Community-based collaboration in national forest management: experiences in two Oregon stewardship contracting pilots

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Date

2003

Authors

Fitzpatrick, Kathleen Kristin, 1974-

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Publisher

Ecosystem Workforce Program, Institute for a Sustainable Environment, University of Oregon

Abstract

There is a growing movement towards community-based approaches in national forest management, due in part to the failure of traditional management strategies to reach ecological and political goals. This study looked at community-based collaborative efforts in two USDA Forest Service stewardship contracting pilots- in the Siuslaw and Metolius basins in Oregon- to assess whether these approaches contributed to higher trust and innovative strategies able to address place-specific ecological, social, and economic challenges. It also looked specifically at the challenges associated with incorporating deliberative approaches into traditional Forest Service management. Findings suggest that community-based groups played key roles in building trust, and in providing the breadth of perspectives necessary to design strategies that met ecological and socioeconomic goals. Agency understandings of and attitudes towards community involvement, however, significantly empowered or constrained this potential. Support from agency leadership, the cultivation of a risk-taking culture, and openness towards multiple forms of knowledge were important contributors to proactive agency attitudes concerning collaboration.

Description

13 p.
A print copy of the author's University of Oregon thesis on this topic is available through the UO Libraries under the call number: KNIGHT SD566.O7 F58 2003

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