Published on 21 August 2024
David Bavin – National Trust
Michelle Twena -National Trust
Clare Bissell – National Trust
Matthew Heard – National Trust
Sarah Crowley – University of Exeter
Scottish Environment Link (Finding the Common Ground initiative)
The Countryside Charity (CPRE)
Other private landowners and independent ecologists
ExCASES Missions provide short, intense periods of focus towards issues that have been communicated as priorities for RENEW partner organisations and external stakeholders. The ExCASES team work collaboratively with people across different sectors and disciplines, co-designing research and participatory processes to generate empowering outcomes for people and the environment.
This mission aimed to:
Deer populations in the UK are growing, with an increasingly favourable climate and no large predators (except humans) to regulate their numbers. In many places this is having a very detrimental effect, not only on biodiversity but also on deer welfare and food production. These impacts are projected to increase as the deer population continues to grow.
It is generally accepted by land managing stakeholders that reducing deer populations through lethal control (deer culling) is necessary. However, it is difficult to manage deer populations effectively at the landscape scale without a coordinated approach between landowners, who often have different motivations and views towards wildlife management. This RENEW mission aimed to convene sectorally diverse stakeholders to explore and identify pathways towards more effective collaboration over deer management objectives.
The team took a deliberative, participatory approach with stakeholders. Participants were identified from key reports and literature, by a stakeholder mapping exercise, and by snowballing, and were contacted by members of the ExCASES team. The team engaged 32 participants over the course of three workshops. The first two workshops (the same workshop held with two different groups of mixed participants) focused on exploring different stakeholder perceptions towards deer management; prioritising issues; and collectively developing ideal futures for human-deer coexistence. A third workshop convened participants from the first two workshops, plus new stakeholders identified by existing participants. For the third workshop, the team focussed discussions around a number of key themes that emerged from the first two workshops, engaging participants in activities that were specifically designed to identify pathways towards realising participants’ aspirations for deer management, and towards supporting collaboration.
The team produced a report drawing together the lessons from the process; making eight recommendations for supporting more effective collaboration around deer management.
Deer culling can be a difficult subject to discuss, with stakeholders holding different (and sometimes conflicting) perspectives towards the role of people in managing land and wildlife. Most stakeholders are typically wary of negative reactions when talking about deer management with the wider public. The team took care to facilitate a process in which diverse perspectives could be voiced, received, and mutual understandings and some consensuses could develop. This included spending time discussing the rationale for managing deer, the socio-historical context, participation, framing, and the language used. Land managing participants spoke of the challenge of talking about deer management with the public, whilst other participants highlighted their information needs in order to build trust and confidence with their constituents.
New connections and collaborations, and some joint communication principles were enabled by and developed across the workshops. Connecting the deer management sector (landowners and deer managers) with the food justice and redistribution sector (e.g., food bank coordinators and charities) was an important breakthrough, which has resulted in a multi-stakeholder partnership to provide venison to third-sector organisations working with people in food poverty across Sussex and Surrey.
The feedback so far has been very positive, with broad agreement that engaging with the views of a wide diversity of voices was insightful, informative, and rewarding. The seeds of some novel and potentially fruitful relationships have been sown, notably between deer managers and food justice representatives over the potential societal benefits of increased access to venison.
“This is not a subject I had ever really engaged in. I have learned so much which has opened new opportunities to the charity and its aims & objectives.” – Food Justice organisation participant.
“It was very beneficial involving non-traditional participants with novel views and “out of the box” thinkers!” – Forestry Commission participant
“The process has helped fill in gaps so I better understand the issues and what is required to resolve the issues.” – Sussex Wildlife Trust participant
“Really inspiring workshop facilitation techniques and exercises that I would like to use in the future.” – University of Exeter participant” – Sussex Wildlife Trust participant
ExCASES will publish the work in a full account, and a shorter POSTnote style report. Following dissemination, the team will reconvene participants, and a wider invitation of stakeholders online, for a facilitated discussion of the process findings.
Banner image: Karsten Wurth. Unsplash
