Project Number: WVA00087
CRIS Number: 0183097
Landowner cooperatives and sustainable forest management: Monitoring, assessment, and enhancement
Investigators: Selin, S.
Performing Department: Forestry -- 1240
Start Date: 10/01/1999
Termination Date: 09/30/2004
Reporting period: 01/01/2001 to 12/31/2001
Progress Report:
This McIntire-Stennis project serves as an umbrella project for a number of integrated research projects examining collaborative or participatory approaches to natural resource management and planning. These research projects resulted in two journal articles during the 2001 year. A brief summary of project results are provided below. One research study examined keys to success of 30 collaborative initiatives where the USDA Forest Service was a partner. The sample for the study consisted of 671 participants of these collaborative initiatives. Using a mailed questionnaire, this study profiled each collaborative initiative investigating purpose, problems addressed, groups involved, and years in existence. A total of more than 300 comments were collected from respondents and six categories emerged: development; information exchange; organizational support; personal communication; relationships/team-building; and accomplishments. Information from this study provides a preliminary blueprint for planning and implementing successful collaborative initiatives within the natural resource management field. A second research project related to this McIntire-Stennis project has examined the development of collaborative, community-based heritage tourism in the state of West Virginia. Project work has inventoried heritage tourism initiatives in West Virginia as well as assisted in the development of a strategic plan for heritage tourism in the state. Heritage tourism holds the promise of diversifying West Virginia's economy while preserving and celebrating the heritage that West Virginians cherish.
Publications:
Schuett, M., Selin, S., and Carr, D. 2001. Making it work: Keys to successful collaboration in Natural resource management. Environmental Management. 27 (4): 587-593.
Wang, T., Selin, S., and Donovan, S. 2001. Growing heritage tourism in the Mountain State. Public Affairs Reporter. 18 (1): 2-6.
Impact:
This line of research continues to enjoy international visibility and attract funding support. During the 2001 year, the project investigator was granted a Fulbright Scholarship to pursue a teaching/research assignment with the University of Joensuu in Finland. Several joint research studies emerged from this international experience--one monitoring the implementation of participatory planning by the Finnish Forest and Park Service and the other examining cross-border cooperation between Finland and Russia in the area of ecotourism and national park development. The research work on developing collaborative, community-based heritage tourism in West Virginia has resulted in a sizeable grant from the Fund for Rural America developing a forestry heritage trail in the Potomac Highlands region of West Virginia. This four year project will develop a strategic plan for forestry heritage in the region as well as provide both financial and human resource support for community-based heritage initiatives in the Potomac Highlands region.