Stewardship Contracting: How the Forest Service Partners with the Public in Forest Restoration

Stewardship contracts and agreements have become an important implementation mechanism through which the USDA Forest Service directly engages the private sector and various segments of the public in the management of the National Forests and Grasslands. To examine how this federal agency engages the public in stewardship contracting, the Pinchot Institute completed 15 case studies of recent stewardship contracting projects, offering insights on the interactions between agency and non-agency stakeholders (individuals or organizations external to the Forest Service). Broadly representative of the type of restoration work happening on the National Forest System, the projects reviewed in this report are among the most ambitious and complex stories on public lands management and restoration.

Based on interviews with USFS employees and other stakeholders, the report investigates:

• How are non-agency stakeholders engaging with the Forest Service through the development and implementation of stewardship contracting projects?
• How do relationships between the Forest Service and non-agency stakeholders change as a result of their engagement in stewardship contracting projects?
• What project phases do participants feel are most important for non-agency stakeholder involvement?
• How is the diversity of participation related to perceptions of project success?
• How does the involvement of non-agency stakeholders influence the size of projects and their complexity?

To download the report and view a recording of a webinar discussing the findings, visit: http://www.pinchot.org/gp/Stewardship_Contracting