Wilderness and Protected Area Management - (PTRM 482)

Who should take this course?

This class is designed as a capstone course in the Recreation Management degree. It presumes a fundamental awareness of the Wilderness Act and other legislation governing the designation and management of parks and wilderness areas. Rather than focusing on the how of managing these areas, this course asks for what and why society has set aside these areas. The course is designated an upper-division writing course, with at least two significant writing assignment of 10 pages or more. It is required for students in the Recreation Resources Management option of the undergraduate B.S in Recreation Management.

Why is this class important?

Understanding the historical and philosophical foundations for wilderness and other protected areas ensures clarity of purpose and specificity of management approaches. Each of the various designations of park (urban park, state park, and national park) have distinct social imperatives to which they are responding. This course helps students understand those original objectives and criticisms leveled at the protected area response.

What will I learn?

• The major social and political objectives for the diversity of protected area designations
• The current issues and criticisms surrounding Wilderness, National Parks, and international conservation initiatives.
• A familiarity with the ideas of well-known authors, such as Bill Cronon, J.Baird Callicott, David Foreman, Joseph Sax, Alfred Runte, Alston Chase, Gary Snyder, and Jack Turner, who have written on Wilderness, National Parks, and international protected areas.

Who teaches the class?

The instructor for the course is Bill Borrie, Professor of Park and Recreation Management. He brings to the classroom significant experience in researching wilderness and protected areas, along with an enthusiasm for parks and wilderness areas of all sorts. His writing includes articles on the effect of technology on wilderness, the Disneyfication of outdoor recreation, the similarities between zoos and wilderness, and the privatization of public lands management.