Theses and Dissertations

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Open Access
Understanding environmentally responsible behavior of national park visitors: a cross-cultural perspective
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2024) Zhao-Pliske, Wen, author; Bright, Alan, advisor; Knight, David, committee member; Snodgrass, Jeffrey, committee member; Bruyere, Bret, committee member
Foster environmentally responsible behavior (ERB) among tourists is seen as a practical approach to alleviating human-induced impacts on national parks. In light of the increasingly popularity of national parks and their diverse users around the world, national park practitioners and researchers need to pay closer attention to the cultural influences on tourists' behaviors across cultures. This dissertation introduces a cross-cultural perspective to investigate tourists' environmentally responsible behavior in two national parks in China and US. This dissertation summarizes three studies that are presented as manuscripts suitable for submission to peer-reviewed journals. It begins with an overview of the visitor impacts in national parks in the US and China—two of the largest nature-based tourism market in the world— and the associated theoretical frameworks and models that assess the antecedents of individuals' environmental behavior. We articulate and clarify the theoretical debates and methodological considerations associated with cross-cultural comparative analysis. Chapter II provides a comparative discussion of the national park system between China and the US. It begins with a review of the current state of knowledge of China's protected areas development and the motivation to form a new national park system, followed by a comparison of the management structure, funding mechanism, as well as the visitor and tourism management of the national parks in China and US. Chapter III and IV present two cross-cultural quantitative studies. A review of extant literature shows there are inconsistencies in understanding tourists' environmentally responsible behavior in national parks. In Chapter III, we use multi-group confirmatory factor analysis to examine the measurement invariance of a proposed measures of tourists' environmentally responsible behavior between US and China. The confirmatory factor analysis assessments of equivalent structure, factor loading pattern, and intercepts between samples revealed that the ERB is a multi-dimensional construct and can be examined across cultures. Further, Chapter IV builds upon the previous and investigate how environmental values, attitudes, and norm affect tourists' environmentally responsible behavior intention in national parks between US and China. We discuss the differences and similarities of the patterning of tourists' behavior intention across distinct cultural settings. Chapter V connects these three studies and subsequently discuss theoretical and practical implications. We illustrate how the results can facilitate national park management in developing sound visitor use planning and communication programs to better promote environmentally responsible behavior among tourists. Overall, this dissertation seeks to comprehend the cultural components in the activation of environmentally responsible behavior. Our findings highlight the need of utilizing quantitative cross-cultural comparative perspectives to understand the culturally conditioned behaviors.
Embargo
Individual proactive adaptation: integrating vulnerability and natural hazards into a new cognitive model
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2024) Li, Yanxi, author; Knight, David, advisor; Solomon, Jennifer, committee member; Harris, Peter, committee member
Individual proactive adaptation refers to personal proactive behaviors in response to crisis events (in this study, natural disasters) aimed at minimizing the disruptions caused by such disasters. The process of adaptation is often complex and dynamic, influenced by the synergistic effects of multiple factors. Current research on adaptation motivation and decision-making is largely influenced by the Protection Motivation Theory, which emphasizes the role of subjective factors in the cognitive and decision-making processes. However, as adaptation theories evolve, scholars are beginning to acknowledge the role that objective indicators play in the cognitive process of proactive adaptation. This thesis builds on these research trends and theories in two studies. Study 1 conducts a systematic review of current research on indicators of adaptation and integrates those indicators with socio-ecological thinking to develop a new cognitive model. Study 2 involves a plausibility probe based on semi-structured interviews (N = 27) among residents of the Dujiangyan District of central China, an area that was impacted considerably by earthquakes and COVID-19 in recent years. The probe involves applying the new model to analyze those interviews and identify viable objective indicators for the cognitive process of adaptation. This approach is more cost-effective compared to prematurely conducting more ambitious and systematic tests of model assumptions. Results from Study 1 indicate that individual vulnerability and hazard characteristics, as indicators representing social and ecological dimensions, participate in each appraisal stage of the adaptation cognitive process. Results from Study 2 highlight several indicators as crucial objective measures of individual proactive adaptation. These indicators include the scope of impact, past hazard experiences, income, age, housing condition, etc. Overall, the thesis suggests that previous research has failed to account for the role of individual vulnerability and natural hazard characteristics in the appraisal stages (as opposed to the final decision stages) of cognitive processes of individual adaptation. Additionally, the new model and case study findings point to paths forward for better incorporating objective indicators in future research on cognitive processes associated with individual proactive adaptation.
Open Access
Harnessing rock climbers for bat conservation: understanding the barriers and benefits for rock climbers to engage in citizen science
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2024) Gross, Emily, author; Solomon, Jennifer, advisor; Abrams, Katie, committee member; Davis, Shawn, committee member; Schorr, Rob, committee member
Citizen science is a valuable tool for crowdsourcing data, yet it remains underutilized at the nexus of conservation and recreation. The value of citizen science lies in its ability to expand the scope of research by reducing financial burden, increasing data collection over time, and tapping into a diverse pool of skillsets from individuals. Recreators, in particular, can broaden the extent of the project in new ways. Extreme sports participants emerge as a key subgroup of recreators due to their additional specialized skills, knowledge, and daring prowess. This research focuses on one such community of extreme sport participants— rock climbers. Rock climbers are distinguished by their ability to navigate and collect data from vertical environments that remain inaccessible to many biologists. The potential of collaboration is timely, as bats are facing unprecedented threats from white-nose syndrome, wind energy, habitat loss, and climate change. Thus, this research aims to (1) uncover the barriers and motivations for rock climbers to participate in a citizen science initiative called Climbers for Bat Conservation (CBC), (2) explore the relevance of environmental attitudes and knowledge of the organization on climber engagement, and (3) suggest strategies to increase the likelihood of reporting a bat to CBC, utilizing the Community-Based Social Marketing framework. Data for this project was collected using mixed methods, including two sets of semi-structured interviews and a structured survey. Semi-structured interviews were conducted at a rock climbing festival, Rocktoberfest, in Red River Gorge, Kentucky and through the video chat platform, Teams. Results from the semi-structured interviews were used to inform the structured survey. The survey was administered to climbers at Rocktoberfest and to an online database of climbers who reported seeing a bat to CBC. In Chapter 1. I present and discuss the semi-structured interviews, which revealed diverse motivations for participation, including knowledge and experiences with bats, the role of the climbing community, and the complexities of navigating climbing access and conservation. Results of the survey are discussed in Chapter 2., revealing the importance of situational barriers (time, forgetting, and fear of losing access), as well as highlighting the key role that the climbing community plays in influencing behavior. Results also revealed that accurate knowledge of CBC did not have a significant impact on the reporting behavior. It could be that the larger influence on the reporting behavior comes from environmental attitudes, as the results showed that climbers who reported to CBC had a significantly higher proportion of individuals who held pro-environmental attitudes as compared to climbers who had not reported. Both reporting and non-reporting climbers valued the ecological benefits of reporting a bat, highlighting a key topic that can be utilized in future message framing. These findings build upon the growing body of research that demonstrates knowledge alone does not change behavior. This is important for citizen science organizations seeking to utilize rock climbers because many climbers are guided by ecological motivations in tandem with the fear of losing access. My research suggests that acknowledging tradeoffs regarding management of climbing routes and bat conservation while maintaining transparency about how the data will be used will likely aid in recruitment and retention of climber volunteers. Results of this research may aid future citizen science projects in beginning a social marketing campaign for organizations with limited time, budget, and/or staff availability, while shedding light on the motivations of rock climbers to participate in pro-environmental behaviors.
Open Access
An integrated landscape conservation approach for the agrolandscapes of southern Brazil: the case of Campos Gerais, Paraná
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2009) Rocha, Carlos Hugo, author; Wallace, George, advisor
This study utilizes mixed methods to develop a strategy for conserving a network of natural and restored parcels of varying sizes in an intensively managed yet biologically diverse agricultural region of Southern Brazil. As these lands are essentially privately owned, a dialogic-dialectical conservation approach based on understanding landowner perspectives, assigned meanings, and collectively constructed knowledge, was used along with spatial information to develop a landscape-based conservation praxis. Spatial information was used to develop a broad understanding of the Campos Gerais ecoregion, the biophysical and human context on which conservation planning and management should be developed, and to select and prioritize remnant habitat patches and connecting lands. Brazil's legal framework was then analyzed in order to identify current and potential incentives for private land conservation. A purposive sample of farms and ranches were selected and using farm-level spatial information, these landowners were interviewed in depth, using a mutual learning approach in order to establish their predisposition to conserve and which conservation incentives are seen by them as most appropriate. Using this information it was possible to predict the "conservation likelihood", preferred conservation techniques and whether the techniques could be agreed upon or would have to be negotiated for different types of landowners. Conservation likelihood can then be expressed spatially allowing us to model or anticipate the effects of conservation-or the changes that might otherwise occur. These models can in turn, be used dialectically with landowners to implement a landscape level conservation strategy.
Open Access
Quantifying and modeling visitor use in Yosemite National Park and Rocky Mountain National Park
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2009) Pettebone, David, author; Newman, Peter, advisor
Three manuscripts are presented in this dissertation. The first entitled "Estimating Visitor Use at Attraction Sites and Trailheads Using Automated Visitor Counters in Yosemite National Park" is a methodological paper that examines the use of automated visitor counters, a commonly used device to estimate visitor use in parks and protected areas. This study was conducted in Yosemite National Park in the summer of 2007 and used automated visitor counters to estimate visitor use at several locations in Yosemite Valley. One hundred thirty five hours of direct observations were conducted among six study sites to estimate monitor counting errors. Methods to treat missing monitor data and methods to estimate accurate visitor use counts from automated monitors are discussed. Results show a very strong relationship between observed visitor counts and automated monitor counts (R2 > 0.95) and visitor use estimates are presented for all study sites. This study shows that automated visitor use monitors produce consistent data from which reliable estimates of visitor use can be calculated.
Embargo
Crystallizing change in a tourism-based economy during COVID-19: an intermountain western gateway case study of Nederland, Colorado
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2023) Branstrator, Julia, author; Cavaliere, Christina T., advisor; Bruyere, Brett, committee member; Cottrell, Stuart, committee member; Snodgrass, Jeffrey, committee member
The COVID-19 pandemic has reshaped mobility patterns within the tourism system uniquely stressing parks and protected areas (PPAs) and respective bordering gateway communities. Tourism research has explored changes related to PPAs since COVID-19 at the international (Spenceley et al., 2021), national (Lebrun, et al., 2021), and regional and local scales (Cavaliere & Branstrator 2023; Sohn et al., 2021). Recent scholarship in tourism has brought attention to the experiences and knowledge of residents living within communities bordering PPAs to understand the impacts of COVID-19 from local perspectives (Jones et al., 2021). However, tourism scholarship related to COVID-19 underrepresents the experiences of intermountain western gateway communities (IWGCs) - small communities within remote mountain regions bordering PPAs that often live with tourism-based economies (Stoker et al., 2021). Throughout COVID-19, IWGCs have lived through societal, political and health crises compounded by climate disasters such as wildfires and flooding. The remote geographic location and economic basis of tourism shapes the impacts, adaptations and needs of IWGCs, imperative to inform crisis and disaster management due to the presence and power of tourism-based economies. Residents from the Town of Nederland, Colorado hold lived, situated knowledge of changes experienced during COVID-19 which can further tourism scholarship of resiliency as related to the COVID-19 crisis. Therefore, this research aims to explore the relationships between changes experienced by Nederland residents hosting a tourism economy during COVID-19 through a narrowed scope of identity, affect, and technology use – each representing important components of crisis and disaster management needing further exploration. Three objectives are established to achieve the aim of this research. First, to further the critical and affective turns within tourism scholarship through an embodied research design exploring identities of Nederland residents. Second, to assess the role of technology in navigating spatial and social realities of the COVID-19 pandemic impacting identities. Third, cultural realignment is used as a tool of analysis to explore processes and agents of change revealing power dynamics within Nederland including community resilience and representation during the COVID-19 pandemic. Influential literature from social-ecological and psychological resiliency, embodiment and affect, biocultural knowledge, identities, and technology underpins this research. Through an embodied approach, the worldviews of myself as researcher and Nederland residents become new contributions to knowledge by considering the body as an intersecting point between affective, biocultural, and technocultural influences. A crystallization methodology is employed guided by a feminist new materialist epistemology to construct a robust representation of resident accounts through critical qualitative methods. Reflexive thematic analysis of semi-structured, in-depth interviews is complemented by field notes and secondary sources such as online featuring and representation of Nederland to conceptualize identities at the individual and community scale. This investigation of identities within crisis management and resiliency through the research context of Nederland, Colorado conducts holistic, empirical reflection upon resident agency and community resilience to changes during COVID-19. This methodological approach elicits rich knowledge to conceptualize identities of Nederland residents as complex, affective embodiments of multi-scalar changes mediated by tourism impacts during the COVID-19.
Open Access
Social-psychological factors influencing community engagement in urban biodiversity conservation
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2023) Champine, Veronica Murielle, author; Niemiec, Rebecca, advisor; Balgopal, Meena, committee member; Bruyere, Brett, committee member; Jones, Megan, committee member; Solomon, Jennifer, committee member
As the human population grows and we continue to see rapid biodiversity loss, conserving natural resources in urbanized areas has become increasingly important. Motivating people to engage in pro-environmental behavior is one of the many strategies to address biodiversity. Strategic human action can help shape social norms and generate social movements that influence the social systems that intensify environmental degradation. This dissertation builds on the existing pro-environmental behavior literature and explores the motivators and barriers to different types of urban biodiversity conservation actions. These include personal-sphere behavior (i.e., participating in an action by oneself), social diffusion behavior (i.e., actions that disseminate information or behavior via social networks), and civic action behavior (i.e., citizenship actions to address a collective issue). In three articles, I use cross-sectional, experimental, and audience segmentation methods to compare the drivers of distinct behaviors, evaluate the impacts of theory-based outreach strategies, and identify target audiences for biodiversity conservation behaviors related to native plant gardening in the United States. Findings from this research can inform outreach strategies that promote greater community engagement in urban biodiversity conservation to support native wildlife and human wellbeing in urbanized areas.
Open Access
Group-level social influences for carnivore restoration and management
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2023) Gonzalez, Mireille N., author; Niemiec, Rebecca, advisor; Crooks, Kevin, committee member; Teel, Tara, committee member; Quartuch, Mike, committee member; Jacobson, Cynthia, committee member
In this dissertation, I conducted research on how perceptions of the group level of the social system influence individuals' perspectives and behaviors related to carnivore restoration and management (CRM) in the U.S. American West. Using the case study of gray wolf (Canis lupus) reintroduction in Colorado, I explored three aspects of the group level of the social system. After nearly 80 years since their extirpation, environmental organizations advocating for wolf recovery introduced a ballot initiative (Proposition 114) that mandates Colorado Parks and Wildlife, the state wildlife agency, reintroduce wolves into Colorado by December 31st, 2023. In November 2020 Proposition 114 passed with about 51% of the votes (Colorado Election Results, 2020), marking the first ever U.S. reintroduction of an endangered species via a ballot initiative. In my first chapter, I used public survey data to explore how intragroup perceptions, or how perceptions of a group one identifies as belonging to, influenced individual and collective civic actions related to wolf reintroduction. I found that social norms influenced intended voting for Proposition 114 and plans for those individuals that opposed reintroduction to engage in collective action against reintroduction. In my second chapter, I used stakeholder interview data to examine perspectives of what would make a stakeholder engagement process, that brings together conflicting stakeholders to collaboratively build recommendations for wolf restoration and management, successful. Stakeholders expected that the process should be representative, transparent, and actively inclusive and that it should foster two-way dialogue. Additionally, to be considered successful, they believed it should achieve the social outcomes of conflict reduction, social learning, increased trust in agency, and increased support for the management plan. Lastly, in my third chapter, I used stakeholder interview data to examine how perspectives of the outgroup, or a group one does not identify as belonging to, influence social conflict about wolf reintroduction. I found that conflict was fueled by perceptions that the outgroup is unjust, misinformed, homogenous, and unmalleable. Overall, my dissertation expands our collective understanding of the multi-scalar influencers to human behavior that affect carnivore restoration and management. Based on these findings, I recommend how to develop interventions and stakeholder engagement that can help achieve desired social outcomes related to CRM objectives.
Open Access
Testing a model of customer service and satisfaction of a luxury wingshooting lodge experience
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2023) Franks, Todd, author; Bright, Alan, advisor; Kang, Soo, committee member; O'Leary, Joseph, committee member; Teel, Tara, committee member
This paper explores the application of a customer service and satisfaction model from the outdoor recreation industry to a luxury wingshooting destination. Specifically, it investigates the possibility that domain-level satisfaction will mediate the specific relationship between customer service components and the guests' overall satisfaction with the luxury hunting lodge experience. Data were collected via quantitative self-administered surveys (n=525 completed surveys) that measured three levels of visitor satisfaction (26 individual service items, three service domains, and overall satisfaction), which were administered to guests at a luxury wingshooting destination over four South Dakota pheasant preserve hunting seasons (2017 - 2020) which run from September 1 until March 31 of the following year. This research tested the extent to which satisfaction across three domains (hunting, customer service, & facilities) mediated the influence of 26 individual service items in predicting overall satisfaction with the luxury hunting lodge experience. The 26 service items represented certain areas of satisfaction (domains), and the mediation analysis was limited to those specific domains. Results indicated that satisfaction with each of the three domains partially mediated the relationship between overall satisfaction with the luxury hunting lodge experience and the individual service items. Next, I combined all of the significant individual service items and their three satisfaction domains into one single regression model, with overall satisfaction with the luxury hunting lodge experience as the dependent variable. Of the ten significant service items and three service domains, only five variables proved to be significant, accounting for 76.8% of the explained variance in overall satisfaction with the luxury hunting lodge experience.
Open Access
Exploring Latino and Latina anglers' motivations, constraints, and negotiation strategies for recreational fishing in Colorado to improve participation and experience
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2023) Basto Eyzaguirre, Arianna, author; Lavoie, Anna, advisor; Teel, Tara, committee member; Quartuch, Mike, committee member; Bombaci, Sara, committee member
This study aimed to inform efforts to improve diversity of and access to recreational fishing with a focus on Latino communities in Colorado. To fill the gap in the literature, this study to explore the motivations, constraints, and negotiation strategies of Latino(a) anglers, and how the interaction of these factors, and ethnicity and gender identity shaped their fishing participation and experience. The analysis was informed by the Outdoor Recreation Framework, and from which we adapted two leisure constraint models. Sixteen men and twelve women were interviewed using a semi-structured questionnaire. Major motivations to fish were being outdoors, for relaxation, socialization, and to be role models for Latinos and women. Spending time with others was reported by participants as a motivation, constraint, and negotiation strategy, and family is prioritized when negotiating fishing versus their needs. The main constraints reported were time management and financial resources, of which participants had strategies in place to successfully negotiate them or modify plans enabling them to go fishing. However, participants experienced harassment and dismissal and felt unwelcome at fishing sites which they attributed to their Latino ethnicity. They also reported constraints impacting the broader Latino community, including immigration status, licensing barriers, and racism. While these constraints did not prevent Latinos completely from fishing, they may permanently inhibit or diminish their participation and experience. There was very little difference in factors effecting participation among genders, but constraints expressed by women, such as being dismissed, being harassed at fishing sites, or not having women role-models or teachers, were attributed to the intersection of their ethnicity and gender. Our findings unique to Latinos can inform natural resource management agency recruitment, and education and outreach efforts, and future studies focused on minoritized groups to help identify and potentially remove barriers to angling and other outdoor activities.
Open Access
Comparing the social psychological drivers of personal sphere, social diffusion, and civic action behaviors for native plant gardening
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2023) Tamlyn, Kaiya, author; Niemiec, Rebecca, advisor; Teel, Tara, committee member; Abrams, Katie, committee member
Protecting biodiversity and conserving water, especially in urban environments, are crucial facets of conservation efforts that can be supported by gardening with native plant species. However, native plant gardening at the individual or personal sphere level is not enough. There is also a need for citizens to participate in behaviors outside of the personal sphere, such as social diffusion and civic action, to influence the networks and social systems in which they are embedded to achieve more rapid, large-scale environmental change. Little is known, however, about whether the social-psychological drivers of behaviors outside of the personal sphere are distinct from the drivers of personal sphere action. To address this, we examined the factors influencing personal sphere, social diffusion, and civic action behaviors in the context of native plant gardening in the United States. Through a nationwide survey conducted in February 2023 (n = 1,201), we found that, while there was some overlap, each behavior type was motivated by distinct, often behavior-specific, variables. Personal sphere-specific self-efficacy and age predicted personal sphere behavior; social diffusion-specific dynamic norms (perceptions that the behavior of others is changing) and moral exporting (an individual's inclination to encourage others to embrace their moral position) predicted social diffusion behavior; introversion predicted civic action behavior; and behavior-specific personal norms predicted all three behavior types. We also examined the prevalence of each type of behavior and found that personal sphere behaviors are the most commonly practiced, followed by social diffusion behaviors and then civic action behaviors. Our findings suggest that to motivate social diffusion and civic action behaviors, practitioners may have to design outreach interventions that target the unique social-psychological drivers of these behaviors.
Open Access
Wildlife-human relations and education in community-based marine tourism: a case study of coastal Oregon, U.S.A.
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2023) Fennell, Samuel R., author; Bright, Alan, advisor; Knight, David, committee member; Snodgrass, Jeffrey, committee member
The tourism industry has witnessed an increased use of non-human animals, both within various attractions as well as in advertisements. This increased interaction and reliance can generate significant hazards which threaten the well-being of these non-human animals and require ongoing study. Animals in marine and community-based tourism destinations, in particular (e.g., coastal Oregon), are facing considerable pressures from tourism and climate change. In view of these concerns, this thesis represents a multi-species and multi-sited ethnography investigating the complexities around degrowth management, tourism policy, and education as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic within select Oregonian coastal and marine community-based tourism destinations. Utilizing a posthumanist critical lens, researchers gathered and thematically analyzed data gathered from local inhabitants on Oregon's coast. For efficiency and proficiency, the study employed the Vertical Integrated Projects (VIP) education model, allowing members to gain a hands-on and individualized educational experience. This study has significant relevance for the anthropology of tourism and environmental anthropology literature and broadens current understanding of marine and community-based tourism. Practical implications hold promise for the livelihoods of local Oregonian coastal animals, as well.
Open Access
Experiential course's impact on students' beliefs and behaviors of nature as a well-being strategy
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2023) Warners, Micah, author; Bruyere, Brett, advisor; Walker, Sarah, committee member; Zaretsky, Jill, committee member
The purpose of this thesis was to assess if an experiential field course influenced behaviors about nature immersion as a well-being strategy, investigate what behavior changes were affected by the course, and explore if components of behavior change theory emerged from the course. Additionally, this thesis explored the components of the experiential course that participants perceive as impactful on their beliefs and behaviors about nature as a well-being strategy. A mixed methods approach, including both nature-log surveys and interviews, was used to assess participant perceptions of their nature experiences, as well as impactful components of the experiential course, before and after the course. Participants underscored changes in behavior, including use of nature as a stress management strategy and finding new opportunities to experience nature close to home, work, and school. While frequency of nature experience did not increase for course participants throughout the following four months (from summer to early winter), it also did not decrease as it did for the control group during the same period. From participant self-assessments, components of behavior change that emerged include changes in beliefs and attitudes about the benefits and importance of nature experiences. Components of the experiential course that participants perceive as impactful include pairing of course content with experiential learning, learning alongside classmates with whom they could process, and the lack of technology and internet access. Implications include how education can promote beliefs and behaviors around nature as a well-being strategy, the importance of nature around people's homes, schools, and work, and designing experiential courses with the components that students perceived as impactful. We recommend future research that explores how to further promote behavior change, including by emphasizing the COM-B system's essential conditions of opportunity and motivation.
Open Access
Nature's contributions to people: socio-economic assessments of strategies to conserve natural capital and guide the sustainable provision and equitable distribution of ecosystem services in developing countries
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2023) Salcone, Jacob, author; Jones, Kelly W., advisor; Manning, Dale, committee member; Seidl, Andrew, committee member; Manson, Robert, committee member
Natural resources continue to be unsustainably used and their benefits inequitably shared. In many instances economic incentives and resource management approaches have not led to the sustainable use or equitable distribution of the benefits of natural resources such as fisheries and forests. This has occurred in part because policy makers and natural resource users and managers, particularly in developing countries, lack information about the outcomes and impacts of current economic incentives that drive natural resource use behavior and potential alternative strategies for resource governance and management. This dissertation uses theories and approaches from the discipline of natural resource economics to measure the benefits of natural resource use under current governance approaches, evaluate the effectiveness of popular natural resource conservation strategies, and propose options for improving the effectiveness of those strategies in developing countries, thus contributing scientific evidence to the body of literature on the effectiveness of natural resource management approaches. In three chapters, it evaluates: 1) the effectiveness of a PES scheme in securing additional provision of watershed ecosystem services, 2) the elasticity of supply of watershed ecosystem services as a function of payments for forest conservation, and 3) the use of an ecosystem services perspective to measure the distribution of benefits from wild capture fisheries to different stakeholder groups. Chapter 1 finds that PES impacts may be somewhat offset by leakages; Chapter 2 finds that participation in PES programs could be increased by higher payments, but the relationship between payments and participation is non-linear; and Chapter 3 that an ecosystem services perspective can shed new light on managing fisheries for greatest local benefits and sustainability. These three independent analyses improve our understanding of natural resource management by dissecting resource management concepts, building upon existing ecosystem service valuation and evaluation methods, and supplying empirical evidence to resource management debates.
Open Access
Exploring the relationship between northern Colorado science teachers' environmental and pedagogical value orientations and their implementation of place-based education
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2023) Conlon, Miranda "Andie", author; Salerno, Jonathan D., advisor; Balgopal, Meena M., committee member; Bruyere, Brett L., committee member; Crooks, Kevin R., committee member
Place-based education (PBE) offers teachers a unique opportunity to increase engagement and academic outcomes while also strengthening students' connection to their environment and inspiring future stewardship. However, because PBE is not a required instructional tool, classroom teachers must independently choose to implement this teaching strategy, particularly when discussing topics surrounding wildlife and the environment. Thus, it is important for environmental education researchers to understand what drives teachers to pursue this pedagogical behavior. While there is a lack of direct predictive validity between values and behaviors, theory suggests that there is more to be found by exploring the value orientations of teachers and how that may influence their curricular choices. Using interviews with 11 middle and high school science teachers in Northern Colorado, we took a qualitative approach to assessing the relationship between teachers' value orientations – both environmental and pedagogical – and their perceptions of pedagogical behaviors. Through thematic coding and analysis, we discovered that Mutualist value orientations coincide with both an Ecological Integration approach to pedagogy and pedagogical behaviors that connect students with their environment, such as place-based education. Our findings have implications for the potential of place-based education to foster pro-environmental value orientations and behaviors among future generations.
Open Access
Implications of natural boundaries for placemaking as a collaborative practice between humans and animals
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2023) Taylor, Marley, author; Thomsen, Bastian, advisor; Knight, David, committee member; Kogan, Lori, committee member
Living beings (flora and fauna) coexist within natural environments, sharing physical locations both temporally and spatially. When applied beyond the human scope, "place" takes on new meaning as humans and nonhuman animals each take part in their own placemaking practices. This study evaluates the practice of placemaking as it relates to long-term wildlife-human cohabitation and coexistence. Here, placemaking refers to the practice of attributing meaning to geographic locations or physical objects. Integrating compassionate conservation and multispecies livelihoods, researchers employed a patchwork ethnography methodology to identify patterns in collaborative placemaking. They also drew from a Multispecies Livelihoods framework, including compassionate conservation, which aims to conserve biodiversity and planetary climate at the individual rather than species level. Through ethnographic semi-structured interviews, archival research, and participant observation methodology, 16 researchers from Colorado State University's (CSU's) Human Dimensions of Natural Resources Department and CSU's Doctor of Veterinary Medicine program partnered with three wildlife rehabilitation centers and a veterinary teaching hospital in Costa Rica. The research team interviewed participants, conducted observations, and gathered data to analyze the effects of natural barriers to human activity in Costa Rica on collective placemaking practices. This research is based on a three-week pilot study in January 2022 titled, 'Wildlife Rehabilitation for Conservation', led by Dr. Bastian Thomsen. This initial pilot project aimed to inform future studies on the use of natural barriers, rather than constructed barriers, to foster animal welfare, wildlife-human coexistence, and more sustainable animal-human relationships. Findings suggest that collaborative placemaking, which is heavily influenced by natural boundaries, is a viable strategy for encouraging positive wildlife-human interactions and successful coexistence.
Open Access
Pathways toward a posthumanist approach to wildlife-human coexistence: a case study of environmental policies and education in Costa Rica
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2023) Schneider, Amy, author; Thomsen, Bastian, advisor; Knight, David, committee member; Snodgrass, Jeffrey, committee member
This thesis project is a two-part evaluation of policy creation and environmental education in Costa Rica. Part I applies a posthumanist theoretical framework to a patchwork ethnography methodology to identify patterns within perceptions and implementation of environmental policy. Methods selected include semi-structured interviews and participant observation accomplished during a January 2022 pilot study in Costa Rica where the research team partnered with three wildlife rehabilitation centers of varying size. In conjunction with this posthumanist evaluation of current policy, actor perceptions, and creation of legislation, Part II assesses the use of a Vertical Integrated Project (VIP) model in correlation with environmental education practices and programs. Findings suggest, based on additional analyses of interviews and participant observation, that values play a significant role in the creation, content, and enforcement of environmental policies in Costa Rica. Further, the use of the VIP model in research methods directly mirrors many of the environmental education programs and techniques demonstrated by the partnering centers. These findings illustrate potential pathways forward for other environmentally conscious nations to foster coexistence and shift the way wildlife is perceived and valued on a national scale.
Open Access
Measuring social-ecological resilience in fire prone systems of northern Colorado
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2023) Cheney, Alyson, author; Jones, Kelly, advisor; Salerno, Jon, committee member; Stevens-Rumann, Camille, committee member
This thesis fills a gap in temporally and spatially applied knowledge on the perceptions people hold about social-ecological system (SES) resilience. Using a SES framework, we developed a contextualized set of resilience indicators and through stakeholder interviews and surveys we used these indicators to characterize subjective measures of SES resilience in two fire-prone watersheds of northern Colorado. Through stakeholder perceptions, we assessed current and wildfire-driven changes to resilience as well as recommended pre- and post-wildfire management actions and priorities for future systems resilience. Except for watershed processes variability, large scale wildfires did not significantly influence perceived resilience of most ecological indicators. Wildfire events, however, had strong negative influence on perceived resilience of ecosystem service indicators but were perceived to catalyze benefits in social dimensions of resilience. In terms of management actions and future resilience, stakeholders underscored a need for increased pace, scale, and connectivity of fuel treatments with particular interest in prescribed fire. While current stakeholder connectivity was high, continued prioritization of partnerships remains a focus for future resilience. Our findings can be used to improve wildfire management actions for both ecosystems and communities and our resilience indicators can be applied to comparable watershed systems to measure subjective perceptions of SES resilience.
Open Access
Understanding pro-environmental behavior and improving social network research methods to inform conservation management
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2022) Clements, Kaylin Renee, author; Solomon, Jennifer N., advisor; Cross, Jennifer E., committee member; Niemiec, Rebecca M., committee member; McCarty, Christopher, committee member
Conservation issues exist in the context of social-ecological systems, with human activities driving threats to species, habitats, and important ecosystem functions. The successes and failures of conservation efforts depend on how humans behave. Likewise, human behavior is crucial to rectifying these problems. Understanding why humans behave in ways that help or hinder conservation efforts is vital to effectively manage and prevent threats to natural resources, such as invasive species. Research specific to each social-ecological context on how social networks, knowledge, and other cultural and social psychological factors influence behavior is needed to inform management decisions. In addition, effective and efficient social science methods are needed for practitioners to assess relevant behaviors more easily. This dissertation contributes evidence that advances our understanding of pro-environmental behaviors that help control invasive lionfish (Pterois volitans) in Belize and Florida and provides insights into data collection methods on social networks. Each manuscript assesses factors that influence a specific target behavior. The first manuscript (Chapter 2) explores what factors affect consumption of the venomous, but edible, invasive lionfish in Belize. To determine the viability of a lionfish market in Belize, a national study of Belizeans (n = 400) and foreign tourists (n = 400) was implemented using structured surveys that assessed consumers' willingness to try lionfish, knowledge about lionfish, attitudes toward purchasing lionfish, and fear of trying new foods, or food neophobia. Findings show that most Belizeans and foreign tourists are willing to eat lionfish given the opportunity, but that a misperception that lionfish is not safe to eat and availability are barriers to eating lionfish. Belizeans, though concerned about lionfish, are less willing to consume lionfish than tourists and more likely to believe lionfish are unsafe to eat. In addition, when asked why they would not eat lionfish, the most common reasons Belizeans described were related to perceived danger or preference. These and other findings about consumer behavior toward seafood in Belize, such as that Belizeans primarily choose to eat seafood for health reasons and prefer snapper to other types of seafood, provide important insights into opportunities to grow demand for lionfish and decrease barriers related to risk perceptions. The second manuscript (Chapter 3) shares findings from a mixed methods study to understand how motivation and social capital affect removal of lionfish in Florida by spearfishers who hunt lionfish, or lionfish hunters. Findings are shared from semi-structured interviews (N = 75) as well as an online structured survey of 186 lionfish hunters. Results show that lionfish hunters who are motivated by money kill more lionfish than those motivated by other reasons. However, this group is very small in number and is sensitive to decreased lionfish numbers because it is prohibitive to commercial spearfishers' ability to profit from them. In addition, lionfish hunters who have a social contact who helps them sell lionfish kill more lionfish. However, this is still a small group. Most lionfish hunters in Florida are motivated to kill lionfish to protect Florida's reefs, to eat lionfish, and because it's fun. In addition, most feel an obligation or duty to kill lionfish in order to protect the reefs. Effective management strategies, therefore, should engage lionfish hunters across motivations to maintain consistent and long-term control of the population. In addition, practitioners should continue to cultivate a community around lionfish removal to better support money-motivated lionfish hunters' efforts to sell lionfish. The third manuscript (Chapter 4) investigates the efficacy of including an example social network map in an online structured survey to increase responses to questions about social network contacts. Social network research can be inhibited by willingness of respondents to provide names and contact information of themselves and their acquaintances. For social network research to be more feasible among practitioners in the conservation field and beyond, effective methods for collecting this type of information are essential. This experimental study compared responses (N = 186) to social network questions between those who completed a survey with an example social network map versus a survey without a map. Results show that the example map did not increase provision of network contacts and did not influence the types of ties reported. Therefore, while a map may not help in collecting more data, if it is necessary to include for explanatory purposes in a social network survey, it likely will not bias responses. Resistance among respondents to providing this information in this study demonstrate the need for further exploration into effective social network data collection methods for large groups, especially when snowball sampling is necessary.
Open Access
Towards value pluralism, knowledge pluralism, and recognitional justice: improving integration of cultural benefits of ecosystem services in environmental decision-making
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2022) Hoelting, Kristin R., author; Gavin, Michael C., advisor; Martinez, Doreen E., committee member; Schuster, Rudy M., committee member; Schultz, Courtney A., committee member
This mainstreaming of the ecosystem services (ES) concept and approach is reflected in its adoption by governments and non-governmental organizations around the world, including in the United States: in 2015, a U.S. Federal Memorandum directed all Federal agencies to integrate ES information in their decision-making processes. In principle this momentum represents an opportunity for improved consideration of the cultural benefits of ES in decision-making, as part of the improved consideration of ES as a whole. However, there is concern that cultural benefits – and the plural values and multiple knowledge systems they reveal – are being left behind in processes of standardization in ES theory and practice. Cultural benefits challenge the emphasis on instrumental values common in the ES field. Further, in revealing the culturally contextual and situated character of all ES, cultural benefits challenge the universalizing and generalizing tendencies common in this field. More meaningful consideration of the cultural benefits of ES, as one strand of a larger movement toward value pluralism and knowledge pluralism, is a question of both equity and ecological outcomes. On-going conversations and critiques in the ES field around how to create space for multiple worldviews, including multiple human-nature relationships and well-beings, are critical to bringing environmental management into alignment with environmental justice, including distributional, procedural, and recognitional justice for current and future generations. In addition, ensuring a place for currently marginalized knowledge systems in ES theory and practice, including place-based and Indigenous ways of knowing, brings new solutions to the table and increases the adaptive capacity of managers and decision-makers at local and global scales as they face into growing global environmental challenges. To support movement toward knowledge pluralism in ES theory and practice, the three manuscripts presented in this dissertation offer: 1) a conceptual framework that reveals ES-knowledge as a system, seeking to support personal and collective reflexivity around the role of worldviews embedded in our institutions and the implications of this (Manuscript 1); 2) a theoretical model of learning opportunities for integration of a diverse forms of knowledge, and explores how some cultural-benefits-knowledge-forms are more likely to convey non-instrumental, relational value aspects or holistic value perspectives, and more likely to be effectively considered at particular stages of decision-making (Manuscript 2); and 3) an Opportunities Framework that can be used to systematically identify available forms of cultural-benefits-knowledge, and the opportunities that exist to integrate these knowledge forms in a particular decision context (Manuscript 3). This final manuscript both introduces the framework and illustrates its potential by applying it to a past decision process: Elwha River dam removal and restoration in Washington State, U.S.A. Next steps for research and application of a knowledge-pluralist ES approach are discussed in the dissertation's conclusion.