Social science advancements to rangeland management? Perspectives from the Long-Term Agroecosystem Research (LTAR) network

Authors: Toledo, David; WULFHORST, J.D. - University Of Idaho

Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Proceedings
Publication Acceptance Date: 8/17/2019
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: The rangeland community has become increasingly aware of the connectedness of human and ecological systems. It is now widely accepted that we cannot view environmental problems in isolation from the social and economic settings in which they occur but we still struggle to understand how to integrate science and human decision making to address complex socio-ecological issues facing rangelands. The Long-Term-Agroecosystem Research network (LTAR) is well poised to address the challenge of integrating science and management of rangelands with human decision making as it takes a network approach to compare agricultural productivity, social, economic and ecological outcomes of predominant agricultural practices to further human well-being. The LTAR network provides context-specific knowledge related to on-the-ground management issues from scientists and practitioners that inform local decision making and provides scientific knowledge related to human decision making at a broader scale. This local to national scale ultimately leads to actionable science that can be used by various stakeholders, including landowners, scientist and law makers. The Ignite-style session will feature six invited speakers, who will provide examples of interdisciplinary approaches that include novel science-practitioner collaborations, synthesize information from the natural and social sciences to address complex natural resource issues, and discuss tradeoffs associated with managing for both intensified agricultural production and human well-being. 1) Social change processes and their influence on human well-being - habitat planning and livestock grazing allotments on public lands in southwestern Idaho, USA. Dr. Amanda Bentley, Postdoc with the USDA-ARS LTAR and University of Idaho. 2) Collaborative Adaptive Rangeland Management (CARM) decision-making process. CARM Stakeholder. 3) Landowner attitudes and management of Kentucky bluegrass in invaded northern Great Plains grasslands. Kiandra Rajala and Dr. Mike Sorice at Virginia Tech. 4) Ecosystem service tradeoffs associated with agricultural intensification of grazinglands. Dr. Sheri Spiegal - Postdoc at the USDA-ARS Jornada Experimental Range, Las Cruces, NM. 5) Multiple stakeholder perceptions of brush control efforts in the Southwest region. Maude Dinan, formerly at the USDA-ARS Jornada Experimental Range, Las Cruces, NM. 6) LTAR postdoc – currently being hired. After the six 5-minute presentations, speakers, co-authors, and symposium participants will join in a discussion of possible future collaborations and expansions of the work presented to increase partnerships and interactions among stakeholders. LTAR postdocs will collect information from Ignite-style talks and follow-up discussion and synthesize information into a paper to be submitted to either Rangelands or Rangeland Ecology and Management.