Stakeholder and social network analysis for understanding forest (fires) management – A contribution based on a systematic literature review

Finding strategies and measures to prevent and mitigate wildfires is at the top of the socio-political agendas in Europe. This is due to an increase in the recurrence and intensity of wildfires, but also to constraints related to fire planning and management system, which includes and deals with multiple organizations, entities, and stakeholders, fostering diverse potential tensions and conflicts, and generally based on poor communication, which, altogether, may compromise a successful operationalization of fire management policies. Stakeholder analysis (SA) is a methodology that can help to understand and cope with those limitations. Its application enables the understanding of the relevant actors, their goals, interests, plans, influence levels, resources, behavior, and interrelations. Considering the limitations of SA methods in determining the role of communication networks and understanding the patterns of interaction, Social Network Analysis (SNA) emerges as an essential tool for assessing the relationships among actors, their positions within a network, and the drivers of the different interactions. In this vein, a systematic literature review was conducted to explore how SA and SNA have been addressed by European studies regarding forests and, particularly, wildfires. The 41 articles selected were subjected to a quantitative and qualitative thematic analysis considering several dimensions, such as its main purpose and expected impact, the research methods used, the stakeholders' categorization, or the limitations and contributions. One of the study's more significant findings relates to the crucial roles played by the different approaches to understand the existing system and to support policy- and decision-making processes. • Social-ecological systems, like forest management, benefit from holistic and proactive approaches. • SA identifies and categorizes stakeholders, while SNA reveals relationship patterns. • SA and SNA are crucial for policy-decision-making and participatory practices. • Analyzing relationships and networks supports effective management and conservation outcomes. • Fire Governance in Europe can benefit from a wider use of SA and SNA.