Framing of Intractable Environmental Disputes: The Edwards Aquifer Case
Funder: Hewlett Foundation
This was one of eight research studies conducted by a Hewlett-funded research consortium project, An Inter-University Consortium on the Framing of Intractable Environmental Disputes, headed by Dr. Barbara Gray at Pennsylvania State University. Researchers from the ISTPP’s former Program on Conflict and Dispute Resolution (PCDR) examined media portrayals of the stakeholders involved in the Edwards Aquifer Dispute.
PCDR researchers interviewed over 70 stakeholders and developed a framework for understanding values that stakeholders bring to this conflict, particularly their views of the problem, their insights about the relationships among parties, and their descriptions of the historical development and interventions used in the dispute. They are particularly interested in the way that perceptions and recommendations for managing the conflict have changed through the development of the dispute.
Research team members at Texas A&M University included Drs. Linda L. Putnam and Tarla Rai Peterson (communication).
