Why participate? Stakeholder perspectives and interpretations

Until the middle of the 19th century, there were large populations of the four mammalian carnivores – brown bear, wolverine, lynx and wolf – throughout much of Fennoscandia. All four species were, however, persistently... [ view full abstract ]

Until the middle of the 19^th century, there were large populations of the four mammalian carnivores – brown bear, wolverine, lynx and wolf – throughout much of Fennoscandia. All four species were, however, persistently hunted, and bounties were paid to encourage hunting. As a result, by the 1960s, large parts of the populations were almost exterminated or profoundly reduced. Today, the populations are increasing but their presence highly disputed by certain stakeholder groups and environmental collaborative measures are implemented to deal with conflicting goals and encourage shared responsibility, exchange of perspectives, experiences and knowledge, and mutual learning. This study of collaborative governance in large carnivore management explores the motivations for participating. It explores the tangible and associative values of those concerned and involved, and the circulating discourses, multiple contestations and regimes of power enacted and confirmed within. The study, implemented using qualitative methods, takes departure in how the mobilization of a broader array of state and non-state actors in dealing with issues of collective concern and seeking acceptable outcomes, stages tensions, agendas and values of the parties involved. Conflicting views about merits or short-comings of certain programs and policies have to be negotiated, and the dialogue process as built around circulating discourses, multiple contestations and regimes of power. To highlight the flow and content of ideas, concepts and threads of meaning communicated in the participatory forums, anthropological theory building emphasizing the plurality of meanings in policy work will be employed.