Description
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) are cohosting a webinar to discuss the Social and Ecological Systems of Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) Management.
Event Details:
January 11th, 2022
1pm Mountain Time / 3pm Eastern Time
Join on Teams Live
Event Description:
Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is an incurable and fatal neurodegenerative disease that infects Cervids internationally. To slow the spread of chronic wasting disease and lessen stakeholder impacts, it is imperative to understand and describe the unique situations that agencies face when managing the disease. People and CWD management are intrinsically tied, so understanding the social components of the disease is critical to effective management.
In recognition of the need for a more holistic approach to CWD management, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), in partnership with Foundations of Success, organized a workshop to develop a national-scale social-ecological model of CWD management. The workshop brought together 29 representatives from 17 organizations. These managers, veterinarians, wildlife disease specialists, social scientists, and researchers met in late 2020 to map out the various elements, threats, and drivers of CWD management using the Conservation Standards, resulting in a social-ecological model of CWD management.
A second phase of this project to identify areas in the model where agency/organization interventions show the most promise for positively affecting CWD management has begun. In Phase II, a multidisciplinary, cross-sector team will also work to identify CWD management successes, failures, and contributing factors. Phase II of this project will result in a decision framework and guidance document that will be disseminated to help managers identify interventions that can be employed at the local, regional, state/tribal, and national level to improve CWD management outcomes.
For this effort to be successful, we seek to incorporate the participation and expert opinions from diverse professional backgrounds and organizations. We are seeking wildlife managers, veterinarians, zoonotic disease specialists, wildlife biologists, ecologists, social scientists, and academic researchers from states, tribes, federal agencies, NGO, and academia. This group of individuals will assist in shaping the future of CWD management in North America by pooling their expertise and knowledge with others to identify and create effective cross-boundary solutions. This webinar will provide details of the project, the expected outcomes, and benefits for the wider CWD management community.
For more information contact:
Nicholas W. Cole, Ph.D.
Research Social Scientist, Social & Economic AnalysisU.S. Geological Survey, Fort Collins Science Center
2150 Centre Ave., Building C
Fort Collins, CO 80526
970.226.9220
ncole@usgs.gov
Brad MilleySenior Social Scientist, Human Dimensions BranchU.S. Fish and Wildlife Service – National Wildlife Refuge SystemNatural Resource Program Center1201 Oakridge Drive, Suite 320Fort Collins, CO 80525970-266-2998Brad_Milley@fws.gov
