Project: People, Pests and Conflict: community participation in invasive deer management in Australia.

The research aims to develop a greater understanding of the human dimensions of invasive deer and their management in Australia (using the Royal National Park region in NSW as a case study), contributing to a more holistic knowledge-base for management decisions.

Overabundant deer populations have become a serious problem in many parts of the world, and are becoming an increasing issue of concern in Australia, with ever-more apparent negative social, economic and environmental impacts. These negative impacts challenge the traditional place of deer as a valued resource and as a charismatic species. Consequently, significant conflict has arisen between stakeholder groups regarding the way in which deer should be managed.

The key question of my research is ‘what is the most effective way of reducing human-wildlife and stakeholder conflict through community participation in wildlife management?’ The first part of my research has consisted of an overview of community participation in vertebrate pest management in Australia, which aims to identify characteristics of the participatory process that are linked to success and failure and to identify gaps in knowledge. The second part (and majority) of my research is focused on the human dimensions of deer management in the Royal National Park region of NSW. The three main aims are to:

• Evaluate the social impact and stakeholder conflict surrounding deer in the area.
• Assess wildlife stakeholder acceptance capacity and management preferences (including community participation in management).
• Assess the suitability of different models of community participation and deer management strategies under a stakeholder plasticity model (e.g. under variables such as socio-political influences and deer impact).

The research is funded by IACRC and ESRC (UK).
Please see my university website for further information and contact details: http://www.york.ac.uk/depts/eeem/people/ford/ford.htm

Background:

Master of Science (2005) Imperial College of Science and Technology, University of London

From November 2006 to February 2007 I was the Research and Communications Officer for the Mpingo Conservation Project, Tanzania. In 2003 I worked for the Regional Environmental Centre for Central and Eastern Europe in a conservation internship, posted at the Shkodra (Nthn Albania) office.  The work involved activities to encourage trans-boundary relations. Prior to that I volunteered on conservation expeditions to the Indonesian rainforest (Sulawesi) and the Cayos Cochinos islands off Honduras.