extension will be supported by documentary evidence: however, where it is not possible for you to provide evidence please contact your Unit Coordinator.

The Unit Coordinator must notify you of the outcome of an extension request within 3 working days of receiving the request.

Late penalties

Assignments submitted after the deadline will receive a late penalty of 5% of the original available mark for each calendar day (or part day) that the assignment is late. Late submissions will not be accepted more than 10 calendar days after the due date, or after assignments have been returned to other students on a scheduled date, whichever occurs first. Further information on Late Penalties can be found on the Assessments and Results Procedure.

Review of results and appeals

You are entitled to ask for a review of the marking and grading of your assessment task if there is an irregularity in the marking standards or an error in the process for determining the outcome of an assessment. Details on how to request a review of a mark for an assignment are outlined in the Review and Appeal of Academic Decisions Procedure.