Amazonian community-based conservation catalyzes multidimensional nature contributions to people

1 Introduction

The Amazon stands out as one of the world’s most iconic ecological systems due to its immense spatial extent, exceptional primary productivity, extraordinary biodiversity, and highly heterogeneous climatic and environmental conditions. Its vast area, combined with diverse forest age structures and long-term ecosystem stability, has fostered unparalleled levels of species richness and endemism. As one of the most biodiverse regions on the planet, the Amazon plays a critical role in global ecological processes and biodiversity conservation (Hubbs and Nelson, 1978). It encompasses more than 50% of the world’s remaining tropical forests and is fundamental for regulating the global climate (Malhi et al., 2008) as well as sustaining planetary biodiversity (Pimm et al., 2014; Sullivan et al., 2020). Beyond its ecological significance, the Amazon is also one of the most culturally diverse regions on Earth, where indigenous and local communities have coexisted with and actively shaped ecosystems for millennia. These socio-ecological systems are deeply interconnected, with cultural practices embedded within ecological dynamics and contributing to landscape resilience and biodiversity maintenance (Levis et al., 2024).

Despite its global importance, the Amazon is undergoing rapid environmental change driven by the expansion of mechanized commodity agriculture, cattle ranching, and large-scale hydropower development, which have historically led to extensive deforestation, reaching approximately 11,000 km² between 2021 and 2022 (INPE, 2022). In addition, an estimated 38% of the remaining forests are currently degraded due to fire, edge effects, selective logging, and increasing frequency of extreme droughts (Lapola et al., 2023). There is growing concern that the region may be approaching a critical tipping point in its forest–climate system, with some studies suggesting a threshold near 40% cumulative deforestation, while others highlight significant spatial variation in resilience across subregions (Lovejoy and Nobre, 2019; Brando et al., 2025). The continued loss and degradation of forests, and the biodiversity they support, pose severe risks to the livelihoods and food security of millions of indigenous and non-indigenous people. These populations rely heavily on forest ecosystems for subsistence and income, including the production of crops for local and regional consumption, goods for export, and essential sources of protein and micronutrients such as fish and bushmeat (Tregidgo et al., 2020; Antunes et al., 2025).

In the Brazilian Amazon, sustainable-use Protected Areas and Indigenous Lands are central to efforts to combat biodiversity loss and deforestation (Bruner et al., 2001; Ricketts et al., 2010; Mori et al., 2013). Beyond their conservation role, these territories embody the principles of the socio-environmentalist movement, which emerged from the recognition that environmental protection, territorial rights, and social justice are inseparable (Brondizio et al., 2021). By valuing forest-based economies, local governance, and the stewardship practices of Indigenous peoples and traditional communities, this movement frames protected and collectively managed territories as key arenas for both biodiversity conservation and more equitable forms of landscape management. The expansion of protected areas, particularly Sustainable-Use Protected Areas and Indigenous territories, over the past 25 years has strengthened community-based conservation initiatives that seek to reconcile biodiversity protection with social needs (Albuquerque et al., 2024). In line with the socio-environmentalist principles outlined above, these initiatives have created institutional spaces through which rural and traditional communities can participate more directly in decision-making, ensuring that diverse values, knowledge systems, and territorial priorities are incorporated into conservation governance (Brondizio et al., 2021; Vatn et al., 2024). By linking conservation outcomes to local participation, forest-based livelihoods, and collective territorial management, such arrangements have contributed to stronger governance structures, greater gender equity (Freitas et al., 2020a), improved livelihoods, and more effective territorial protection (Rodrigues et al., 2025).

Traditional communities in the Amazon have accumulated profound ecological knowledge that plays a crucial role in sustaining forest landscapes and conserving biodiversity. This is reflected, for example, in the significantly lower deforestation rates observed within their territories (Baragwanath and Bayi, 2020; Walker et al., 2020; Duarte Ritter et al., 2025). Beyond reducing forest loss, these territories also support the preservation of Nature’s Contributions to People (NCPs), understood as the benefits, and occasionally detriments, that people derive from nature. Many NCPs are not produced by ecological processes alone but are co-produced through the interaction between ecosystems and anthropogenic assets, including traditional management practices, local knowledge, institutions, and forms of territorial governance (Díaz et al., 2018; IPBES, 2019). One emblematic case of community-based conservation is the community-based management of pirarucu (Arapaima gigas), the largest scaled extant freshwater fish. This initiative has achieved substantial ecological outcomes, such as a 425% increase in pirarucu populations over 11 years, as well as positive effects on other species (Castello et al., 2009; Campos-Silva and Peres, 2016; Petersen et al., 2016; Campos-Silva et al., 2018). It has also delivered tangible social and economic benefits, including enhanced household income, infrastructure development, and the inclusion of women in fisheries management (Campos-Silva and Peres, 2016; Freitas et al., 2020a). Moreover, the protection of pirarucu habitats has led to the conservation of much larger forest areas, showing the broad territorial impact of these practices (Rodrigues et al., 2025). The co-management of pirarucu therefore stands as a compelling example of how conservation initiatives can successfully integrate ecological sustainability, social equity, and traditional knowledge, providing a concrete and optimistic model to address complex socio-ecological challenges in the Amazon and other tropical regions.

Previous studies have documented multiple ecological and social outcomes of the pirarucu co-management project (Campos-Silva et al., 2021a; Gonçalves and Santos, 2024; Meireles et al., 2025), but few studies have documented material and non-material benefits as perceived by local participants. While measurable outcomes such as biomass recovery or income generation have been emphasized, less attention has been given to understanding the diversity of values, worldviews, and human-nature relationships that inform community perceptions of these benefits. These aspects are critical for designing and implementing strategies that promote sustainable transformations and strengthen community engagement (Fischer and Riechers, 2019; Bennett et al., 2021; Malmborg et al., 2022). By neglecting the lived experiences and knowledge systems of local people, conservation efforts risk overlooking the broader significance of these initiatives for human well-being and environmental stewardship.

Here, we adopt the Nature’s Contributions to People (NCP) framework (Pascual et al., 2017; Díaz et al., 2018) to assess the tangible and intangible benefits perceived by local communities involved in the co-management of pirarucu. Compared with conventional ecosystem services approaches, the NCP framework offers a broader and more inclusive understanding of the multiple ways through which nature contributes to human well-being, including regulating, material, and non-material dimensions. It also explicitly recognizes the role of Indigenous and Local Knowledge (ILK), diverse worldviews, and the social-ecological co-production of benefits, making it particularly suitable for analyzing community-based conservation systems (Díaz et al., 2018; Kadykalo et al., 2019). In this study, we assess the perceived benefits of pirarucu co-management among both participant and non-participant communities. By linking co-management practices to a broad range of NCPs, encompassing ecological, social, economic, cultural, and governance-related dimensions, we aim to provide a comprehensive assessment of how sustainable community-based initiatives can enhance local well-being while also generating broader ecological benefits. In turn, we examine how these perceived benefits may shape community members’ motivation to engage in, sustain, and invest in collective management efforts.

We recognize that transforming complex lived experiences into categorized representations of nature’s contributions can obscure important qualitative nuances, tensions, contradictions, and locally grounded meanings. At the same time, comparative approaches are often necessary when working across many communities and individuals to identify broader patterns, assess landscape-scale implications, and increase the visibility of local actors in regional, national, and international discussions of conservation and development. We ground the categories of nature’s contributions into locally meaningful categories, identified with community organizations and members, with whom we maintain long-term collaboration. The evidence presented below shows that sustainable, community-based initiatives enhance community well-being while providing large-scale ecological benefits. Our intention here is, therefore, not to reduce local realities to metrics, but rather to develop an accessible and comparative framework capable of communicating perceived multidimensional outcomes of co-management on a regional scale.

2 Materials and methods

2.1 Study area

The study was conducted along the mid-section of the Juruá River, Amazonas state, one of the main tributaries of the Amazon (= Solimões) River. Rural communities were surveyed both within and outside two contiguous sustainable-use protected areas: The Uacari Sustainable Development Reserve (RDS Uacari, 5°43’58”S, 67°46’53”W), covering an area of 632,949 hectares, and the Médio Juruá Extractive Reserve (ResEx Médio Juruá, 5°33’54”S, 67°42’47”W), with an area of 253,227 hectares. The ResEx Médio Juruá and RDS Uacari were officially established in 1997 and 2005, respectively, and are currently inhabited by ~4,000 inhabitants spread across 74 communities along 800 km. These communities were located mainly near the river channel, but we also included those situated along tributary streams and lakeshores (Figure 1) (Newton et al., 2012). In addition, our study encompasses communities outside these protected areas. The research informing this article builds upon long-term place-based work and collaboration with communities involved in co-management arrangements in this and other areas, developed through partnerships among local associations, NGOs, universities, and environmental agencies.

2.2 Collaborative management of pirarucu at Juruá River

The co-management of pirarucu in the Amazon operates as a community-based, participatory system that integrates local ecological knowledge with scientific protocols and formal governance. At its core, the model relies on the active involvement of Indigenous peoples and riverine communities in all stages of resource management, supported by partnerships with government agencies, NGOs, and research institutions. Communities establish formal agreements that define territorial boundaries and zoning of water bodies, typically classifying lakes into protected (no-take), subsistence-use, and managed fishing areas. These agreements also regulate access, define user rights, and establish rules such as fishing seasons, minimum sizes, and harvest quotas. Importantly, decision-making is collective and occurs through regular community meetings, where rules are discussed, adapted, and legitimized, ensuring that management remains flexible and responsive to local realities (Campos-Silva and Peres, 2016; Freitas et al., 2020b).

A central phase of the management cycle is the population assessment, which is uniquely enabled by the species’ biology. Because pirarucu surfaces regularly to breathe, trained local fishers can conduct standardized visual counts, generating reliable estimates of population size. These counts form the scientific and legal basis for defining annual harvest quotas, typically allowing the extraction of up to 30% of adult individuals in each management unit. Following quota approval by environmental authorities, communities organize the fishing phase, which is highly coordinated and seasonal. Fishing is conducted collectively, using agreed-upon techniques, with strict control over catch, processing, and commercialization. This phase not only ensures ecological sustainability but also generates significant income and strengthens local economies. The entire process is embedded within a broader governance system that includes benefit-sharing mechanisms, community funds, and increasing inclusion of women and youth in productive and decision-making roles (Campos-Silva and Peres, 2016).

Equally critical to the system’s effectiveness are the continuous processes of surveillance, monitoring, and institutional coordination. Communities carry out regular patrols to protect lakes from illegal fishing, often covering areas far beyond the managed sites themselves, reinforcing territorial control and conservation outcomes. Monitoring extends beyond ecological indicators to include compliance with rules, supported by locally defined sanctions for infractions (Rodrigues et al., 2025). These activities are complemented by frequent community assemblies and cross-scale governance interactions, where local organizations, associations, and external partners align strategies, resolve conflicts, and adapt regulations over time. This iterative cycle, combining assessment, rulemaking, harvesting, surveillance, and collective deliberation, creates a robust and adaptive co-management system that has successfully recovered pirarucu populations while strengthening social organization, food security, and local livelihoods (Campos-Silva et al., 2021b).

2.3 Sample and data collection

Our survey sample comprises 39 communities, 15 pirarucu-managing communities, and 24 non-pirarucu-managing communities, of which 186 fishers were interviewed. The survey instrument included 15 questions and was designed to evaluate the perceived benefits generated by pirarucu co-management using the Nature’s Contributions to People (NCP) framework, which was developed by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) (Pascual et al., 2017; Díaz et al., 2018; IPBES, 2019). The NCP framework includes 18 categories of nature’s contributions organized into three main groups: regulating contributions, material, and non-material contributions.

Interviews were conducted in Portuguese by Portuguese-speaking Brazilian researchers. The original interview instrument was developed and administered in Portuguese, using terminology, examples, and expressions familiar to local participants. The survey items analyzed in this study were presented as perception-based scale questions, in which respondents assigned scores ranging from 0 to 10. For each item, 0 represented the lowest possible value and 10 represented the highest possible value. This response format was intentionally selected because it was easily understood by participants and had been successfully used in previous engagements within the study region, thereby facilitating comprehension, consistency, and response reliability (Table 1).

Table 1. Survey items used to assess local perceptions of nature’s contributions to people (NCPs) in pirarucu-managing and non-Pirarucu-managing communities along the Juruá River, western Brazilian Amazon.

The table presents the original Portuguese questions administered during interviews and their English translations, the temporal frame considered for each item (current perceptions or before-and-after management comparisons), and the associated NCP categories. Interviews were conducted in Portuguese by Brazilian researchers with long-term experience working in the study region. Responses were collected using a 0–10 ordinal perception scale, where 0 represented the lowest perceived value and 10 the highest perceived value for each item.

Importantly, data collection was conducted in communities with which the research team has maintained long-term relationships through ongoing conservation, research, and community development initiatives. This history of engagement fostered trust, familiarity, and open dialogue between researchers and participants, helping to create an environment in which respondents felt comfortable sharing their perceptions and experiences. Such relational foundations are particularly important when investigating governance, trust, collaboration, and other socially embedded dimensions of conservation practice (Jagosh et al., 2015; Kopec et al., 2025).

To ensure conceptual clarity, broad concepts such as cultural strengthening, social cohesion, and learning were operationalized through locally meaningful examples and explanations provided by interviewers during survey administration. This approach sought to ensure conceptual consistency while maintaining cultural relevance and respondent comprehension. Instead of directly applying the same broad categories presented in the framework, which represent a generalized interpretation of conservation contribution, we translated these dimensions into tangible and locally meaningful indicators rooted in the lived realities of Amazonian communities. In other words, rather than asking abstract questions about “well-being” or “social impacts,” we focused on context-specific issues that local people themselves associate with successful territorial management and improved quality of life.

For instance, interview questions addressed perceptions of material benefits such as the abundance of high-value timber species, fisheries catch-per-unit-effort (CPUE), pirarucu abundance in both protected and unprotected oxbow lakes, and the abundance of Tambaqui (Colossoma macropomum), one of the most commercially valuable Amazonian fish species and an important seed predator and disperser (Tregidgo et al., 2017; Costa-Pereira et al., 2018). At the local scale, these variables are highly relevant because they function as practical proxies for ecosystem health, resource recovery, and the effectiveness of community-based protection systems. They are also directly connected to the economic potential of managed territories and the long-term sustainability of local livelihoods.

Additionally, we incorporated questions exploring non-material and sociocultural dimensions associated with co-management systems. “Group celebrations,” for example, refer to the opportunities communities have to collectively celebrate a legalized and sustainable management activity that generates income while maintaining forests and lakes conserved. This aspect is particularly important because it relates to people’s sense of pride, dignity, and self-esteem in remaining within their territories while engaging in legal and socially valued economic activities.

“Cultural revival and strengthening” refers to the central role that certain species occupy within Amazonian cultural systems and cosmologies. For many Indigenous and traditional peoples, pirarucu is not merely an economic resource, but also an important cultural, symbolic, and culinary element deeply embedded in territorial identities and ways of life.

“Learning opportunities” are also highly significant in a region historically marked by limited public investment, marginalization, and structural neglect. In this context, opportunities for training, technical exchange, and acquisition of new skills become fundamental mechanisms for strengthening autonomy, local stewardship, and community capacity to engage with increasingly complex governance systems.

“Community cohesion,” in turn, refers to the strength of collective organization and coordinated action around shared territorial objectives. This is one of the most important dimensions of co-management because it strengthens local governance structures, reinforces social organization, and amplifies the capacity of communities to collectively advocate for more effective and locally aligned public policies.

Finally, “pirarucu fish as a symbol for people in the Juruá River” refers to the capacity of a territorial resource to catalyze new collective aspirations and locally grounded visions of sustainable futures, where biodiversity conservation, forest protection, territorial governance, and improved quality of life become interconnected. In this sense, pirarucu management is not only about fisheries recovery, but also about reshaping perceptions of what sustainable development can look like in Amazonian territories (Table 1).

Respondents from communities engaged in pirarucu management were asked to report their perceptions regarding both the period prior to the implementation of co-management and the present situation. In contrast, respondents from communities not engaged in pirarucu management reported only their current perceptions.

2.4 Data analysis

To understand changes in NCPs associated with pirarucu co-management, we implemented both spatial and temporal comparisons. We first performed a paired t-test on the local communities engaged in managed fisheries. This analysis was based on respondents’ perceptions, comparing periods before and after the implementation of pirarucu management in each community. Next, we compared the current local perceptions of NCPs between pirarucu-managing communities and non-pirarucu-managing communities using a Student’s t-test. Both t-tests had their statistical assumptions validated a priori. Finally, we assigned one or more of the 18 NCP categories to each response and associated comments. We then used Principal Component Analysis (PCA), implemented with the vegan package in R (Oksanen et al., 2022), to identify which NCPs contributed most to differences in perceived NCPs between pirarucu-managing and non-managing communities. All analyses were conducted in 4.3.2 (R Core Team, 2023).

3 Results

We conducted interviews with 186 individuals across 39 communities along the Juruá River, including 15 communities engaged in pirarucu management and 24 non-managing communities. Respondents from pirarucu-managing communities consistently reported a perceived increase in the abundance of high-value hardwood tree species in forest areas surrounding protected lakes following the implementation of management. Specifically, Assacú (Hura crepitans), Louro-mamuri (Ocotea cymbarum), and Macacaúba (Platymiscium trinitatis) showed statistically significant increases in perceived abundance (p < 0.05). Copaíba (Copaifera langsdorffii) was also reported to have increased; however, this pattern was not statistically supported by the paired t-test.

In addition to terrestrial changes, aquatic indicators showed marked differences associated with pirarucu management. Oxbow lakes managed by communities exhibited higher catch per unit effort (CPUE) for daily subsistence fisheries, increased pirarucu abundance, and greater abundance of Tambaqui when compared to conditions prior to management implementation. These patterns were consistently observed across managed sites and contrast with perceptions from non-managing communities. Together, these results indicate concurrent increases in both aquatic productivity and perceived terrestrial resource availability following the adoption of community-based pirarucu management (Figure 2).

Compared to non-managing communities, fisherfolk from pirarucu-managing communities reported lower perceived pirarucu abundance in unprotected lakes. In addition, respondents from managing communities more frequently characterized fishing as a recreational activity and reported higher frequencies of group celebrations, as well as stronger perceptions of community unity. These communities also indicated the occurrence of cultural revitalization processes associated with pirarucu management, alongside the adoption of new techniques and expanded learning opportunities related to resource use and management practices. Despite these differences, there was consensus across all respondents, regardless of management status, that pirarucu represents a central symbol of livelihoods in the Juruá River region (Figure 3).

Principal Component Analysis (PCA) revealed clear differences in how communities perceive NCPs depending on their engagement in pirarucu management. Non-managing communities were distributed across a broad spectrum of multivariate space, indicating high variability and divergence in their perceptions of NCPs. In contrast, pirarucu-managing communities were tightly clustered within a smaller area of the ordination space, reflecting greater cohesion and convergence in their responses. This distinct clustering pattern highlights a clear separation between managing and non-managing communities, suggesting more consistent and aligned perceptions among those engaged in co-management.

The first principal component (PC1) explained 52.8% of the total variance and was the primary axis distinguishing the two groups. Habitat creation and maintenance emerged as the most influential NCP associated with this axis, followed by air quality regulation, climate regulation, material provision, and genetic resources. These variables contributed most strongly to the observed separation, indicating that differences in perceptions of regulating and provisioning services were central to structuring the multivariate patterns (Figure 4).

4 Discussion

Co-management of pirarucu fisheries has driven the recovery of ecosystem services and broader nature’s contributions to people across the western Amazon. By integrating local ecological knowledge from riverine and Indigenous communities with scientific approaches, this management system has generated robust insights into both the ecological recovery of pirarucu populations and the strengthening of associated social-ecological systems. Our findings reinforce that the combination of community-based protection and monitoring, particularly participatory population counts, and adaptive governance have enabled the sustainable regulation of harvests, leading to substantial increases in fish stocks and the restoration of aquatic ecosystems (Campos-Silva and Peres, 2016; Campos-Silva et al., 2019). At the same time, the protection of managed lakes has produced cascading ecological benefits, including the recovery of co-occurring species and the maintenance of key ecosystem functions.

Our results also show that these ecological gains are closely linked to locally perceived improvements in nature’s contributions to people. Community members consistently report enhanced food security, increased income stability, and strengthened cultural connections to aquatic environments, underscoring the multidimensional benefits of co-management systems. These perceptions align with broader frameworks that emphasize relational values and the co-production of knowledge in sustaining human–nature interactions (Díaz et al., 2018). Moreover, the participatory nature of governance, through community meetings, rule-making processes, and collective surveillance, reinforces social cohesion, local autonomy, and compliance with management rules. Together, these findings highlight that the success of pirarucu co-management extends beyond biological recovery, representing a synergistic model of conservation and development that depends on continued institutional support, equitable benefit-sharing, and the long-term strengthening of community-based conservation arrangements.

4.1 Revealing hidden benefits in social–ecological systems

Uncovering the full spectrum of benefits that humans derive from nature requires a diverse set of methodological approaches capable of capturing the complexity and multidimensionality of human–nature interactions (Scholte et al., 2015). This is particularly critical in the co-management of natural resources, such as the pirarucu fishery, where conventional evaluation frameworks often remain biased toward ecological and financial metrics. Such narrow assessments obscure a wide range of non-material benefits, including the strengthening of local identities, cultural continuity, social cohesion, and collective governance capacities (Dasgupta and Srikanth, 2020).

By explicitly incorporating local perceptions, our approach advances a more holistic understanding of conservation outcomes while also synthesizing evidence relevant to large areas of the Amazonian floodplains, revealing how ecological recovery is intertwined with social and cultural transformations. Integrating community perspectives not only complements scientific assessments but also enhances the legitimacy, inclusiveness, and effectiveness of governance systems; while drawing attention to the recognition these communities deserve as key actors in advancing more equitable and sustainable development pathways (Braga-Pereira et al., 2024).

Moreover, the recognition and valuation of these diverse benefits play a crucial role in sustaining long-term community engagement, as they reinforce motivations for participation in often demanding co-management activities. Community-based management involves considerable labor, time, and organizational costs, whereas financial returns alone are often insufficient to explain continued participation in management obligations. Under these conditions, perceived benefits at the individual, family, community, and supra-community levels play a fundamental role in sustaining long-term engagement in co-management practices. In this sense, perceived improvements in nature’s contributions to people are not merely outcomes of successful management but also key drivers of its continuity, strengthening both ecological sustainability and local livelihoods (Wiseman, 2006; Malmborg et al., 2022).

Local perceptions can also provide valuable insights into ecological changes occurring in managed systems that are not captured due to the lack of systematic monitoring systems. In our study, for example, the perceptions of experienced fishers reinforce previous studies that have demonstrated that pirarucu co-management has generated substantial benefits for local communities, particularly through socioeconomic improvements and the recovery of historically overexploited target species (Campos-Silva et al., 2018). However, our findings also reveal a broader and often overlooked suite of ecological outcomes, including the collateral recovery of Tambaqui (Colossoma macropomum), a species once heavily depleted and locally rare, but now re-established as an important source of protein and income, thereby strengthening food security. The commercialization of sustainably managed Tambaqui alongside pirarucu has further increased household revenues (Isaac et al., 2015), while the greater availability of low-value fish species, frequently consumed daily, has provided a vital nutritional buffer during periods of scarcity (Tregidgo et al., 2020). These improvements in associated fisheries likely reflect broader ecosystem-level responses to protection and management measures, whereby reduced pressure on aquatic systems and the maintenance of key habitats generate cascading benefits for non-target species. Such outcomes remain largely underappreciated when assessments focus narrowly on target species, underscoring the importance of adopting more holistic approaches to evaluate the full ecological and social impacts of co-management systems (Campos-Silva et al., 2017).

Community members have also reported the recovery of high-value timber species such as Assacú (Hura crepitans), Louro-mamuri (Ocotea cymbarum), Macacaúba (Platymiscium trinitatis), and Copaíba (Copaifera langsdorffii), which were previously subject to intense exploitation. This pattern highlights an additional cascading effect of improved governance and resource management, extending benefits beyond aquatic systems to terrestrial ecosystems and non-target species (Campos-Silva et al., 2017). The recovery of these four species is likely driven by multiple interacting mechanisms, including reduced extraction pressure in forest areas surrounding managed lakes. Because community surveillance and protection efforts often extend well beyond the lakes themselves, these initiatives effectively safeguard extensive adjacent forest areas (Rodrigues et al., 2025). As a result, co-management of fisheries may indirectly promote forest conservation, illustrating how strengthened local governance and territorial control can generate cross-ecosystem benefits within coupled social-ecological systems.

Similar patterns have been documented across diverse contexts, where local ecological knowledge has proven highly effective in predicting spatial patterns of wildlife abundance, resource distribution, and broader ecosystem dynamics (Braga-Pereira et al., 2024; Sampaio et al., 2025). Such knowledge systems, grounded in long-term, place-based interactions with the environment, often capture fine-scale ecological variations and temporal changes that may be overlooked by conventional scientific approaches. Participatory frameworks that integrate local knowledge are therefore essential for producing more comprehensive and context-sensitive conservation assessments. By incorporating the values, experiences, and priorities of local communities, these approaches not only improve the accuracy and relevance of ecological data but also enhance the governance outcomes (Hausmann et al., 2016). Ultimately, bridging local and scientific knowledge systems can strengthen adaptive management processes and contribute to more effective and equitable conservation outcomes. At the same time, we acknowledge that standardized perception-based approaches inevitably simplify complex and heterogeneous lived experiences, which remain shaped by tensions, conflicting interests, and diverse interpretations within communities.

4.2 Beyond markets: the role of non-material benefits in biodiversity-based value chains

Our results also highlight the importance of non-material contributions derived from co-management systems, which play a central role in shaping community engagement in biodiversity-based value chains. Respondents frequently associate co-management with increased social cohesion, stronger cultural identity, new learning opportunities, and the revitalization of traditional practices. These values, including trust, collective celebrations, and knowledge exchange, represent critical yet often overlooked benefits of conservation initiatives. Importantly, such non-material dimensions help explain why communities remain engaged in biodiversity-based value chains even when financial returns are limited or variable. Rather than being driven solely by income generation, participation is also motivated by a sense of belonging, cultural continuity, and collective purpose. These benefits strengthen social organization, encourage participation in collective decision-making, and reinforce the intergenerational transmission of traditional ecological knowledge, although these processes are not free from tensions, asymmetries, and internal divergences (Rodrigues et al., 2025). In this sense, co-management systems support not only biodiversity conservation but also the maintenance of socio-biodiversity, while fostering more inclusive and culturally grounded development pathways (Albuquerque et al., 2024). Recognizing these non-material drivers is therefore essential for designing policies and value chains that effectively support long-term community engagement and sustainability. This is particularly important for advancing a better understanding of sociobioeconomy, understood here as an economic model grounded in biodiversity, traditional knowledge, territorial governance, and the sustainable use of biodiversity (Vieira et al., 2024). Because initiatives grounded in the sociobioeconomy often face major challenges in generating stable and sufficient financial returns, the non-financial economies created through co-management, such as trust, reciprocity, collective identity, knowledge exchange, and cultural continuity, must be made visible and better understood as central components of their long-term viability.

4.3 Local stewardship and the neglected costs of conservation

While community-based conservation has emerged as a powerful mechanism for protecting ecosystems and sustainably managing natural resources, safeguarding extensive forest areas and critical breeding sites of historically overexploited Amazonian species is important to recognize the significant costs borne by local communities (Rodrigues et al., 2025). A key and resource-intensive component of these systems is the continuous monitoring and surveillance of large territories, which is essential for ensuring compliance and achieving positive ecological outcomes. In pirarucu co-management, communities protect oxbow lakes averaging 47.4 ha, while also generating a substantial spillover effect, safeguarding adjacent terra-firme forests averaging 11,188 ha (Rodrigues et al., 2025). This functional protection area is on average 36-fold larger than the directly managed area, demonstrating that the ecological footprint of community stewardship far exceeds the scale of financial returns (Rodrigues et al., 2025). This highlights the broader territorial impact of community-led governance, extending well beyond managed fishing areas. Crucially, many of these conservation benefits are underpinned by strong local organizations and sustained community surveillance efforts, forms of stewardship that are rarely accounted for or compensated by conventional market mechanisms. As a result, these conservation gains come at considerable social and economic costs, disproportionately carried by Indigenous Peoples and local communities. Quantifying this burden, surveillance expenditures represent approximately 32% of total management costs and can account for up to 50% of the operating costs of fishing, imposing a 21% negative impact on the net income of participating families (Saes et al., 2023; Rodrigues et al., 2025).

These figures reflect important trade-offs, since the time dedicated to 24/7 surveillance represents a significant opportunity cost, diverting labor from horticulture and subsistence farming, for example (Rodrigues et al., 2025). Furthermore, in addition to institutional challenges, there are critical financial costs. During surveillance work, community members often face high physical and psychological strain and the constant threat of violent hostilities from poachers (Saes et al., 2023; Rodrigues et al., 2025). Crucially, explicit recognition of these costs and the need for trade-offs does not weaken the community-based conservation (CBC) model; instead, it strengthens its long-term sustainability, proving that the benefits go far beyond market metrics (Saes et al., 2023).

Alternative sources of financial and institutional support, such as payments for ecosystem services or compensation for conservation efforts, may help recognize the global benefits generated by local conservation actions (Ezzine-De-Blas et al., 2016; Akers and Yasué, 2019). Investments in community infrastructure, territorial surveillance, and governance institutions can significantly strengthen conservation outcomes and increase the resilience of local management systems (Nieratka et al., 2015; Osewe et al., 2023). Policies that recognize and support community-led conservation initiatives are therefore essential for sustaining co-management systems and strengthening partnerships between local communities and external institutions (Villamayor-Tomas and García-López, 2018). Acknowledging these burdens represents an important step towards the implementation of cost-sharing and compensation mechanisms to ensure the long-term functioning and resilience of these systems (Saes et al., 2023; Rodrigues et al., 2025). Strengthening local stewardship is essential not only to alleviate the burden of conservation but also to enable the expansion of successful co-management models across the Amazon, aligning conservation outcomes with principles of social and environmental justice.

5 Conclusion

Biodiversity conservation and wellbeing of local communities are often framed as competing objectives, yet our findings add to a growing body of evidence showing that, under effective community-based governance, these goals can be mutually reinforced in the Amazon (Naughton-Treves et al., 2005; Fischer and Riechers, 2019; Brondizio et al., 2021). Community-based management of pirarucu not only supports the recovery of historically overexploited species and the protection of floodplain ecosystems but also generates a diverse portfolio of material and non-material benefits that underpin local well-being. These include increased fisheries productivity, enhanced food security, strengthened social cohesion, and the preservation and transmission of traditional ecological knowledge. Importantly, the cascading ecological effects observed across aquatic and terrestrial systems highlight the broader impact of co-management in sustaining socio-ecological resilience. However, the persistence and scalability of these outcomes depend on addressing structural challenges faced by local communities, including limited infrastructure, unequal market conditions, and pressures from illegal activities. Ensuring long-term success will require sustained institutional support, targeted investments in community governance and territorial surveillance, and the development of policies that recognize and reward local stewardship. Ultimately, empowering Indigenous Peoples and local communities as central actors in conservation is both a matter of social justice and a prerequisite for achieving durable biodiversity conservation and resilient livelihoods across the Amazon.

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Footnotes

Edited by: Glenn H. Shepard, Emílio Goeldi Paraense Museum, Brazil

Reviewed by: Carlos Fausto, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro Programa de Pos-Graduacao em Antropologia Social, Brazil

Rafael Feltran-Barbieri, World Resources Institute, United States