Evaluating Collaborative Natural Resource Management in the ACE Basin National Estuarine Research Reserve
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Berg, Chris
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Abstract
Within the field of natural resource management, researchers and practitioners alike have shown increasing attention to collaborative and participatory approaches to planning and decision making. Advocates of these approaches cite the potential for stakeholder engagement to improve social and environmental outcomes by incorporating diverse knowledge and values, developing holistic and lasting decision, and supporting personal and institutional change. This paper contributes to the ongoing assessment and refinement of collaboration through the development and application of a comprehensive set of criteria to evaluate two collaborative natural resource management projects undertaken by the ACE Basin Natural Estuarine Research Reserve and partner organizations. Best practices and recommendations from existing literature on collaborative management, stakeholder participation, and social learning were used to develop evaluation criteria. Data drawn from document analysis, participant surveys, and in-depth interviews were compared against this criteria to determine the extent to which the projects employed recommended collaborative practices and delivered predicted outcomes. Results indicate that both projects incorporated the majority of the collaboration best practices identified from the collaborative literature. Project staff provided the structure, guidance, and instruction necessary to foster effective engagement, and empowered a diverse range of stakeholders to play active roles throughout the projects’ lifecycles. Both projects increased participant knowledge and capacities, built new social and professional networks, and directly fostered changes to existing policies and institutions. However, both projects lacked cultural diversity among participants, as well as follow through communication with participants following project events. To strengthen future collaborative efforts, special attention should be paid to attract a diverse range of participants, and on-going communication with participants should be provided in order to continue engagement and build lasting, two-way relationships with stakeholders to support on-going collaborative management.