Organizations that manage protected areas often lack scientists to conduct research and inform management. The resulting involvement of external scientists from international universities, non-governmental organizations or other research bodies has raised concerns that some protected area research might not reflect local priorities or involve local researchers – a phenomenon called parachute science. Write in the Journal of Applied EcologySmit and colleagues assessed the prevalence of parachute science among published research studies conducted in three national parks: Kruger National Park (South Africa), Nahuel Huapi National Park (Argentina), and Kakadu National Park ( Australia).
Other findings from Smit et al. revealed the potential benefits of collaboration between national and international researchers for research visibility, productivity and funding. However, the authors caution that the high percentage of articles involving national researchers but not representatives of protected area management agencies could represent “park parachuting”, in which the exclusion of agencies limits the ability of research to inform management practices.