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Community engagement and the importance of partnerships within the Great Lakes Areas of Concern program: A mixed-methods case study
Citation:
Rentschler, A. AND K. Williams. Community engagement and the importance of partnerships within the Great Lakes Areas of Concern program: A mixed-methods case study. JOURNAL OF GREAT LAKES RESEARCH. International Association for Great Lakes Research, Ann Arbor, MI, , N/A, (2022). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jglr.2022.08.005
Impact/Purpose:
The impact of this research is to demonstrate how communities relate to their Areas of Concern, natural resources, and communities. This research demonstrates that communities and agencies have different perceptions of their roles and responsibilities in the Great Lakes Areas of Concern (AOC) program and that these differences may make it difficult for communities to relate to the AOC program.
Description:
The Great Lakes Areas of Concern (AOC) program was created through amendments to the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement (GLWQA) in 1987 to clean up and restore contaminated waters and revitalize surrounding communities using an ecosystem-based approach. This program represents one of the first instances of ecosystem-based management (EBM) practices in the Great Lakes region, with a specific focus on the inclusion of the public and local stakeholders in the process. Despite official language incorporating EBM practices into the AOC program, implementation of these practices has not been consistent across AOCs, with some Public Advisory Councils (PACs) encountering difficulties connecting to local stakeholders and the community-at-large. To better understand community engagement in complex AOCs, this research investigated roles, relationships, and values at the community, PAC, and state level perspectives within three complex AOCs in Michigan: - the Kalamazoo River, the Saginaw River & Bay, and the Rouge River watershed AOC. Researchers gathered data on perspectives through interviews, focus groups, and participatory observations with community members, PAC members and state officials within EGLE in each AOC. Findings indicate that communities in these areas have minimal connection to the AOC program and PACs, as very few respondents were able to identifiedy their local PAC as an organization working towards environmental restoration. Communities tended to have greater knowledge and connection to surrounding local organizations that provide a variety of opportunities for community members to engage with their environment in ways they value. To better connect the public to the AOC program, its benefits, and work being done to restore their local environment, PACs may benefit from intentional partnerships with these valued community stakeholders to increase community engagement.
URLs/Downloads:
DOI: Community engagement and the importance of partnerships within the Great Lakes Areas of Concern program: A mixed-methods case study
RENTSCHLERWILLIAMS_2022.PDF (PDF, NA pp, 2182.833 KB, about PDF)