Participation on protected area management: The case of Goreme Historical National Park

The aim of the study was to establish the model of participatory management for protected areas in Türkiye in the case of Göreme Historical National Park. For this purpose, initially the suitability of the protected area management system in Türkiye were evaluated to participatory approaches. Then leading stakeholder groups? point of views and knowledge levels related to participation approach were determined by the interrogation methods in Göreme Historical National Park.Stakeholder analysis through participatory rural appraisal approach was carried out and key stakeholder groups were determined. Conflicts and solutions to these conflicts perceived by key stakeholder groups in the research area were determined by using fuzzy cognitive mapping method. Fuzzy cognitive maps were assessed by graph theory analyses.As a result of the study, participatory management model was developed for protected areas of our country in accordance with the process carried out by the case study of Göreme Historical National Park.