Exploring the Concept of “Ownership” in Natural Resource Planning

Abstract

Literature associated with natural resource planning reveals that in situations characterized as wicked (i.e., those to which there is great uncertainty about cause–effect relationships and where values and goals are conflicting or competing), traditional planning processes that emphasize technical analysis and limit citizen involvement often create tensions between citizens and agencies in the form of inaction, distrust, litigation, and occasionally even threats and violence. A new concept is emerging that describes the potential for individuals to address wicked situations. The term is “ownership” and has been defined as responsibility, obligation, and caring imbued by individuals in problem situations. We expand this definition to include three characteristics: ownership in process (whose voice is heard), ownership in outcome (whose voice is codified), and the ownership distribution (who is affected by the action). Ownership involves the association of citizens and agencies to collectively define, share, and address problem situations with implicit reexamination of the distribution of power.

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