How can wildlife be effectively protected in landscapes increasingly shaped by human activity? And why is conservation today no longer just a matter of ecology, but also of values, perceptions, and societal choices? These questions will be explored in an upcoming seminar at the Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague.
This Thursday, Anna Lena Burger-Schulz from Justus Liebig University Giessen (Germany), affiliated with the Endowed Professorship for Human-Animal Studies, will present her lecture “Wildlife in a Human-Dominated World: Between Conflict, Conservation, and Values.”
The talk addresses the ongoing biodiversity crisis, largely driven by human activities, and the increasing interactions—and conflicts—between people and wildlife that result from it. As human influence over landscapes grows, conservation challenges extend far beyond ecological considerations.
Using examples such as giraffes and beavers, the lecture will demonstrate how animal welfare in the wild can be scientifically assessed, while also showing how these assessments are shaped by human perceptions and decisions.
A key part of the talk will introduce the concept of wildlife value orientations, explaining why people interpret the same ecological situations in fundamentally different ways—and why this often leads to disagreement over conservation approaches.
The seminar highlights the importance of integrating biological knowledge with a deeper understanding of human values and societal perspectives in order to achieve effective and sustainable conservation outcomes.
The seminar is organized by the Department of Wildlife and Animal Sciences and is open to all students and staff of the Faculty.