U.S. parks and protected area power structures: From historic policies to Indigenous futurities

Abstract This study examines the historical and contemporary power structures in U.S. Parks and Protected Areas (PPAs) and proposes a framework for transitioning toward more equitable management practices that are centered on Indigenous leadership and sovereignty. As an authorship team of Indigenous and non‐Indigenous scholars, we critique the colonial infrastructure that has maintained settler power over Indigenous lands and waters by employing decolonial and feminist methodologies and adapting an Indigenous evaluation model to understand PPA management power paradigms along a spectrum from historic to contemporary and Indigenous futurity‐based management. We highlight that despite recent federal policies that promote collaborative management, significant barriers persist for Tribal Nations to gain powers that recognize their self‐determination and sovereignty in PPA management. Such barriers include the prioritization of western conservation paradigms, U.S. policies, marginalization of Indigenous Knowledge Systems, and limited recognition of Tribal Nations as sovereign rightsholders. We introduce a model for understanding and navigating a spectrum of power dynamics in PPA management and categorize sequential stages: “To” and “For,” maintaining colonial dominance through structural and procedural powers and cultures; “With” and “Beside,” the nexus of collaborative and co‐equity‐based management paradigms; and “By” and “As,” Indigenous self‐determination over the aims, governance, and stewardship of PPAs. Using a participatory working group approach, we developed desired conditions and indicators to assist PPA managers and Tribal entities in using the model to assess current practices and guide transitions toward moving from “With” to “Beside” paradigms and as pathways that will lead to Indigenous futurities, which honor self‐determination and sovereignty of Tribal Nations. This research contributes to ongoing discussions on decolonizing conservation and land management practices and provides practical frameworks for PPA managers and Tribal Nations to create paradigmatic and more equity‐ and rights‐based management praxes.