Connors Gives Talk on Politics of Deer Management at AAG Annual Meeting

John Patrick Casellas Connors, a post-doctoral associate at the Frederick S. Pardee Center for the Study of the Longer-Range Future and a Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Earth & Environment, recently gave a talk titled “The Lively Politics of Deer Management in the Suburbs” at the annual meeting of the American Association of Geographers.

Connors’ talk explored the politics of deer management in Massachusetts, where their numbers have recently increased dramatically in suburban environments. Through in-depth interviews, archival research, and a statewide survey of town officials, Connors is examining deer management strategies and policies, particularly hunting regulations, across the state.

The talk was based on Connors’ work at the Pardee Center, where he and Faculty Associate Anne Short Gianotti lead the Wildlife Management in Novel Ecosystems research project, examining the challenges of wildlife management and conservation in human-dominated landscapes.