Wolf protection in Europe has become deeply political – Spain's experience tells us why
Over the past decade alone, they have expanded their range on the continent by more than 25%.
- Over the past decade alone, they have expanded their range on the continent by more than 25%.
- This resurgence was brought into sharp focus in September 2023 following a controversial statement by Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission.
- An examination of Spain’s motivations for protection may provide some insight into what motivates countries to adopt such different approaches to coexistence.
What does coexistence mean?
- Our findings revealed three distinct and, to some extent, conflicting views of what coexistence means and how it should be achieved.
- They saw people as a part of nature and interpreted coexistence as a state where the wolf was controlled to not disrupt pastoral activities.
- They saw coexistence as a state where human activities were controlled so that wolves could roam free.
The politics of wolf conservation
- Podemos, one of the left coalition parties, submitted a proposition for strict wolf protection in 2016 (when they were in opposition) in collaboration with pro-wolf advocacy groups.
- These criteria do not consider how stringent wolf protection measures might affect other cultural or ecological values, like pastoral farming systems.
- Spain’s decision was also influenced by the protectionists’ view of the wolf’s conservation status.
- For example, an assessment submitted to the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List in 2018 indicates that the Iberian wolf population is large, stable and slowly expanding.
This nature or that nature?
- Science plays a crucial role in evaluating various policy options and their consequences, such as the effect of an increased wolf population on sheep or deer behaviour.
- That choice depends on what people, livestock and wildlife in a particular place need to live well.
- With this in mind, it is concerning that the pragmatic interpretation is largely overlooked in the debate.
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