Taking on deer management in your community can seem daunting at first. Luckily, deer are among the best-studied species of wildlife in North America. The literature on deer biology and management is vast and spans decades. Here you will find a selection of some of the articles, documents and management guides that other communities have found most useful in shaping their deer management programs.
Make communication a priority for your community's deer management program. Consult these guides to learn how.
A helpful book for learning more about problem-solving negotiation. May be especially useful for facilitators.
This resource is Dr. Oliver Escobar's website regarding citizen participation and dialogue and deliberation. May be especially useful for facilitators and community leaders.
A non-technical guide for effective group or community meetings. An especially valuable resource for facilitators.
This book explores how to mediate public disputes. May be especially useful for facilitators.
This report describes efforts to design a stakeholder involvement strategy for the Village of Cayuga Heights, at a time when deer management was just emerging as a controversial issue.
This template is provided in Excel format and will help your community articulate a communications strategy around deer management. A good communication plan for a project answers:
- WHO will you communicate with (stakeholders)?
- WHEN will you communicate with them?
- WHAT is the key message they need to get?
- HOW will you communicate with them?
Use this template to develop a communications plan for your community. It provides an outline and instructions for a basic plan, covering who, when, what and how. Just download and fill in your details about messages, tactics, and target audiences.
The messaging structure is a central part of any communications plan. This document contains key messages about deer management that can be customized for your community and incorporated into all materials about your CBDM Program. They can also be used as talking points with the media.
"Deerville" is a fictitious community with a new deer management program. This example communications plan contains all the elements: Who, When, What, and How? Download the template to develop a communications plan for your own community. Your communication strategy can make all the difference in the success of your program.