Abstract
It is increasingly important to identify and understand unique local conservation practices in order to formulate 'bottom up' conservation measures in geoparks. In this presentation I analyze three case studies from Izu Peninsula Geopark as ‘ecological commons’: the Kannami forest preserved by a local decree since the Edo Period, the Kakitagawa Spring River conserved by citizens' movements, and the Omuroyama scoria cone where the local society devised an ingenious way to protect the mountain from visitor impact. The study shows that the diversity of 'commons' is an important social capital and holds great promise for sustainable resource management in geoparks.
