Urban dwellers' perception of biodiversity: The case of Ankara city

Biodiversity conservation is a multidimensional processin volving a combination of ecological, socio-economic, political and cultural dynamics. In this process, factors suchasin come level, education level, need for resources, resourceutilisation and consumption habits, social perception and a wareness, local traditional know ledge play a decisive role. The sensitivity of individuals and society on biodiversity directly affects the effectiveness of conservation efforts. With in the scope of this thes is, the biodiversity perception of the society in Ankara province was examined by face-to-face survey method. The data collected from 400 participant sthrough question nairesrevealed that in dividuals' perception of biodiversity showed signifi cant differences depending on socio-demographic variables such as gender, age, income level and education level. The findings show that as age in creases, individuals' know ledge and interest in biodiversity increases, andthe in crease in income level contribu testo a more conscious and sensitive approach. In addition, as the level of education in creases, it was observed that individuals stated that a wareness-rais in gactivities are more effective than direct protection measures, thus, it was concluded that there is a tendency to wardsraising public a warenessrather than in creasing protection measures. The findings of this study, which reveal the perception of individuals to wards biodiversity in the province of Ankara, show that socio-demographic factors such as gender, age, education level and in come are the main factors that should be taken in to consideration when developing strategies for the protection of biodiversity. As a result, it can be suggested that the sefactors should be considered separatelyand plans should be made accordingly in order to in crease the effectiveness of biodiversity conservation activities in the region. Keywords: Forest, society, perception, biodiversity, Ankara