Bringing the Forest Home: Lessons Learned during the COVID-19 Pandemic about E-Planning in Community Forestry Contexts

Abstract

Abstract This paper examines “e-planning,” or the use of computer-based systems to conduct planning and decision-making, in the context of community forest management. E-planning is growing in the field of environmental planning, as it promises greater equity in terms of public participation. However, a lack of scholarly work exists on the applicability for forest planning. During the COVID-19 pandemic, county foresters and other natural resource professionals in Vermont turned to e-planning when safety restrictions limited their ability to engage in face-to-face efforts. This provided an opportunity to collect empirical data about the potential for e-planning to support the public engagement process in the context of forest planning. We provide an overview of e-planning theory and examine data from Vermont to explore the promise of e-planning for forest management. We make recommendations about the applicability of e-planning in the context of forest planning, and highlight areas for future research to investigate. Study Implications Public participation is an important component in the planning and management of public forestland. The use of e-planning, or the use of computer-based systems to conduct planning and decision-making, increased during the COVID-19 pandemic as a way to safely continue public participation efforts. Our paper suggests that e-planning may be a powerful tool for engaging both new and current stakeholders. However, we caution that there are challenges associated with e-planning, particularly issues related to technology and internet access. We encourage public land managers to consider whether e-planning is applicable to the communities they serve.