The Role Of Public Education In Knowledge And Management Of Invasive Alien Species In The China-Myanmar Border Region

Biological invasions are one of the major contents and causes of global environmental changes.Invasive alien species(IAS)are introduced into the new environment through natural and/or man-made ways across geographical barriers,which has a significant impact on natural and socio-economic systems,threatens biodiversity and ecosystem health,and causes serious losses in agricultural and forestry sectors.The management of IAS is a complex task but also an important part of ecological environment and social livelihood.At present,the related research on IAS mainly focused on ecology,lack of knowledge on both ecology and sociology,and no further analysis of the role of public education in knowledge and management of IAS.In this study,we chose the China-Myanmar border region in the western Yunnan Province,southwestern China,as the study area,and focused on the typical invasive plant Mikania micrantha.Two municipalities(Baoshan and Dehong),6 counties,27 townships,83 villages(or communities),and 1001 people were involved.We conducted key informant interviews and household questionnaires to collect information and data.Key informant interviews were used to collect the information about public educational approaches local people was familiar with or often adopted.Household questionnaires were used to collect information on the socio-demographic characteristics of the respondents,respondent knowledge and management of M.micrantha,and public educational approaches they were familiar with or often adopted.The chi-square test was used to analyze the differences of M.micrantha knowledge and management between managers and the ordinary people,and the binary logistic regression was used to analyze the influences of social demographic factors and public educational approaches on the public knowledge and management of M.micrantha.The main results showed:(1)the public people in the study area had a high-level knowledge and management of M.micrantha,and the socio-demographic factors were significant predictors in different aspects;(2)the levels of manager knowledge and management of M.micrantha were significantly higher than that of the ordinary people;(3)public education could bridge the gap between managers and the ordinary people in M.micrantha knowledge and management,and effectively improve public knowledge and management.Moreover,promotional materials and training workshops were more effective than personal experience,and training workshops performed the best.Our results suggested that the conduction of public educational approaches was an effective management strategy.Targeted education based on training workshops could promote communication between managers and the ordinary people,bridge M.micrantha knowledge and management gaps between different public groups,and improve the public knowledge and management of IAS.The results of this study provide an important theoretical significance and practical value for the long-term management of IAS.