To return to the Northeast Fish & Wildlife Conference website, go to: http://www.neafwa.org/conference.html. The following schedule and room names are subject to change (as of April 3, 2017). Please check back for updates. Session titles marked with an asterisk (*) have student presenters.
ABSTRACT: This presentation will discuss the methodology, results, and long-term implications of a series of studies Responsive Management conducted over the past year for the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. The research provided the agency with new insights into Maine residents' attitudes toward the agency itself as well big game and freshwater fisheries management in the state. Through Responsive Management's extensive data collection and consultation based on decades of human dimensions research, the Department is tailoring its communications and marketing strategies affecting how the public perceives the agency, its priorities, and its accomplishments. The Department is also in the process of applying the findings from the other research to the new iterations of its big game and freshwater fisheries management plans. With new data regarding Mainers' opinions on the management of black bear, moose, deer, and turkey (Maine's four primary big game species), as well as the state's multitude of freshwater fish species (including the iconic brook trout), the Department is better able to balance biological goals and objectives with the needs and preferences of residents. The overall data collection for the three projects involved Maine general population residents, hunters, anglers, wildlife viewers, trappers, boaters, and landowners, and included surveys, focus groups, public meetings, and interactive online "Town Hall" discussion forums. For the new big game and fisheries management plans (updated every 15 years), the Department was interested in expanding the public input process so that as many Maine residents as possible could participate in the planning. Thus, rather than engaging only a small number of individuals from stakeholder working groups, the new management plans were developed based on the involvement of thousands of Maine residents. The presentation will cover the major findings that were used to update the new communications and species management plans.
Tuesday April 11, 2017 8:40am - 9:00am EDT
Hampton VIII
