Mark Brunson, Ph.D.

Field: Environment and Society, Land Management
Areas of Focus: Environmental Sustainability, Rangeland Restoration, Wildfires

Expertise

• Wildfire risk reduction
• Rangeland restoration
• Sustainable ranching
• Collaboration across ownerships
• Science communication

Bio

Mark Brunson is a professor in the Department of Environment and Society, where his teaching and research focus on how humans affect nature, how nature affects humans, and how people make decisions to try to influence those effects. He came to USU in 1992 after earning his doctorate in forestry at Oregon State University.

During his time at USU, Dr. Brunson has published nearly 150 scientific and technical publications on a wide range of topics in the realm of human-environment interactions, but may be best known for his contributions to the field of range management. He was one of the first researchers to apply concepts and techniques of social science to the study of rangeland ecosystems and their management. In recognition of this work, in 2020 he received the Outstanding Achievement in Research award from the Society for Range Management. Another continuing theme in his research has been exploring the effects of human activities on the natural qualities of national parks. He and his team of researchers have conducted natural resource condition assessments for 30 different National Park Service units. Thanks to a $1.3 million grant from the National Science Foundation, he has been studying how national parks and their private and public landholding neighbors can more effectively collaborate to address threats to natural environments such as wildfire and invasive plant or animal species. Other ongoing projects focus on understanding conflicts between wildlife agencies and private landowners, armoring rangelands against threats posed by invasive annual grasses, and building public support and participation in habitat restoration activities in both wild and urban areas.

As a university teacher and adult educator, Dr. Brunson has been a leader in the emerging field of translational ecology, which explores how environmental scientists can connect their research effectively and meaningfully with stakeholders in the larger society. Also, he leads the Great Basin Fire Science Exchange, a federally funded outreach effort that helps wildfire professionals gain access to the latest science on wildfire risk reduction and post-wildfire restoration.