In a globally fast-changing world, dedicated conservationists play a central role in societies moving towards the achievement of sustainable development. How do people become advocates for nature? Research suggests that childhood experiences in natural places are core determinants for the development of environmental stewardship. In many developing countries, however, access to intact natural environments is limited. This study explores formative influences on individuals who actively contribute to nature conservation and environmental education (EE) in Madagascar. We conducted nine semi-structured interviews with participants in a national EE workshop. Formative experiences were reported mainly from university years, and influential persons were researchers and high school teachers, many from abroad. The media also play a considerable role, while negative experiences, familial influences, or experience of natural areas during childhood were rarely mentioned. In contrast to former studies, the results suggest that direct experiences of nature can still be decisive in determining a young person’s path as a dedicated environmental practitioner during young adulthood. Role models who are active in the conservation and sustainable development fields can compensate for a lack of familial models. These findings might require a rethinking of current educational practices in Madagascar because children might not be the only important group to target with educational interventions.

Natural resource management problems typically involve a multitude of stakeholders with diverse sets of needs and interests, and often conflicting worldviews in an environment with growing uncertainty. Such problems are termed "wicked" problems, where there are no right or wrong solutions, only more or less acceptable ones. In the case of Lake Alaotra, growing agricultural pressures have a negative impact on the wetland biodiversity and especially on the Alaotra gentle lemur (Hapalemur alaotrensis) restricted to these marshlands. The species survival is highly uncertain because of increased habitat loss caused mainly by marshland fires. The conservation work for this unique lemur is complex and complicated and requires the involvement and collaboration of decision-making institutions, NGOs, universities and riverine communities. From the inception of projects to their implementation phase, all parties need clearly defined responsibilities and transparency in communication in order to run projects successfully. This article describes the approach that Madagascar Wildlife Conservation has been implementing during the past ten years at Lake Alaotra, discussing the plan of action and challenges for environmental education, ecotourism and alternative livelihoods. Les problèmes de gestion des ressources naturelles impliquent généralement une multitude d'intervenants avec divers ensembles de besoins et d'intérêts, et souvent, les visions du monde contradictoires dans un environnement avec une incertitude croissante. Ces problèmes sont appelés problèmes sournois, 'wicked problems' en anglais, où il n'y a pas de bonnes ou de mauvaises solutions, seules plus ou moins acceptables. Dans le cas du lac Alaotra, la croissance des pressions agricoles a un impact négatif sur la biodiversité des zones humides, et en particulier sur l'Alaotra lémurien douce (Hapalemur alaotrensis) limitée à ces marais. La survie de l'espèce est très incertaine en raison de l'augmentation de la perte d'habitat causée principalement par les feux de marais. Les travaux de conservation pour ce lémurien unique sont complexes et compliqués, et nécessitent l'implication et la collaboration sur la prise de décision des institutions, des ONG, des universités et des communautés riveraines. Cela implique que toutes les parties, depuis la création de projets à leur phase de mise en oeuvre, partagent un terrain d'entente avec les avantages clairement définis de pouvoir de décision, les responsabilités et la transparence dans la communication. Madagascar Wildlife Conservation a travaillé sur le lac depuis plus de dix ans, y compris l'éducation environnementale, l'écotourisme et les moyens de subsistance alternatifs dans le plan d'action. Cet article met en évidence l'approche adoptée et examine ses défis.

In this paper, we present the results of a survey of an environmental education program applied to a cohort of 542 students in six primary schools at Lake Alaotra, Madagascar. The educational materials used were a comic book and additional materials designed specifically for local conditions in rural Madagascar. The comic book conveyed mostly system knowledge and, to a lesser extent, action-related knowledge. The additional materials posed practical tasks to students and were meant to stimulate teamwork and group discussion of students. There was a control and two treatment groups. A questionnaire was applied to test students’ environmental knowledge at three different points in time. The survey showed a significant increase in environmental knowledge of students receiving environmental education compared to controls. This effect significantly increased with additional education materials fostering peer-to-peer learning by students instead of when teacher-centred learning was provided. Students that used those materials also had the highest scores in tests one year after environmental education ended, thus indicating the usefulness of innovative and locally meaningful materials in environmental education.

Animals spend a substantial proportion of their lives resting and consequently the choice of a sleeping site can dramatically affect an individual's fitness. Sleeping sites have been implicated in predator defence and thermoregulation and their distribution can affect breeding and social systems in small mammals. Sleeping sites may constitute a limiting resource for females which experience energetic constraints to breeding and require shelter for their young. Despite the potential importance of sleeping sites, exhaustive studies of the factors determining their usage patterns are limited to a small number of mammal groups. We investigated how seasonal changes in temperature or the presence of young shape sleeping site usage patterns in a small primate, the grey mouse lemur, Microcebus murinus. Females preferred tree holes over nests and open sites and the usage duration of a particular tree hole site was affected by the physical characteristics likely to affect its insulation properties. Furthermore, climate variables strongly affected sleeping site choices and nests were chosen more often than tree holes during the wet season. However, when young were present preferences shifted back to tree holes. Preferred tree species used as sleeping sites as well as the properties of tree holes were rare among trees in the study area suggesting that sleeping sites may indeed be a limiting resource for female grey mouse lemurs. Our results suggest that in the study species sleeping site choices are governed by thermoregulatory considerations and their limited availability could also account for the social grouping. (C) 2010 The Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Understanding processes affecting the distribution and abundance of organisms is a central issue in ecology and conservation biology. In northwestern Madagascar, we found an uneven distribution pattern of the golden-brown mouse lemur (Microcebus ravelobensis) and the grey mouse lemur (M. murinus). In one area (JBA) the two species lived sympatrically, whereas in another forest area (JBB) Microcebus ravelobensis occurred exclusively. To investigate whether differences in forest structure may explain this uneven distribution, we conducted a microhabitat analysis and related it to specific distribution. In JBA the habitat of Microcebus ravelobensis was characterized by a higher percentage of trees with many lianas and a higher cover of the herb layer, whereas that of M. murinus had a higher number of trees with a diameter at breast height (DBH) >10 cm. The comparison of the forest structure of the microhabitats of the two species between JBA and JBB revealed further differences. The cover of the overstory, the percentage of trees without lianas and the number of larger trees (DBH >10 cm) among the microhabitats were higher for Microcebus murinus in JBA than for M. ravelobensis in JBB whereas the microhabitats of M. ravelobensis at the two sites did not differ concerning these vegetation structures. Differences between the two species coincide with those of resources important for survival. Our results indicate the importance of microhabitat analyses for the understanding of distribution patterns of species and for successful conservation planning.