Appraising geodiversity and cultural diversity approaches to building resilience through conservation

There is no single way of increasing climate resilience that works in all locations and circumstances. This Perspective examines two current approaches to climate-resilient conservation projects that draw on insights from the Earth sciences. A cultural diversity approach has long been used by conservation organizations with large and well-trained personnel, whereas a geodiversity approach is gaining support as a way to undertake large-scale conservation planning using readily available tools. Because the two approaches are not inherently incompatible with each other, and have complementary strengths and weaknesses, land trust project managers should take advantage of both approaches to achieve their local goals. This Perspective draws on two case studies to examine geodiversity and cultural diversity approaches to conservation currently used by US land trusts, and their complementary strengths and weaknesses in fostering climate resilience.