Research proposal: Evaluation of collaborative adaptive management using adaptive capacity as an evaluation criterion. Bishop, Dana ^*,1, Fernandez-Gimenez, Maria², ¹ Forest, Rangeland, and Watershed Stewardship, Ft. Collins, CO, USA²

ABSTRACT- Since the 1980s there has been a paradigm shift away from traditional, command and control natural resource management approaches toward a vision of ecosystem management. The factors underlying this change are 1) the need for managers to understand ecosystems as complex and unpredictable systems, and 2) the need to incorporate human values, desires, and needs into ecologically sustainable management practices. Scholars and practitioners have proposed that these two principles of ecosystem management can be operationalized through management that is both adaptive and collaborative. However, evaluation of collaborative adaptive management is necessary to understand the on-the-ground progression and outcomes of this approach. The objectives of this study are 1) to design and implement a collaborative adaptive management process with the Northwest Colorado Stewardship collaborative group, and 2) to use a qualitative systems model developed through this process to assess the adaptive capacity of the socio-ecological system in which the group is embedded. This paper describes the background, rationale, and proposed methodology to achieve these objectives, relying on a participatory approach.

KEY WORDS: Collaboration, Adaptive Management, Adaptive Capacity, Evaluation