Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
• Vision and values—a clear vision and mission, and goals that are reflected in
the organization's activities and values
• Community engagement—communicating with landowners and other con-
stituents, raising public awareness, and adapting conservation priorities
accordingly
• Sustainability—demonstrating long-lasting impact by soliciting funds from a va-
riety of sources
• Partnership-building—valuing and nurturing collaboration with a variety of
partners
• Leadership and commitment—having diverse boards and effectively recruiting
and retaining both staff and volunteers
• Risk management and evaluation: can demonstrate measurable outcomes to
their constituents and are able to identify and deal with risk in a strategic way
• Technology—adoption of new technologies to develop systems that support and
reflect the organization's mandate
• Diversity—appeal to a broad cross-section of constituents while maintaining a
local focus
Millar's (2003) indicators were designed to serve as benchmarks against which
stewardship and conservation organizations could measure their success, including
those involved in ecological restoration projects. To empirically investigate the theo-
retical framework proposed, we used the capacity framework and Millar's indicators of
success as a basis for surveying volunteer group leaders and land managers. In the fol-
lowing sections we describe the survey and the implications of our findings.
A Survey of Volunteer Group Leaders and Land Managers
Ecological restoration activities are among the many efforts provided by volunteer
groups in helping land managers protect and restore ecosystems. Many of these
groups work with federal agencies, such as the U.S. Forest Service, National Park Ser-
vice, and Bureau of Land Management. The liaison between the agency and the vol-
unteer groups is typically a volunteer coordinator who sets priorities, organizes activi-
ties, supervises, and even works alongside volunteers.
We surveyed the leaders of volunteer stewardship groups and the land manage-
ment personnel who coordinate volunteers to (1) identify the characteristics that they
felt contribute to the success of a volunteer stewardship group based on the indicators
of a successful organization as already described, (2) explore the relationship between
volunteer stewardship groups and the land management agency, and (3) examine the
differences in the perceptions of volunteer stewardship group leaders and land man-
agement personnel as to what makes a volunteer stewardship group successful.
Our sample of volunteer stewardship groups was limited to those with available
websites and, for budget reasons, to groups in Arizona, New Mexico, California,
Oregon, and Washington. With those constraints, we conducted a detailed Internet
