Learning That Moves: Advancing Equity in United States Based Conservation

Up to 60 minutes, 1:1 Semi-structured in-person or virtual interview

This study advances the field of conservation social science by bringing together three strands of research with limited integration: behavioral drivers (COM-B), learning processes, and equity in conservation practice. By focusing on how capacity, opportunity, and motivation shape the ability of people to accelerate equitable conservation outcomes, and on the role of learning relative to these dynamics, this research offers novel insights on both theory and practice. Ideally, this research supports conservation organizations in their ability to support staff and volunteers in shaping a future where more people benefit from conservation action.

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Questions Galore!

1. Pathway into conservation
Can you tell me a little about your path into conservation work or volunteering?
a. Follow-up: What keeps you engaged in this work today?

2. Framing equity in conservation
When you think about equity in conservation, what does that mean within your own role or sphere of influence?
a. Probe: How, if at all, has that understanding evolved over time?

3. Understanding the Motivation & Inspiration
Can you recall a moment, experience, or learning that significantly shaped how you think about equity in conservation?
a. Probe: What made that moment stand out?

4. Capacity, opportunity, and motivation
Thinking about your current work, how would you describe your capacity, opportunity, and motivation to shape more equitable conservation outcomes?
Probe: Which of these feels strongest for you right now? Which feels most constrained?

5. Learning and its role
Can you recall a learning experience that influenced how you approach equity in conservation?
Probe: What did that learning change about what you felt able or motivated to do?

6. Types of learning
What kinds of learning have mattered most for you in advancing equitable outcomes (for example, formal training, lived experience, peer relationships, reflection on mistakes)?
a. Probe: Why those?

7. Readiness to act
How do you usually know when you’ve “learned enough” to act on something related to equity?
a. Probe: What signals help you decide?

8. Learning into action
Can you walk me through a specific example where learning influenced an equity-related action you took?
a. Probe: What role did your skills, environment, or motivation play in that moment?

9. Enablers of action
What helped make that action possible?
a. Watch for: People, organizational structures, resources, authority, timing, or cultural norms?

10. Barriers and gaps
Have there been situations where learning did not translate into action for you?
a. Probe: Was the barrier more about capacity, opportunity, motivation, or something else?

11. Emphasis on learning
In your experience, how much emphasis is placed on learning compared to other factors that shape equitable conservation outcomes?
a. Probe: Do you see learning prioritized over changes in systems, incentives, or power?

12. Reasons for emphasis
If learning tends to be emphasized, why do you think that is?
a. Watch for:  What feels safer, easier, or more controllable about focusing on learning?

13. Looking forward
In your journey toward a more equitable conservation future, what difference are you most proud of so far, or most eager to see next?