Tangled problems, tacit frames: understanding drought management in Montana forests, USA

Globally, drought poses a critical threat to forest ecosystems, with increasingly severe, compounding impacts that transform these ecosystems and their management. U.S. state and federal forest management professionals face challenges in planning for and proactively adapting to drought risk; this paper explores the social and institutional barriers and opportunities they encounter. We use framing analysis to examine the rules and norms that influence the perceptions and actions of institutional actors. This study integrates interview and survey results using a mixed-methods approach to explore ecological drought management in Montana forests. We examine how forest management professionals frame the challenges of drought management and the systems and structures needed to manage it effectively. The study offers new insights into how public U.S. forest management organizations frame drought-related problems, and how conflicting frames and logics might be managed to better adapt to future drought risk.