In a study concerning the effectiveness of a participatory management framework in Protected Areas (PAs) in which are located in areas with strong state-based environmental management, the study states, "From an environmental perspective, there is evidence that involvement of a community in the management of a PA can result to a more effective management of biodiversity" (e.g. Blomley et al., 2008). This is mainly because participatory management frameworks promote sustainable management practices (Berkes et al., 2003). From a socio-economic perspective, a major benefit is the increase of social acceptability levels for specific protection frameworks (Stoll-Kleemann and Welp, 2008). Furthermore, the application of 'softer' and participatory management tools may assist in local economic development through, for example, eco-tourism activities and minimization of social conflicts (Misra and Kant, 2004, Chowdhury and Koike, 2010, Nuggehalli and Prokopy, 2009, Nayak and Berkes, 2008, Sandstrom and Widmark, 2007, Matose, 2006 and Jones et al., 2012a). In addition, participatory management allows the use of local values and knowledge for the management of a specific area of high biodiversity value in combination with scientific information (Berkes, 2004)."