Before initiating a comprehensive management plan process for the Jackson bison and elk herds, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Park Service, with the support of the U.S. Forest Service and the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, invited the U.S. Institute for Environmental Conflict Resolution (U.S. Institute) to conduct a situation assessment to provide guidance in devising a public involvement strategy. The purpose of this report is twofold: first, to provide these agencies and other interested parties a sense of the range of interests and concerns about the management of the Jackson bison and elk herds, and second, to present recommendations and options for developing a public involvement strategy. Over the past three months, the U.S. Institute and its associates, the University of Wyoming's Institute for Environment and Natural Resources and the Meridian Institute, have interviewed approximately 130 individuals representing a broad array of interests from the local, regional, and national levels. These included ranching and agricultural interests; hunting and outfitting; businesses involved with tourism and recreation; environmental and wildlife conservation; animal rights and welfare; the research and education community; tribes; and government officials.
