Nineteenth International Conference on Environmental, Cultural, Economic & Social Sustainability

Abstract

Federal conservation programs compensate property owners and farmers for sustained land use practices which generate ecosystem services, yet enrolling participants can be a challenge. This paper studies that challenge in order to understand what values drive enrollment patterns in the Columbia River Basin in the US Northwest, a region designated as a Critical Conservation Area by the United State Department of Agriculture. Utilizing a relational values framework, the dynamics of the federally administered Conservation Reserve Program are explored. Findings are revealed through qualitative coding and analysis of semi-structured interviews and visual artifacts from program participants, government employees, and university affiliated extension knowledge holders. This study concludes there to be five key relational values that inform enrollment in this region beyond monetary reasons: stewardship, care, kinship, responsibility, and identity. This paper posits that integrating information regarding relational values into federally administered conservation programs may lead to more resilient and sustainable social-ecological systems.