ABSTRACT
While emerging as a central construct in contemporary natural resource management, ecological restoration has also been characterized as an elusive concept. Although there is a well-developed foundation of ecological knowledge, there are also important social considerations that may influence one’s understanding of ecological restoration. Limited research has investigated how ecological restoration is understood by decision-makers and stakeholders, even though these conceptualizations play an important role in contributing to goal-setting, beliefs about appropriate treatments, and may result in conflict between stakeholders with divergent beliefs. This chapter draws on interviews from participants in three CFLRP cases to report on two analyses. A mental-models analysis demonstrated substantial alignment between participant models and the scientific literature on ecological and some technical topics; however, in two of our three locations, gaps emerged regarding social aspects of restoration. A second, thematic analysis examined the role of a collaborative process in advancing restoration objectives. Findings suggest that groups have the greatest success working in areas with high levels of agreement about the need for treatment (i.e. those that are most obviously departed from desirable conditions). However, ecological restoration was cited as an effective organizing concept to bring groups together and improve relationships and trust, even among participants with a history of disagreement over management goals.
