Department of Natural Resources Conservation

NRC 597C: Case Studies in Conservation [3 credits]
Spring 2008 semester [SPIRE # 59948]
Tuesday/Thursday, 4:00 – 5:15 pm, 305 Holdsworth Hall

Instructor: David Kittredge. 327 Holdsworth Hall. 545-2943; dbk@nrc.umass.edu
Course website:    http://forest.fnr.umass.edu/conservation/

Background:     Landscapes dominated by private ownerships have pressing conservation needs. Stakes are high in many places as conservation options are lost due to land conversion and development. Massachusetts Audubon estimates that the Commonwealth loses as much as 40 acres of open space to development on a daily basis. One strategy is for the state or federal government to buy land in fee, and this has been done successfully, resulting in the creation of the White Mountain National Forest, various wildlife refuges, national seashores, and state and national parks. Alternatively, there are many examples of conservation and land protection in a parcelized or fragmented landscape dominated by private ownership which are not the result of federal or state fee simple acquisition. In many cases, towns, non-governmental organizations, partnerships, and individuals respond to need and act at a smaller spatial and financial scale but with significant conservation results. Indeed, these groups and individuals can often act with greater speed and local credibility than larger public entities.

This course will review real-world actual case studies in conservation, with a focus on locally initiated, small-scale success stories, described by outside speakers. The course is intended for the dual audiences of:

• Currently enrolled graduate and undergraduate students in natural resource disciplines (e.g., fisheries, wildlife, forestry) and other relevant areas (e.g., resource economics, geosciences, regional planning). These future resource managers and stewards need to have an understanding of tools and tactics that can be applied in different circumstances to conserve land;  and

 

• Practicing natural resource managers in private and public sectors, as well as locally-based conservation volunteers who are active in land trusts, Conservation Commissions, and other groups. These people are currently involved at the front lines of conservation, often at the local level, and would benefit from knowing what has been successful in other places.

Working singly or in groups, enrolled students will be responsible for assembling the elements of one case study, which will be subsequently developed into an on-line case to be used in outreach to private landowners, natural resource professionals, and community volunteers. Thus, this course represents a unique and valuable opportunity for students to interact with people and real-world examples of conservation occurring at the local level. Through meeting the requirements of the course, students will be participating in the development of on-line case study resources to be disseminated to a wider audience.

Requirements:

1. Attendance and participation in the weekly seminar presentations and discussions.
2. mid-term take home exam
3. Assembly of materials to describe one of the represented cases in an on-line format for wider distribution. Students will work in teams or individually with the person who presents the case to the class, to gather information that will be used in subsequent development of the case on-line for wider distribution. Cases developed by students in previous semesters are located here: http://www.masswoods.net/future_land/cases/index.html

            Students do not need to create the on-line case. That will be done subsequent to the class. They need only assemble the required elements of the case. Required elements of a case include:

1. Narrative description of the case (1,000 – 1,500 words), including as much relevant detail to tell the story as possible, e.g., expenses; methods of financing; people and groups involved and the roles they played; location / size of the property; history of the land and its ownership; ecological / conservation role of the property, importance of the case – why it mattered?;   tools, tactics, and strategies used to conserve land.
2. Timeline describing how the case developed, and how much time elapsed from beginning to end
3. Summary of the case distilled into “lessons learned” presented in a bulletized format
4. Digital photos that illustrate the case, including the land and people involved, and text captions that accompany the images
5. Digital renditions of maps and air photos that describe the case, at several different scales, illustrating the overall landscape context of the case, as well as the actual, individual parcel[s] involved, and text captions that accompany the images
6. List of relevant web sites and links that pertain to the case (e.g., agencies, local groups, communities and programs involved).
7. Audio clips of people describing the case and their role, and text transcriptions of the audio clips (optional, but a good idea!)

Please submit all case materials on a CD. Format of the materials for a case is as follows:

1. Narrative, timeline, list of associated links, and lessons learned each in a separate word document
2. Provide a word document with captions to photos and maps. Be sure the file name to the photo or map is listed in the document along with the caption.
3. Photos and maps should be submitted as JPGS. Preferred size: 23(w) x 17(H) and 72 dpi. BUT-don’t resize photos. No scanned photos.
4. Provide a title to the case, thumbnail photo and one sentence lead in.
5. Provide the primary conservation tool used in the case (CR, Fee Simple, etc.)
6. No video.

See the following site for examples of past cases: http://www.masswoods.net/future_land/cases/index.html

 

Basis for grading:
Attendance and class participation                                                            20%
Commitment to a case study and development plan (Due 27 March)         5%
Mid-term take-home exam (distributed 27 March, Due 3 April)                25%
Requisite elements of a case study (Due Friday, 16 May see above):        50%

1-credit option: as an alternative to taking the course for three credits and meeting all requirements,  students may enroll for 1 credit of independent study (e.g., FOREST 596), and meet the requirements of: attending all seminar presentations (20% of grade), Case study development plan (5%), and preparing materials for one case (75% of grade).

Prerequisites:

1. Working knowledge of GIS would be helpful, to be able to acquire relevant spatial data from MASSGIS and create spatial imagery for a particular case (see e., above).
2. Ability and willingness to travel on your own [or with your group] to actually visit the site of your case study (one or possibly more times, as needed), to interview relevant parties, take photos, and acquire other background information.

Waiver:
Students will be required to make independent trips to visit the site of a case study, and hereby release and agree to hold blameless the University, Department, and Instructor from any and all liability or loss resulting from acts of omissions. 

ACADEMIC HONESTY: Academic dishonesty is a violation of the spirit and regulations of the University, and will not be tolerated. Examples of academic dishonesty include cheating, plagiarism, and fabrication. Any student found to be in violation of University Academic Honesty regulations will automatically receive a failing grade for the course. For further information on academic honesty regulations, please consult http://www.umass.edu/dean_students/code_conduct/

Course schedule:   The class meets every Tuesday and Thursday, from 4 – 5:15 pm in 305 Holdsworth Hall. Seminar presentations of cases by outside speakers will be each Tuesday, and class discussion will be on Thursdays.  For a list of seminar speakers and topics, see:   http://forest.fnr.umass.edu/conservation/