Partner-focused research

Project Description

The Pacific Northwest (PNW) Research Station is changing the way we approach the cycle of research from planning to application. To better meet the needs of our partners and stakeholders, we're collaborating with them before the research even begins to plan long-term research priorities. Called the "Research Framework," the new operating model fully embraces collaboration and shared stewardship by encouraging all partners to continue working together throughout the entire research cycle.

Paul Anderson, acting director for the PNW Research Station says, “By forging strong working connections with those who need and use our information, we can better understand how to frame our questions, design studies, and deliver results. In this way, our partners are helping us enhance the accessibility of our existing and future research results.”

This flexible, transparent strategy follows the principles of coproduction, in which partners and scientists work together throughout the cycle of research from planning to application. The process begins by jointly identifying the scope and context of the need, research questions, methods, and outputs, and continues with developing strategies for applying the research results to real-world situations.

The research framework has four overarching priorities based on science to:

• Manage for forest resilience and ecosystem services
• Connect people to their natural environment 
• Mitigate risk to people, property, and forests
• Monitor and predict land stewardship and disturbance outcomes

Two research initiatives that employ this approach are currently underway: Carbon Dynamics for Land and Watershed Managers, and Fire and Climate Adaptation of West-Side Forests. Over time, new initiatives will be added, creating a dynamic and evolving set of research initiatives and projects.

Working groups with the carbon dynamics initiative are currently addressing these priority topics:

• Synthesizing the current state of knowledge for carbon sequestration scenarios.
• Determining which land management scenarios and alternatives are of highest interest to stakeholders with respect to carbon dynamics.
• Conducting social science research to identify viable courses of action to manage forest carbon and to characterize the socioeconomic incentives, drivers, and tradeoffs of management and policy.
• Synthesizing, optimizing, and assessing carbon models to address the specific scenarios and questions identified by the management scenario and socioeconomic research projects.

Working groups with the west-side forests initiative are currently addressing these priority topics:

• Historical and future fire regimes on the west side of the Cascade Range.
• Fuels treatments on the west side: current practices and future effectiveness and economic feasibility.
• Vegetation response to wildfires on the west side.

Each working group is developing a project study plan outlining their research. Virtual meetings are continuing throughout the initiatives to keep stakeholders involved.