Introduction

The seventeenth SDG, entitled “Revitalizing the global partnership for sustainable development”, involves building partnerships at all levels (i.e., global, regional, national and local) as a means of facilitating successful achievement of the rest of the sixteen goals. Today, this collaboration is more necessary than ever so as to ensure that countries have the means to recover from the Covid 19 pandemic and achieve the SDGs. This is especially applicable to developing countries that have been most affected due to the lack of sanitary facilities and means. Therefore, it is essential to promote partnerships at all levels between the different stakeholders in this context, such as private companies, NGOs and local and national authorities, as well as civil society. Efficient partnerships are very important at the business level for example. Efficient implementing efficient SDG strategies will help companies to better develop their CSR strategies, helping to reducing risks, promote the identification of risks as well as innovative developments (Diaz-Iglesias et al., 2021)

In this article, a brief theoretical background on stakeholder management will firstly be presented. The hypothesis will be presented as to whether the existing theory of stakeholder management that takes only humans into account, should be extended to include non-human stakeholders. This “extended” version of the definition of a project stakeholder can benefit the achievement of the SDGs, providing a more global perspective, especially for those SDGs that involve the protection of specific natural resources, such as SDG 14 “Life below water”and SDG 15. “Life on land”. This article examines this hypothesis in the context of SDG 14 using a bottlenose dolphin conservation project as the basis for empirical work.

Contextual Framework

Stakeholder management is a topic that has gained momentum in the research world since 2005, although the earliest research dates back to the early 1960s. A project stakeholder or “stakeholder” is defined as “any group or individual who can affect or be affected by the achievement of the organization's objectives” (Freeman, 1984). What is very important in a project is for all of its stakeholders to be identified, prioritized (with respect to their power and influence on the project), and mapped on what is known as a stakeholder map.

What is important to highlight if that Freeman´s stakeholder definition presently only makes reference to human beings and groups of human beings, and research is presently being carried out with respect to whether Freeman´s (1984) stakeholder theory could be extended to non-human entities.

There are many authors who are against the inclusion of non-human actors in the stakeholder map of projects. An example of a non-human actor is the environment and natural resources on which so many companies depend for the conception and development of their projects (Driscoll & Starik, 2004). The question here is whether the natural environment should be considered as a project stakeholder? Still today there is some reluctance on the part of academics on this point. Driscoll & Starik (n.d) argue that “although most stakeholder theories have progressed to the point where the natural environment is given stakeholder status, some scholars remain reluctant to include the natural environment as one of the… primary stakeholders.”

Companies that tend to overlook the importance of the environment as a stakeholder often place it low on the stakeholder register (Driscoll & Starik, 2004; Nasi et al, 1993). Furthermore, there are other researchers that seem to think that the global economic system and the environment are independent of each other. According to these authors, this statement is applicable regardless of whether or not the environment is the main actor in the project. If the environment is not included as a project stakeholder, monetary losses could possibly be incurred for many institutions.

This article will analyse the inclusion of non-human actors through the evaluation of environmental conservation projects. Most of these projects have a complex stakeholder panorama. Firstly, the final beneficiary or client of these projects, who is often their main (non-human) actor, may not be fully defined or capable of expression and therefore it may be difficult to determine how the project can benefit them. If these primary stakeholders are not properly accounted for, it will be very difficult to determine which project goals and methods will best benefit them. In consequence, these primary non-human (Fauna, flora, and ecosystem) actors are often overlooked in projects and thereby their interest may not be properly considered. Finally, the wide range of human and non-human stakeholders (multiplicity of stakeholders) with multiple interests that can exist in a project can lead to eventual conflicts. These complex stakeholder contexts are evident in case studies such as the river otter in Missouri, USA (Goedeke & Rikoon, 2004) and the Moor frog (although in this study the frog was a secondary actor) (Tryggestad et al., 2013).

The study analysed in this article is a conservation project for the Bottlenose Dolphin in the Norman-Breton Gulf in France. Their goal of the conservation project is to study the sedentary population of the species, which is the largest population of sedentary bottlenose dolphins in Europe. Furthermore, this case study presents a very interesting stakeholder context, where we are able to perceive conflicts of interest between NGOs, regional and national government authorities, recreational and commercial fishermen, among others.

Projects carried out in the marine environment such as this study pose challenges that go beyond national borders. It is for this reason that the resolution of large-scale environmental challenges has to involve a wide variety of stakeholders, comprising not only governments (national and regional), but also non-state stakeholders such as non-governmental organizations and private companies. Although a multi-stakeholder partnership context may seem ideal to solve these environmental problems as suggested by Sustainable Development Goal 17, governance conflicts at different levels are possible, especially when the mission of the project involves a primary non-human actor.

This article will explore the stakeholder context of a dolphin conservation project by including them as a project stakeholder in stakeholder analyses, using a number of conventional project stakeholder analysis tools (to be described further below in the Research Methodology section). In the results and discussion sections, the results of the different analyses and the general trends extracted from the study will be presented.

Research Methodology

A case study approach to data collection was adopted using a literature review and semi-structured interviews. The interview process was carried out between November 2019 and April 2020. In total, 19 different stakeholders were interviewed. Those interviewed included public officials with environmental responsibilities, fishermen's associations, NGOs, and university professors. The interviews were conducted and transcribed in French and the data obtained was subsequently analysed for the subsequent development of narratives.

The interview process was carried out between November 2019 and April 2020. In total, 19 different stakeholders were interviewed. Those interviewed included public officials with environmental responsibilities, fishermen's associations, NGOs, and university professors. The interviews were conducted and transcribed in French and the data obtained was subsequently analysed for the subsequent development of narratives.

The 21 semi-structured interview questions covered (1) the context and background of the interviewed stakeholders, (2) their knowledge of the case study, (3) their knowledge of how to analyse project stakeholder management, (4) their perception of the role of the dolphin in the project, and (5) their perspective on the level of power and interest of the different project stakeholders, including the dolphin.

Stakeholder analyses were first based on the development of a stakeholder register (Table 1), which encompassed: (1) Stakeholder contact information, (2) Stakeholder classification information (that is, about their main expectations regarding the project, whether they were internal or external to the project, as well as whether they were supporters, opponents or neutral), (3) Problems regarding the project, and (4) Solutions to those identified problems.

Power-interest (PI) matrices were developed to collect the information collected in the different interviews. This tool allows the categorization of stakeholders according to their level of power and interest in the project. This exercise was carried out to assess the degree of power and interest of the main categories of stakeholders such as universities, NGOs and fishermen, as well as the role of the dolphin in the project.

Results

The analysed bottlenose dolphin case study aimed to study and preserve the sedentary Norman-Breton population of the species, which is the largest sedentary population in Europe. The main objective of the project is to collect scientific data to better understand this population of dolphins.

From the information obtained from the interviews, a stakeholder register was developed as shown below (Table 1). For each of the identified stakeholders, their identification details were recorded, along with their main expectations and problems they might have regarding the project, as well as possible solutions to these problems. It is important to note here that the dolphin was not included in the registry as they were not interviewed.

Table 1 Summary Version Of Bottlenose Dolphin Project Stakeholder Register
			Stakeholder Classification		Problems experienced by these stakeholders	Solutions to these problems
	Organization	Location	Main Expectations	Defender / Neutral / Opponent	Problems experienced by these stakeholders	Solutions to these problems
1	GECC	Normandie	Wants his organization to become more scientifically sound though the collection of scientific data. He of course wants the running of his organization to continue and this is by the consecution of funding, etc., and adequate stakeholder management.	Defender	Problem of funding, problem in getting support from certain stakeholders such as the fishermen and the collaboration with other fellow conservation NGOs. Resources to effectuate the different project activities are also limiting ..	Continue reaching out to funding bodies. Continue networking to get more allies and in this way improve the probability of getting more funding.
2	GECC and University of Montpelier	Montpelier	Interested in completing her PhD thesis; in compiling and analising the PhD data in collaboration with the GECC.	Defender	Problem is more research-related and data collection.	Continue working on data collection and continuing her PhD research.
3	GECC	Normandie	Assuring the smooth running of the organization and ensuring the NGOs that funding is sustainable.	Defender	All the problems related directly to the organization´s survival and the problem of funding.	Improve networking skills and reaching out to funding boties to get project financing from the AFB and other bodies.
4	AFB	Paris	Wants to protect the population of dolphins in the Norman-Breton Gulf. He wants to ensure the running of the dolphin project in the long term, and therefore the continuation of the dolphin protection measures.  He would also like the two NGOs working in the area to work together and collaborate, which is not the case 100% at the moment.	Defender	Ensuring that there is funding for the project and collaboration between the two NGOs that work with dolphin conservation in the area. Also ensuring that the Norman-Breton dolphin project continues long term as a conservation priority as after all it is Europe´s largest sedentary bottlenose dolphin presentation.	Continue funding of the AFB for the Bottlenose dolphin project and organise meetings between the NGOs that work with dolphin conservation. . Perhaps even go visit the project, which he has not done to date.
5	AFB  -  Antenne de Granville	Granville	She would like more Site Natura 2000 to be created in the area, and therefore looks for greater collaboration between the different stakeholders surrounding the project such as the fishermen, the NGOs, etc.	Defender	Supports the dolphin project.  The main problems for her is to ensure collaboration between the different stakeholders involved in the creation of the Natura 2000 sites in Normandie. This is a challenge, especially when trying to get the fishermen´s support.	Continue with the staging of more meetings between the different stakeholders involved in the developent of the Natura 2000 sites.
6	CRESCO - Station Biologique de Dinard	Dinard	External to the project, however he supports the project holding organization  in its scientific work.	Defender	The main problem is outside the scope of the bolttlenose dolphin project in Normandie and deals more with the management of the CRESCO/marine station. He wants to ensure that the marine station becomes a founded structure as regards to scienfitic research.	With regrad to the Dinard marine station, the director will need to continue with his current management strategy.  With regard to the bottlenose dolphin project, the CRESCO could provide the project with scientific expertise or resources.
7	Researcherat the University of Montpelier	Montpelier	Very interested in helping organizations with their conservation projects (i.e., especially with population analyses). Interested in the smooth running of the project to ensure the correct collection of the data.	Defender	The obtention of data and negotiation with the different stakeholders to ensure that everyone is on the same page. This is especially the case with the project holding organizations like the GECC.  Allignment is needed to ensure that the right scientific data is collected.	More meetings with the project holding organizations and agree on the data gathering protocols so that data collection methods will be uniform. This will consequently help the analyses with regards to the Norman-Breton dolphin population in order to better inform the different stakeholders that surround the dolphin project such as the offshore windshore farm construction companies.
8	Entreprise des éoliens en baie de Seine	Normandie	The main interest  is for his offshore windmill project to become a reality because it hasn´t been implemented yet. He is interested in collaborating with the GECC for the sake of the environmentlal impact assessemnt, to ensure that the GECC as a stakeholder supports the project of the building of the offshore wind farm.	Neutral/ Opponent	The director´s main objective is the EIA assessment and ensuring that all is ready for the construction of the offshore wind turbines. His main problem in doing this is to get everyone to negotiate and to gather all of the information from all stkaeholders including the GECC. .	Continue carrying out meetings with the different stakeholders affected/or affecting the offshore windmill construction project. With regard to the  dolphins in the Norman-Breton gulf, the director is missing out on information. There are still a lot of caveats in the information as to how the implementation and the operations of the offshore windfarms will affect the dollphins. Perhaps more communication and a grater degree of tranparency as regard to the company will help the acceptance of this project from certain stakeholder groups.
9	GECC	Cherbourg	She has been helping the GECC out for the last 7 months although her collaboration with the GECC ended this month of February. She is interested in the smooth running of the projects in order to ensure their long-term existence. Furthermore, she wants the project to go well to be able to continue with the photo-identification analyses of the dolphins.	Defender	The main problem that Prune experienced during the 7-8 months that she helped the GECC is the actual work of photo-identification of the dolphins.	Continue the photography activities of the dolphins and promote the ObsenMer project promoted by the GECC.
10	APAM	Cherbourg	Main interest , now thathe is retired is recreational fishing. No real interest in the project.	Neutral / Opponent	The main problem is for their hobby which is  recreational fishing to be recognised. Greater general awareness is therefore needed for the latter,	Continue the awareness activities and encourage more meetings iwth the town halls etc.
11	Association Al-Lark	La Rochelle	The scope of the work of Al-Lark coincides with that of the GECC as they both are looking into protecting the dolphin.	Defender	One of the main problems os Al-Lark is actually ensuring funding for the survival of the oganization. Furthermore, the organization wants to develop further its scientific research potential.	As regards to the funding, perhaps apply for grants from other organizations, and not only rely for funding from memberships and boat trips. This way the Al- Lark staff will be able to spend more time on the scientific research activities. Furthermore, more meetings should be promoted between Al-Lark and the GECC to ensure that they start working better together towards a common cause.
12	Association des Plaissanciers deu port de la cote des Iles	Normandie	As president of his recreational fishing association, he looks into protecting his hobby first of all. However, he is also very much aware of the importance of nature conservation. He is also involved in the negotiations for the creation of the Site Natura 2000.	Defender	Distanced from the bottlenose dolphin project in Normandie, His main problems is raising awareness among different stakeholders about their recreational fishing technique .	Continue the awareness activities and encourage more meetings with the town halls etc.
13	Association des Plaissanciers et pecheurs a pied de la cote ouest	Normandie	Joel is very much external to the project  and does not really have an interest in the latter.	Opponent	Joel is very distanced from the actual dolphin project.	Organization of meetings for the recreational fishermen to show that the dolphins are really not the ones to blame for the potencial lack of fish. However with regard specifically to the project, no specific actions should be endeavoured.
14	OFB	Le Havre	Supports the conservation of the Norman-Breton Gulf dolphin population and of the creation of the Sites Natura 2000.	Defender	The biggest problem is actually trying to get everyone onboard the creation of the Natura 2000 sites.	More meetings with all of the different stakeholders including the fishermen (professional and recreational fishermen).
15	CRPMEM in Normandy	Normandie	Her main interest at the moment is the creation of the Sites Natura 2000.	Defender	Has been working on the creation of Natura 2000 sites and dealing wth a varied range of stakeholders. One of the main challenges that she needs to deal with is the problem is dealing with the fishermen.	Continue the organixation of meetings with the different stakeholders that are in one way or another affected or affect the development of the Natura 2000 sites in the Norman-Breton area.
16	Pôle des Affaires Maritimes, “Center for Maritime affaires	Normandie	Doesn´t have a very good perception of the dolphin and the concept of dolphin conservation in the Norman-Breton area.  He considers that the area would be the same without dolphins. His main interest, with regards to his job is working with the professional fishermen and putting into place the different laws etc.	Opponent	Difficulty to get everyone onboard new legal norms with regards to fishing etc. As regards to the actual dolphin project, there is really no problem as he doesn´t consider the presence of the dolphins as necessary and argues that the area wiould be the same without dolphins.  There also seems to be a lack of awareness from his part as regards to the bottlenose dolphin project.	Organise more meetings between Sebastian and the conservation organizations to demonstrate to him the importance of the Norman-Breton bottlenose dolphin population. This way he will be able to instruct his teams accodingly,
17	Independent	Bretagne	External to the project, Supports the concept of nature conervation. However as regards to the actual dolphin project, he doesn´t really have an opinion on the latter.	Defender	External to the project, he really does not have any problem with the project,	Continue the awareness activities and encourage more meetings iwth the town halls etc.
18	Guernsey Biological Records Centre	Guernsey	Admires the work of the GECC and supports the project fully. As regards to the project her task is to share her organization´s data with the GECC. At the level of her own organization, her main objective is to ensure that her organization has enough funds to survive and carry out its projects.	Defender	The main problem that she is facing at the moment is really pushing forward and making her organization progress. With regard to the project, the real challenge that she has is time management and finding the time to send the GECC Jersey´s bottlenose dolphin data,	Increase the communication between the Biological Records Center amd the GECC. This will perhaps encourage her to send her dolphin data to the GECC.
19	Jersey Seafaris Ltd.	Jersey	Interested in continuing with the organization´s environmental recreational boat trip activities. Supports the project as having dolphins in the area is always a plus. .	Defender	The main problem here is to ensure that the environment is protected (i.e. and the dolphins as well)	No real solution needed - continuation of communication between the GECC and Jersey Seafaris Ltd.

In the interviews, the different stakeholders were asked to position the stakeholders listed below in a Power-Interest (PI) matrix.

• Members of the organization that owns the project (that is, the GECC)

• NGOs/Whale Watching Companies

• Universities

• Regional government

• National government

• Commercial fishermen

• Recreational anglers

• Renewable energy companies

• Funders

An extensive cross-analysis of the PI matrices mentioned above was then carried out. These results have been previously published by the authors in an article entitled "Sustainable Development Goal 17 - Revitalizing the Global Alliance, illustrated through a Marine Conservation Case Study carried out in Normandy, France” Feasibility Analysis of Sustainable Development Goal 17: A Multi-Stakeholder Governance Approach") which was published in the Academy of Strategic Management Journal in 2021. Interviewees were also asked to rate the level of power and interest of the bottlenose dolphin in the project, together with the position of the other actors as can be seen in Figure 2, which, as an example, shows the perspective of the Jersey whale watching company

In Figure 2, it is possible to see how the members of the GECC, state governments and universities, etc., considered the role of the bottlenose dolphin in the project.

As we can see in Figure 2, most of the stakeholders interviewed (NGOs, GECC, FBOs, recreational fishermen and the universities) considered the dolphins to have a high degree of interest in the project, and varying degrees of power in the project. In total, 16 of 19 interviewees carried out the dolphin Power-Interest mapping exercise. Numerical data were collected from fourteen stakeholders, considering that two stakeholders considered that it was pointless to include non-human actors in the PI matrices. These two interviewees had a scientific profile; the first was the representative of the fishing committee and the second one of the members of the OFB (i.e., the project funders). One perspective to highlight was that of the representative from the Normandy Marine Affairs Centre, who, despite having considered the dolphins to have a high level of power and interest, communicated in the interview that the dolphins were not of much economic or commercial interest.

Interviewees were also asked if they considered that the dolphin should be considered a project stakeholder. The results obtained from 19 interviewees are shown below:

Table 2 Quantitative Results Of The Perception Of Interviewees To The Question As To Whether Dolphins Should Be Considered To Be Project Stakeholders
“Yes, they should be considered as project stakeholders”	“No, they shouldn´t be considered as project stakeholders”	There was no answer from the interviewees o the interviewees felt that they could not answer the question.
9	4	6

Discussion

In projects where primary non-human actors have a leading role, it is very important to be able to clearly define their status and role. In this study, the main non-human actor was the bottlenose dolphin, its conservation being the main objective of the project. Figure 1 shows that most of the interviewed stakeholders supported the project. Despite this majority support, the project is currently experiencing a series of obstacles that hinder its execution.

1. Conflicts of interest between the different conservation organizations working on bottlenose dolphin conservation

2. The development of wind farm projects in the region.

3. The lack of support from both recreational and commercial professionals, as well as the existing conflicts of interest between the two.

4. The international context of the project, which may have regulatory implications due to Brexit.

At this point in the article, the question that could be asked is whether this context could be improved if the main non-human stakeholder of the project, the bottlenose dolphin, were included in the stakeholder map?

At present there is still some reticence on the part of academics regarding this notion. Driscoll & Starik (2004) argue that “although most stakeholder theories have progressed to the point where the environment is given stakeholder status, some scholars continue to balk at this idea”. In addition, companies have shown reluctance to this notion, and thus tend to overlook the importance of the environment as a stakeholder and thus place it low on the stakeholder list (Driscoll & Starik, 2004; Nasi et al., 1993).

The main problem with the notion of extending current project stakeholder management theory to include non-human actors is that it can be controversial considering the fact that non-human actors cannot express themselves verbally or communicate how they feel and feel. they think. Therefore, it is essential to find a way to best represent the dolphins so as to account for their position. One way to do the latter would be to have a human stakeholder (person or group of persons) represent the dolphins. In this sense, perhaps it could be thought that scientists could be the best representatives and interlocutors of dolphins due to all the scientific information they possess and handle. This is the current case of this project since the GECC is the interested party that collects the information on the dolphins and passes it on to the Office Française de la Biodiversité (OFB) who are also the funders of the project. In this study, the scientists (i.e., universities and NGOs) could perhaps be considered to be the best interlocutors to explain the role of dolphins in the project, since their position is based on rigid scientific experimentation and observation The 2030 Agenda Accelerator seeks to “help effectively develop partnerships in favour of the SDGs”. A systematic approach concurrent with this goal would be to develop laws that effectively integrate sustainability. The question of this study is whether, in order to achieve SDG 17, non-human actors should be part of the projects' stakeholder maps, when they are the object on which the project's mission is based. This could be applicable, for example, to SDG 14 (Life below water) and 15 (Life on land). Therefore, is it possible to manage a stakeholder whose identification and definition is somewhat subjective, especially when that stakeholder is not capable of expressing itself?

As projects are executed, different alliances of interests may be created among the different project stakeholders. Such alliances of interests may then become an impediment when trying to manage the primary non-human actors creating more noise and potentially obstructing the execution of project objectives, and this is the case in the dolphin project (Bulmer & Del Prado-Higuera, 2021). The conservation of the bottlenose dolphin is currently affected by a series of very varied problems (listed here):

1. Conflicts between different conservation organizations in the area meant that data collection was not as effective as it could have been. This collected scientific data is key for the OFB to be able to develop more adequate laws and regulations to better conserve the dolphins. If it were to be determined that scientists are the most reliable sources to represent dolphins, it would be necessary to determine who exactly would have this role, whether universities, research centres or NGOs. In addition, the misalignment of perspectives among the dolphin protection NGOs themselves will not facilitate the latter.

2. The lack of general support from the fishermen hampers the project considerably. It is necessary to highlight the great problem and lack of collaboration that exists today between recreational fishermen and commercial fishermen. For example, recreational fishermen speak out against the commercial fishing sector claiming that their voice is not heard by regional and state authorities to develop national fishing laws (i.e., as currently the regulations only seem to benefit the commercial fishermen).

3. The development of wind farm projects in the region. There are currently two offshore wind farm projects in the bays “Baie de St Brieuc” and “Baie de Seine”. Both projects are not yet in their construction phase and the impact that this phase will have on the population of dolphins in the Norman-Breton Gulf is not yet known. The Baie de Seine project is in the environmental impact analysis phase, and the renewable energy company in charge of the project is currently negotiating with all project stakeholders trying to determine the best way to proceed in terms of the construction of the offshore wind farm.

4. The lack of establishment of a marine protected area covering the entire area inhabited by the sedentary population of bottlenose dolphins in the Norman-Breton Gulf. Plans were unveiled to create a "natural marine park" in the Norman-Breton area when Ségolène Royal was Minister for the Environment in France. There were actually plans to create two natural marine areas, however, in the end only one was created and the Norman-Breton Gulf was left unprotected. In this respect, these Natura 2000 spaces are all new players, even if they were officially created in writing a long time ago”. In addition, the friction between the regions of Normandy and Brittany did not facilitate this whole process. Work is currently underway on the creation of Natura 2000 conservation areas. The objective of Natura 2000 areas, like natural marine parks, is to control and improve marine ecosystems and reduce the pressures exerted on them. The Natura 2000 spaces are managed by researchers, environmental associations, and public entities, which through their creation also try to protect the dolphins.

All interviewees in this study were asked if the bottlenose dolphin should be considered a project stakeholder. The specific question asked in the interview was “Does it make sense to you to think of dolphins as stakeholders in a similar way to the other stakeholders mentioned?”.

How bottlenose dolphins are viewed by different project stakeholders varies considerably. Some stakeholders perceive the dolphin as a project actor, while others thought the opposite. A member of the OFB involved in the creation of Natura 2000 areas considered that the bottlenose dolphin is the main element of the project, “(It is) what is at stake to preserve. So, the project must be built around it” (OFB, Personal communication, January 2020).

As mentioned earlier in this document, the recreational fishermen interviewed generally had a fairly positive view of the environment, however, the answers were very varied. Some interviewees recognized that the bottlenose dolphin could be used as a kind of tool to make more people aware of ecology in general. “I think the image of the bottlenose dolphin will raise awareness, for example, among children. There is always a friendly way to raise awareness through the friendly image of the bottlenose dolphin.” (President of the recreational fishing association, Personal communication, January 2020).

On the other hand, there were some of the scientists who did not consider the dolphins to be stakeholders in the project because they had no voice and were not capable of negotiating, “(stakeholders) are the groups that negotiate and it is from the moment that a species is not capable of negotiating, that I do not consider that it is not a project stakeholder. However, they are subject to the decisions of people who can negotiate their future” (University professor, Personal communication, January 2020).

The interviewee closest to the commercial fishing sector was the Normandy Maritime Affairs Centre. For this interviewee, man was more important than the dolphin, "The most important thing about the environment is its relationship with man... There is a kind of mutual relationship, we cannot do ecology without man" (Center for Marine Affairs, personal communication, January 2020).

The inclusion of non-human actors in the stakeholder map is important. In regard to the environment, failure to consider the environment as a project stakeholder can often lead to considerable monetary loss. Examples of the latter might be an agricultural business experiencing severe drought or fish depletion in the fishing industry (Driscoll & Starik, 2004). After all, companies often depend on local ecosystems (i.e., raw materials) for their survival and the development of their products.

In addition to avoiding or reducing monetary losses, the inclusion of these key non-human actors in the stakeholder map will also promote their conservation. An example of such a context is the river otter case study in Missouri, USA. The Missouri Department of Conservation (DOC) reintroduced the river otter; however, as the species began to reproduce, conflicts began to arise between the DOC, local residents, animal activists, and scientists (Goedeke & Rikoon, 2008). As primary non-human stakeholders, the river otters in this project were unable to express themselves or have a voice in the project. Their inclusion was key to the project's success.

This study therefore presents us with the question of how these non-human actors can be considered and represented in a project? The presence of non-human actors, such as ecosystems, in project stakeholder maps should be more widespread. In addition, today, many companies want to promote their environmental awareness and respect, in addition to promoting their Corporate Social Responsibility strategy, so they should represent their resources in the stakeholder maps of their projects. This is especially applicable when the non-human actor is the primary stakeholder of the project. Examples of these in environmental conservation projects include Callon's narrative of the scallop restoration effort (1986), and river otters (Goedke & Rikoon, 2008).

The 2030 Agenda Accelerator strives to promote the development of global partnerships (SDG 17) to facilitate achievement of the other sixteen SDGs more efficiently. Therefore, collaboration and the establishment of alliances between the different stakeholders of the project is essential. The inclusion of non-human actors in the development of these global alliances is perhaps something that should be considered. Exactly how this should be done has not yet been determined, however, what is clear from this study is that such inclusion will bring added value to the project. By including a non-human actor in the project, the context becomes of paramount importance to determine who will be the organization or the people best suited to represent the non-human actors in question. Today for environmental conservation projects, scientific data is the basis for the enactment of environmental laws. In this bottlenose dolphin project, it is the GECC that communicates the scientific data obtained to the OFB. Then the question arises as to whether it is possible to manage an actor whose process of identification and definition is rather subjective, especially if one takes into account that this actor in question has an evident role as it is the actual object of the conservation project.

Conclusion

This case study opens up the possibility for non-human actors such as the bottlenose dolphin to be included in the map of project stakeholders. Therefore, the research question to ask is whether the current definition of project stakeholders (i.e., Freeman, 1984) should be expanded to include non-human stakeholders such as the environment. This would mean a "radical extension of Freeman's definition" (Winch,2016, 6), which is necessary considering that the objectives of a company can be greatly affected by the natural environment, as it could be, for example, if resources essential to its operations were to run out. Consequently, failure to include the natural environment as a project stakeholder can often lead to marked monetary losses, such as for an agriculture-based company in the event of a severe drought or when fishery depletion in the fishing industry can lead to serious financial losses. After all, companies often depend on local ecosystems (i.e., raw materials) for their survival and product development.

In this study, which analyses the conservation of the bottlenose dolphin in the Norman-Breton Gulf in France, we have evaluated the possible inclusion of a non-human actor, the dolphin, in the map of project stakeholders. Of the nineteen people interviewed, nine considered that the dolphin should be included in the stakeholder maps. One wonders if it is possible to manage a stakeholder whose process of identification and definition is rather subjective, especially if it has a leading role, being the target of the conservation project in itself?

Projects dealing with environmental phenomena include construction, engineering, or environmental protection projects. In environmental conservation projects, the species and ecosystems are in most cases the object of conservation. Their inclusion in the stakeholder map is essential as it will help ensure that the best conservation strategy is found for them. This study is just one example of how the inclusion of a non-human actor in the stakeholder map may contribute to the successful execution of a project, in this case an environmental conservation project. We can then ask ourselves if the achievement of SDG 17, "Partnerships for the Goals", could perhaps benefit from the inclusion of non-human actors in the project´s multiple stakeholder panorama, such as the bottlenose dolphin in this study.

References

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Received: 03-Mar-2022, Manuscript No. ASMJ-22-11051; Editor assigned: 05-Mar-2022, PreQC No. ASMJ-22-11051 (PQ); Reviewed: 16- Mar -2022, QC No. ASMJ-22-11051; Revised: 21-Mar-2022, Manuscript No. ASMJ-22-11051 (R); Published: 30-Mar-2022