The goal of this analysis is to use the social construction framework to determine 1) whether the Oregon Drug Take Back Program stakeholder group can design a public policy that will ultimately reduce water contamination from the improper disposal of unused pharmaceuticals from the general public, and 2) use the...
This dissertation focuses on a central question for six countries in Asia: what factors affect environmentalism? Numerous studies have proposed mixed theoretical explanations for the relationship between diverse values and beliefs regarding environmentalism. Although these diverse studies propose theories for the fast-growing and multifaceted environmentalism in Asia, here it is...
Oregon is a state with great social and ecological diversity. Unfortunately however, Oregon's water-rich reputation is more rumor than reality. As with many Western states, Oregon struggles with water scarcity, especially during dry summer months. Recent efforts by the state to develop an integrated water resource strategy (IWRS) to manage...
Natural resource decisions require consideration at many levels, ranging from how one invertebrate will be affected by a nearby road, to how an entire watershed will be transformed by a massive clearcut. Considerations reach farther than just the local ecological community-human communities, economies, and future impacts on the communities and...
Since the 1990s the U.S. and especially the Western U.S. have experienced more intense and costly fires. To help address this problem government agencies are increasingly looking at homeowners in fire-prone landscapes to mitigate fire risk. Part of this effort involves communicating risk and understanding how residents perceive risk. This...
Since the 1990s the U.S. and especially the Western U.S. have experienced more intense and costly fires. To help address this problem government agencies are increasingly looking at homeowners in fire-prone landscapes to mitigate fire risk. Part of this effort involves communicating risk and understanding how residents perceive risk. This...
The U.S. Forest Service’s Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration Program (CFLRP) seeks to encourage collaborative, science-based ecosystem restoration of forest landscapes. Many theorists note a tension between participatory approaches in governance and the certainty and control that science is said to offer. This research explores how collaboration and science are currently...
Over the past two decades, the western United States has experienced many of the costliest and most severe wildfires in history. To mitigate the effects of the growing threats posed by wildfires, residents in at-risk communities are encouraged to protect their homes and property by adopting Firewise recommendations. This article...
The Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA) is considered by many to be among the most powerful and most contentious environmental laws in the United States. Persistent challenges to the Act’s implementation make reaching conservation goals problematic. Most notably, the very nature of the law—providing protections for species already at...
The Blackfoot Community Conservation Area (BCCA) was created in response to a degrading natural environment coupled with a weakening community. The BCCA is a community owned 5,609-acre forest located in the heart of the Blackfoot watershed in Western Montana. Fearful of development and the creation of subdivisions, landowners banded together,...