This review offers a novel synthesis of how these tools may add value to decision making for health policy. The tools discussed, while not a panacea to the challenges of large system change, provide methods that acknowledge the complexity of the transformative challenge and present innovative paths to co-produced solutions.

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Given increasing political and financial commitments to wildfire preparedness, risk policy demands that risk identification, assessment, and mitigation activities are balanced among diverse resident groups. Essential for this is the understanding of residents' perceptions of wildfire risks. This study compares wildfire‐risk perceptions of Pennsylvania residents with those of Minnesotans living in natural‐amenity‐rich communities. Natural‐amenity‐driven migration shifts land‐use patterns and social conditions, making it important to understand if and how such changes affect residents' perceptions of wildfire. Key informant interviews suggest land use and contrasting values associated with sociodemographic shifts were intertwined with wildfire‐risk awareness, concern, and mitigation. In both study areas, local social interactions were impaired by geospatial and sociocultural barriers related to land use and population change. Barriers included perceived threats to quality of life, conflicting needs for economic development, and homes built in isolated locations. As a result, residents did not agree on community‐wide notions of wildfire risk and response. Further, residents' ideas about the potential for a wildfire disaster did not correspond to those of risk managers. Although some places were attempting to overcome these challenges, many informants said their communities were overwhelmed with the effects of change. Finding common notions of wildfire risk is critical precisely because resident participation is crucial to hazard management. In these localities, rural community development can facilitate capacities to address wildfire risk in the context of landscape and social change.

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Despite a broad literature addressing the human dimensions of wildfire, current approaches often compartmentalize results according to disciplinary boundaries. Further, relatively few studies have focused on the public's evolving perceptions of wildfire as communities change over time. This paper responds to these gaps by exploring perceptions of landscape dynamics and wildfire between 2003 and 2007 using a typological framework of intersecting ecological, social, and cultural processes. Designed as a restudy, and using key informant interviews, this research allowed us to observe risk perception as they are related to community challenges and opportunities in the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska. Risk perceptions were examined as an integral part of community and landscape change. Wildfire was a concern among informants in 2003 and remained a concern in 2007, although informants were less likely to discuss it as a major threat compared to the original study. Informants in the western part of the peninsula tended to express more concern about wildfire than their eastern counterparts largely due to their experiences with recent fires. Other important factors residents considered included changing forest fuels, the expanding wildland urban interface, and contrasting values of new residents. Underscoring the localized nature of risk perceptions, informants had difficulty describing the probability of a wildfire event in a geographical context broader than the community scale. This paper demonstrates how a holistic approach can help wildfire and natural resource professionals, community members, and other stakeholders understand the social and physical complexities influencing collective actions or inactions to address the threat of wildfire.

This project focused on a new and increasingly contested method of coal extraction, mountaintop removal (MTR), and its effects on central Appalachian residents' quality of life vis-à-vis increased employment. Attention is given to central Appalachia because its fossil fuel landscapes have undergone major changes as a result of two interrelated forces: (1) a national push for energy independence that led to the region's all-time high production of coal (supplying over half of the nation's coal); and (2) changes in mining technology that allowed for increased production. Such transitions have led to widespread use of MTR mining, a method that entails removal of extensive land area to expose coal seams. Although policymakers are aware of the negative environmental effects of MTR, its continued use is primarily rationalized using the argument that it contributes to local economies, especially job retention and development. MTR proponents argue that, without MTR, other regions and countries more competitively extract coal. Opponents counter that MTR fails to substantially contribute to employment due to efficiencies in mechanization. This study used socio-spatial analysis to understand MTR's impact on employment in southern West Virginia populated places. We integrated coal mining permit boundaries with employment indicators obtained from the U.S. Census. Contrary to pro-MTR arguments, we found no supporting evidence suggesting MTR contributed positively to nearby communities' employment. Implications for economic development are discussed.Este proyecto concentró su interés en un nuevo y cada vez más debatido método de extracción de carbón, la remoción de la cubierta montañosa (MTR, sigla en inglés), y sus efectos en la calidad de vida de los habitantes de los Apalaches centrales frente a un incremento del empleo. Se le dio atención a la parte central de los Apalaches porque sus paisajes de combustibles fósiles han experimentado cambios importantes como resultado de dos fuerzas interrelacionadas: (1) una presión nacional en pro de la independencia energética que llevó a la más alta producción de carbón de todos los tiempos en la región (suministrando más de la mitad del carbón de la nación); y (2) cambios en la tecnología minera que permitieron el aumento de la producción. Estas transiciones han conducido al amplio uso de la minería MTR, método que significa la remoción de vastas extensiones de tierra para exponer las vetas de carbón. Aunque los hacedores de políticas saben de los efectos ambientales negativos del MTR, continuar con su aplicación se racionaliza primariamente con el argumento de que así se contribuye a fortalecer las economías locales, especialmente en conservación del empleo y desarrollo. Los proponentes del MTR arguyen que sin el MTR, otras regiones y países extraen carbón más competitivamente. Los oponentes al método replican que el MTR falla en contribuir sustancialmente al empleo debido a las eficiencias en mecanización. Este 807 estudio utilizó el análisis socio-espacial para evaluar el impacto d...