| This research project is a case study of locally-initiated dialogues designed to reduce conflict over the management of public and private land resources in Montezuma County, Colorado. The underlying context is the decreased importance of one type of resource-based economy (focused on timber, ranching, and energy production) and the increasing importance of another-one based primarily on amenity values. Collaborative dialogues have been established on three fronts as conflicts increase over the future use of the surrounding environment, these are: county land use planning, San Juan National Forest planning, and restoration management of ponderosa pine forests.;In line with recent arguments being made in the social sciences (Beck, Giddens & Lash 1994, Peet and Watts 1996, Bourdieu 1998) which emphasize the growing importance of agency in affecting material conditions, this dissertation will focus on how the strategies and actions taken by local groups and individuals are an important influence on the future character of Montezuma County. While broader economic forces play a critical role in setting the parameters for local action, it is argued that these alone will not determine the area's future economy, environment, and society. Rather, fundamental conflicts over these issues are being played out through local protest movements and within community dialogues, and their outcomes are likely to have a very real impact on the landscape.;By focusing on local actions this study will offer an explanation of how individuals and groups rely on different strategies and pursue varying goals based on "taken-for-granted" perceptions embedded in their particular cultural backgrounds (similar to Bourdieu's notion of habitus). Fundamental concepts such as "nature", and "community" are subject to particular social constructions, and are understood differently by those involved. By focusing on the discourses of individuals as revealed through interviews and meeting dialogue, an effort will be made to understand these different constructions. The idea of achieving true "consensus" based on commonly-shared understandings for place, nature, and the forest will be questioned. It will be proposed instead that some coincidence of objectives is possible in spite of very different social constructions held by participants. |
