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Our Mission

To perform and integrate social and biophysical research for natural resource management, and to develop products that make research results available and useful for policy, planning, and management.

Our Research

Social structures and processes

Resource managers need a more complete understanding of the relationships among social institutions and organizations, forest management, and forest ecosystem processes to achieve their policy and management goals.

Individual values and decision making

Research on this problem is divided into two components: 1) identifying and analyzing the key human values that affect natural resource decisions, and 2) incorporating these values into better tools for analyzing and evaluating alternative policies and management actions, particularly those involving multiple goals and diverse stakeholder objectives.

Management applications

Natural resource managers need sufficient information on the array of human values and requirements that affect resource management, planning, and policy decisions. Specifically, managers need data on the the effects of social values on timber management, recreation, special forest products, and biodiversity.

Tool development

There is a need for decision support tools that will integrate the best knowledge available about biophysical and social systems and assist managers and policy makers in making informed decisions.

More Information

This site is under development as the Forest Service brings together the Northeastern and North Central Research Stations to form the Northern Research Station, serving the Northeast and Midwest. Check back often as we expand our site to reflect our combined commitment to supporting the natural resources and people of the Northeastern and Midwestern United States.

For more details about our research visit http://www.fs.fed.us/ne/burlington/research/
ne4454/ne4454.htm