Year of Award

2026

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Type

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Degree Name

Forest and Conservation Science

Department or School/College

W.A. Franke College of Forestry and Conservation

Committee Chair

Laurie Yung

Commitee Members

Brian Chaffin, Sarah Halvorson, Christopher Preston, Carina Wyborn

Keywords

cross-boundary, emotions, governance, RAD framework, social dimensions

Abstract

Climate change is increasing the frequency and likelihood of ecological transformation, the significant and irreversible shift of an ecosystem from historical to novel conditions. Maintaining historical conditions has been a core priority of public land management, but the extent of ecological transformation has rendered resisting ecological change increasingly difficult. Questions about where to allocate limited time, resources, and attention are on the horizon, with decisions to prioritize one area sometimes coming at the expense of another. The RAD framework seeks to help structure management decisions by expanding the decision space to include resisting, accepting, and directing ecological transformation. While decisions about how to respond to ecological transformation exist within a complex social ecological system, there is limited empirical research on the social dimensions of the RAD framework or managing ecological transformation. This research employed a mixed methods approach using in-depth semi-structured interviews (n=44), a piloted workshop (n=32), and a survey (n=32) with adaptation actors in western Montana to fill that gap. Research participants advanced cross-boundary collaboration as a response to ecological transformation, suggesting that the RAD framework could structure a portfolio approach to ecological transformation that hedges risk across multiple partners and a large landscape. Results also demonstrated the salience of the personal in RAD decisions, with participants describing emotions of sadness, grief, and anxiety as they contemplated ecological transformation. Weighing ecological transformation shaped feelings about the RAD pathways and many participants expressed negative and apprehensive thoughts about accepting and directing change. Participants described the ways that values and ethics enter into many management decisions about ecological transformation, but they struggled to identify the appropriate role for the personal in these decisions. Results indicate that upstream engagement is a promising process for deliberating about ecological transformation and the RAD framework in advance of a decision, allowing for creative and expansive meaning-making about ecological transformation. An improved understanding of the social dimensions of ecological transformation provides important insights into the management decision space and has important implications for policy and management.

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