Land management planning at the forest service: opportunities for collaboration

May 2006

Land management is all too often a subject of intense conflict. In a situation in which many people have strong ties to the land, a number of players will get involved in the policymaking process, each working hard to advance a particular goal. The interests of different groups are often in conflict, however, and this can lead to a political impasse, or to a situation in which one group dominates the process, excluding the ideas and perspectives of others. Collaboration is a means of working through such controversy and toward a solution that incorporates the perspectives of people from many backgrounds. Collaboration brings groups together so that they might identify common problems and interests, and create solutions that neither group could accomplish on its own. The goal in this process is not necessarily to achieve a consensus, but rather to allow different groups an opportunity to meet, communicate, and innovate on equal footing. By fostering such open communication, collaboration builds working relationships among the participants and encourages transparency in the policymaking process. In this sense, collaboration offers an opportunity to move beyond gridlock and inefficiency. This document is one of a series of Collaboration Quick Guides intended to explain federal laws and regulations governing land management, and to inform citizens as to how they can contribute to the federal policymaking process both inside and outside of legislative protocols. Other topics to be covered in the series include the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and stewardship contracting.

By: Pinchot Institute for Conservation

 
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