'Everything is protected now, but who protects the local people?': local ecological knowledge of Kihnu Island

The chapter focuses on a small island in the Baltic Sea, Kihnu, whose culture is a UNESCO protected heritage, while the islets and the sea surrounding the island, as well as the semi-natural areas on the island, are largely protected for nature. We examined the effect of nature conservation and preservation on various traditional activities and conclude that restrictions have a significant impact on the lives of local residents - it is forbidden to go to meadows and to collect waterfowl eggs, and the hunting of seals and fishing are highly regulated. In the last few decades, most of the island’s fishermen have discontinued their work, and young people no longer want to do this job. Nevertheless, the locals have a very intimate relationship with waterfowl. We suggest that nature conservation and local ecological knowledge should be considered together in order to find better solutions to preserve the biocultural diversity of the island.