Revista Chilena de Historia Natural 84 (2): 155-160, 2011
The involvement of naturalists: Introduction to the Special Feature “Applying
ecology”
This article firstly introduces the Special Feature “Applying Ecology”,
addressing the use of ecological information for dealing with conservation and environmental problems in Chile. This is
part of a series of special features in Revista Chilena de Historia Natural, intended for exploring the contribution of
naturalists in making sound decisions in social-environmental planning. However, the low involvement of Chilean biologists
has become a factor potentially affecting the quality of environmental decisions and policies, and increasing the chance
of unwanted results, which raises some open questions about ethics. In such a context, the second part of the article
analyzes the issue of involvement from different perspectives, considering its causes and consequences at individual and
collective levels.
Key words:
conservation
biology, ecology, ethics, occupational identity, society
