Click here for the Welsh translationA Toolkit for Consensus Building in Countryside Recreation
Best of Both Worlds promotes consensus building in the management of recreation in the countryside by proposing an approach to conflict resolution which is based on voluntary agreements and successful negotiation.
It will have particular relevance when considering whether to use legal mechanisms to limit recreational use, such as through Traffic Regulation Orders or restrictions over open access land, and where permission for recreational activities is withheld and the reasons for doing so are challenged.
The approach recognises that most recreation co-exists with other legitimate activities in the countryside (often as a result of positive management and agreement, but also often on a de facto basis – as with a lot of canoeing activity on rivers) but that, from time to time, problems can be encountered which sometimes prove difficult to resolve, especially where positions become entrenched.
The conflict may not be primarily with conservation site managers but with other user groups. Early communication and consultation amongst interested parties can help avoid people adopting fixed positions.
- 2. Potential for Conflict
- 2 a .On Land
- 2 b .On Water
- 2 c .In the Air
