Rewilding: Comparing Transatlantic Wolf Conservation Histories, Policies, and Outcomes

In recent decades the idea of rewilding has been an increasingly important philosophical and scientific development in the areas of wildlife conservation and environmental policy. Rewilding pushes against the more anthropocentric policies of the past in favor of an ecocentric view, not based on human-derived value but striving to protect nature on its own merit. In the late 1980’s and early 1990’s, increased conservation efforts on both sides of the Atlantic led to the return of the wolf Canis lupus in both the contiguous United States and metropolitan France, two regions where the species had been extirpated decades earlier. The return of such a large predator, and the new policies required by its presence, serves as a good point of comparison to examine the extent to which stakeholders have been able to form anthropocentric or ecocentric advocacy coalitions, and how these coalitions are able to promote or oppose their preferred policies regarding wolves. In this thesis I will show that the centralized nature of European Union/French policy has forced cooperation and broader stakeholder inclusion across advocacy coalitions, resulting in more proactive policies while the decentralized nature of American policy has provided many more opportunities for antagonism and resulted in less stakeholder cooperation and a more reactive approach in policy.