Spatial optimization approaches that were originally developed to help conservation organizations determine protection decisions over small spatial scales are now used to inform global or continental scale priority setting. However, the different decision contexts involved in large‐scale resource allocation need to be considered. We present a continuous optimization approach in which a decision‐maker allocates funding to regional offices. Local decision‐makers then use these funds to implement habitat protection efforts with varying effectiveness when evaluated in terms of the funder's goals. We illustrate this continuous formulation by examining the relative priority that should be given to different counties in the coterminous United States when acquiring land to establish new protected areas. If weighting all species equally, counties in the southwest United States, where large areas can be bought cheaply, are priorities for protection. If focusing only on species of conservation concern, priorities shift to locations rich in such species, particularly near expanding exurban areas facing high rates of future habitat conversion (e.g., south‐central Texas). Priorities for protection are sensitive to what is assumed about local ecological and decision‐making processes. For example, decision‐makers who doubt the efficacy of local land protection efforts should focus on a few key areas, while optimistic decision‐makers should disperse funding more widely. Efforts to inform large‐scale conservation priorities should reflect better the types of choice that decision‐makers actually face when working over these scales. They also need to report the sensitivity of recommended priorities to what are often unstated assumptions about local processes affecting conservation outcomes.

中文翻译：

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通过持续优化为土地保护分配资源：美国的生物多样性保护。

最初开发用于帮助保护组织在较小的空间尺度上确定保护决策的空间优化方法现在用于通知全球或大陆尺度的优先级设置。但是，需要考虑大规模资源分配中涉及的不同决策环境。我们提出了一种持续优化的方法，决策者将资金分配给区域办事处。然后，当根据资助者的目标进行评估时，地方决策者将利用这些资金以不同的有效性实施栖息地保护工作。我们通过考察在获得土地以建立新的保护区时应给予相邻美国不同县的相对优先权，来说明这种连续的表述。如果将所有物种均等地加权，在美国西南部的县，可以廉价地买到大片土地，是保护的重点。如果仅关注保护物种，则重点将转移到此类物种丰富的地区，尤其是在扩展的郊区地区附近，这些地区面临着更高的未来生境转化率（例如德克萨斯州中南部）。保护的优先次序对当地生态和决策过程的假设敏感。例如，对地方土地保护工作的有效性存有疑问的决策者应将注意力集中在几个关键领域，而乐观的决策者应将资金分散得更广泛。告知大规模保护重点的工作应更好地反映决策者在这些规模上工作时实际面临的选择类型。