program guide & abstracts what’s inside THE WEEK AT A GLANCE . .2 ABSTRACTS . .13 Monday AM Concurrent Sessions (1–14) . .13 CONFERENCE OVERVIEW . .3 Monday Late PM Concurrent Sessions (15–26) . .33 Welcome . .3 Tuesday AM Concurrent Sessions (27–40) . .45 The Conference Theme . .3 Tuesday Early PM Concurrent Sessions (41–54) . .61 About the George Wright Society . .4 Tuesday Late PM Concurrent Sessions (55–68) . .72 About the GWS Biennial Conferences . .4 Wednesday Concurrent Sessions (69–90) . .84 Acknowledgments . .4 Thursday AM Concurrent Sessions (91–104) . .93 Sponsoring and Supporting Organizations . .5 Thurs. Early PM Concurrent Sessions (105–118) .107 Overview of Plenary Sessions . .5 Thurs. Late PM Concurrent Sessions (119–132) . .121 Overview of Concurrent Sessions . .6 Friday Concurrent Sessions (133–146) . .129 A Note on Punctuality / Last-Minute Changes . .6 Posters / Computer Demos / Exhibits . .141 Overview of Posters / Computer Demos / Exhibits . .7 Special Events and Field Trips . .7 Conference Proceedings . .9 The George Wright Student Travel Scholarships . .9 Walkin’ in the Footsteps of George Silent Auction .10 The Native Participant Travel Grant Program . .10 The Wes Henry Memorial Fund . .10 Conference Photography . .11 Birchbark Books Sales Table / Book Signings . .11 Meeting Room Locations / Diagrams . .12 the week at a glance gws2007 program guide & abstracts 2 conference overview welcome! we’re glad you’ve chosen gws2007 Welcome to the Twin Cities! Thank you for choosing to attend the George Wright Society biennial conference. We want to make your time here as rewarding as possible. If you have a problem, a question, or need any kind of assistance, please see a conference representative in the registration area. We will do our best to help you. The GWS Board of Directors and the 2007 Conference Committee extend a warm welcome to you! Chaired by Abigail Miller, the 2007 Conference Committee members are Gillian Bowser, Rolf Diamant, David J. Parsons, William H. Walker, and Stephen Woodley. For 2007, the GWS Board of Directors includes Abigail Miller (presi- dent), Rolf Diamant (vice president), Rebecca Conard (treasurer), Gillian Bowser (secretary), Brad Barr, David Graber, Suzette Kimball, Suzanne Lewis, Stephanie Toothman, and Stephen Woodley. the conference theme: rethinking protected areas in a changing world The theme of the 2007 George Wright Society Conference on Parks, Protected Areas, and Cultural Sites, “Re- thinking Protected Areas in a Changing World,” is a challenge to the community of park and resource profes- sionals to assess the large-scale changes that are transforming the world. Here are some of the issues the GWS2007 conference will take up. • Global climate change is the backdrop against which everything else takes place. Climate change has the potential to affect every aspect of human society, including the basic premises that nature conservation is built around. For example, what does a manager do when the species the park is supposed to protect begin dying out or migrating because of global warming? • Globalization is an extremely complex phenomenon that holds both perils and promise for parks and cul- tural sites. Controls on information exchange, energy flows, and corporate behavior once were strongly asso- ciated with national boundaries. Now those controls are disappearing, challenging old concepts about how protected area systems should be organized and how individual parks and cultural sites should be managed. • Shifting demographics are bringing new sets of visitors with different expectations. At the same time some traditional park clienteles are aging, and this is changing recreational patterns. • The increasing democratization of heritage means that many different groups are now laying claim to the interpretation of heritage sites. Meanings and modes of interpretation are being vigorously contested, and site managers are caught in the crossfire. • The continuing erosion of biodiversity through habitat loss and the spread of invasive species threatens to undo the fabric of nature. Protected natural areas are assumed to be a primary means of protecting biodi- versity, but we don’t have a long enough track record to determine whether this is true. • The growing emphasis on national security in the United States in the wake of 9/11 has shifted budget pri- orities and stressed park staffs as protection personnel are detailed to security assignments. Can we make the case that systems of protected natural areas and cultural sites are crucial to national security? • The alienation of people from the past—the disconnect between average citizens and a grounded sense of history—continues to concern cultural heritage professionals. The decline in historical literacy is especially worrisome among youth. • Ongoing debates over privatization of parks and heritage sites have brought diametrically opposed politi- cal ideologies to the doorstep of park and site managers. • The emergence of civic engagement as an organizing principle in park outreach programs promises to deep- en the intellectual engagement of parks and heritage sites with their visitors. By making parks and heritage sites a space where contentious social issues can be constructively debated, civic engagement reinforces the role of these places as an important part of an open society. gws2007 program guide & abstracts 3 Why rethink protected areas? As the caretakers of one of modern civilization’s greatest achievements—organized systems of parks and cultural sites that protect and maintain important facets of cultural and natural heritage— we as park professionals must respond to this litany of far-reaching changes. GWS2007 provides a platform where we can begin. about the george wright society Founded in 1980, the George Wright Society is an international nonprofit association of researchers, resource managers, educators, administrators, and other professionals working in parks, other kinds of protected natu- ral areas, and cultural and historic sites. The GWS advances the scientific and her- itage values of parks and protected areas. We promote professional research and resource stewardship across natural and cultural disciplines, provide avenues of communication (such as this conference and our quarterly journal, The George Wright Forum), and encourage public policies that embrace these values. We strive to be the premier organization connecting people, places, knowledge, and ideas to foster excellence in natural and cultural resource management, research, protec- tion, and interpretation in parks and equivalent reserves. If you share these goals, please join us! Membership in the GWS is open to anyone, and includes a subscription to The George Wright Forum. See the GWS display for more details. You can join here in St. Paul by filling out a membership form and turning it in to us at the Registration Desk, or you can do it later on-line. Who was George Wright? He was the first scientist to work for the U.S. National Park Service, and was active in the late 1920s and 1930s. Wright was known for his keen ecological insights and winning personality. He was a strong proponent of putting “resources first” in parks and fought for ecological integrity in protected natural areas. More than this, he also understood the importance of marshaling natural and cultural resource disci- plines in concert to achieve park management goals. Wright died, far too young, in a car accident. Had he lived, he had the potential to become a major figure in American conservation. With its name, the George Wright Society honors his vision. Please visit us on-line at www.georgewright.org. about the GWS biennial conferences Rethinking Protected Areas in a Changing World is the 14th in a series of conferences that date back to 1976. Since 1982, the GWS has organized the conferences, which now take place in odd-numbered years. The GWS biennial has become the USA’s largest interdisciplinary conference on parks, protected areas, and cultural sites. It is the only such conference to actively seek participation from across the entire spectrum of cultural and nat- ural resource concerns. We are always eager to have your comments and suggestions for improvement, so please be sure to fill out the conference evaluation questionnaire and drop it off at the Registration Desk. our thanks to the people who make these conferences possible First and foremost, we thank our organizational sponsors and supporters, all of whom have worked with us for many years: the National Park Service, the U.S. Geological Survey, and Eastern National. Their missions are described in the next section. Beyond that, the GWS is grateful to the many individuals who helped make this conference happen. For secur- gws2007 program guide & abstracts 4 ing vital funding for the conference, our thanks go to Sue Haseltine of the U.S. Geological Survey; Mike Soukup, John Dennis, Jon Jarvis, and Marcia Blaszak of the National Park Service; and Chesley Moroz of Eastern National. We thank all the people who organized the slate of field trips. We also express our appreciation to all the institutions and individuals who helped sponsor the George Melendez Wright Student Travel Scholarships and the Native Participant Travel Grants; here, we particularly thank Gillian Bowser and Sharon Franklet, respectively, for their tireless efforts on behalf of these programs (see below for full details on the programs). Others who provided invaluable assistance include Dorothy Anderson, John Anfinson, Otis Halfmoon, Bonnie Halda, Melia Lane-Kamahele, Corliss Outley, Michael Schuett, Jerrilyn Thompson, and Robyn Thorson. organizational sponsors and supporters The National Park Service oversees more than 380 units of the national park system for the enjoyment, education, and inspiration of this generation and those yet to come. NPS also works with local communities to preserve historic sites, develop trail systems, and advise on recreational needs. The Park Service cooperates with part- ners to extend the benefits of natural and cultural resource conservation and out- door recreation throughout this country and the world. www.nps.gov The principal science agency of the Department of the Interior, the U.S.