Incorporating the RAD (Resist-Accept-Direct) Framework into Resource Management Planning: RAD and Adaptive Management Webinar
In this webinar, RAD (Resist-Accept-Direct) practitioners from federal and university institutions place adaptive management within the resist–accept–direct (RAD) framework to assist informed risk taking for transforming ecosystems. It is part of the webinar series: "Incorporating the RAD (Resist-Accept-Direct) Framework into Resource Management Planning".
Webinar Date
April 22, 2026 at 3 PM ET
Webinar Series Summary
The National CASC is hosting a quarterly webinar series on the RAD (Resist-Accept-Direct) framework, a tool that helps resource managers make informed choices for responding to change. This series focuses on examples of RAD implementation and reflects on practical applications of RAD concepts.
Webinar Summary
RAD is intended to help managers intentionally expand their thinking beyond traditional conservation approaches. Recent interdisciplinary and cross-agency research has integrated the social sciences to explore how and why managers are making RAD decisions. This webinar will highlight findings and implications from panelists at the forefront of RAD research, including how RAD:
- fits within broader agency adaptation planning
- can inform wilderness management
- is being used by managers within and across jurisdictions
- raises ethical questions.
More about the Speakers
Ken Williams is the founder and director of Renewable Resources Associates, focusing on investigation and management of ecosystems. Previous positions include CEO of The Wildlife Society, Co-Director of the Science and Decisions Center in the U.S. Geological Survey, Chief of the USGS Cooperative Research Units, Executive Director of North American Waterfowl and Wetlands Office in the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Chief of the FWS Office of Migratory Bird Management, Leader of the Vermont Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit at the University of Vermont, and scientist at USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center. Throughout his career Dr. Williams has been deeply involved in developing strategies for the integration of natural resources science and conservation, including adaptive decision making and management.
Bob Newman is a professor and chair of the Biology Department at the University of North Dakota. He is an ecologist / wildlife biologist whose research broadly examines how animals encounter environmental variation and how that affects their ecology and evolution. Much of his work has focused on amphibians that rely on ephemeral or seasonal wetlands for breeding, including desert and northern prairie ecosystems. More recently his work has expanded to movement patterns of large mammals on human-dominated (agricultural) ecosystems. He was a co-author on the North Dakota SWAP Climate addendum in 2015, and on several papers on RAD with the team led by Laura Thompson and Abby Lynch. He also consults with the Sicangu Climate Center in support of their climate adaptation efforts, and advocates for Tribal leadership on conservation and climate adaptation work.
Ellie Brown is an ecologist who has been involved with research and science-based natural resource management throughout her career. Her background as a research scientist includes field work on avian behavior and ecology in Australia and New Zealand, and on tropical rainforest ecology in Papua New Guinea. In other positions, she has directed the implementation of international development projects; and has served as an environmental consultant to the World Bank and other multilateral development organizations. As a USGS scientist, Ellie is currently the deputy director of the Science & Decisions Center. With co-author Ken Williams, she has written a number of publications on adaptive management, including the US Department of the Interior Adaptive Management Applications Guide.
Katherine Siegel is an assistant professor at University of Colorado-Boulder, affiliated with the Geography Department, the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Science, and the Environmental Data Science Innovation & Impact Lab. She is interested in the impacts of changing disturbance regimes on ecological transformations, with a current focus on wildfires in forests of the western US. She draws on interdisciplinary methods, including large-scale geospatial analyses and semi-structured interviews.
Webinar Recording
Interested in Exploring Our Other Webinars?
Check out previously recorded webinars on our website!
In this webinar, RAD (Resist-Accept-Direct) practitioners from federal and university institutions place adaptive management within the resist–accept–direct (RAD) framework to assist informed risk taking for transforming ecosystems. It is part of the webinar series: "Incorporating the RAD (Resist-Accept-Direct) Framework into Resource Management Planning".
Webinar Date
April 22, 2026 at 3 PM ET
Webinar Series Summary
The National CASC is hosting a quarterly webinar series on the RAD (Resist-Accept-Direct) framework, a tool that helps resource managers make informed choices for responding to change. This series focuses on examples of RAD implementation and reflects on practical applications of RAD concepts.
Webinar Summary
RAD is intended to help managers intentionally expand their thinking beyond traditional conservation approaches. Recent interdisciplinary and cross-agency research has integrated the social sciences to explore how and why managers are making RAD decisions. This webinar will highlight findings and implications from panelists at the forefront of RAD research, including how RAD:
- fits within broader agency adaptation planning
- can inform wilderness management
- is being used by managers within and across jurisdictions
- raises ethical questions.
More about the Speakers
Ken Williams is the founder and director of Renewable Resources Associates, focusing on investigation and management of ecosystems. Previous positions include CEO of The Wildlife Society, Co-Director of the Science and Decisions Center in the U.S. Geological Survey, Chief of the USGS Cooperative Research Units, Executive Director of North American Waterfowl and Wetlands Office in the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Chief of the FWS Office of Migratory Bird Management, Leader of the Vermont Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit at the University of Vermont, and scientist at USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center. Throughout his career Dr. Williams has been deeply involved in developing strategies for the integration of natural resources science and conservation, including adaptive decision making and management.
Bob Newman is a professor and chair of the Biology Department at the University of North Dakota. He is an ecologist / wildlife biologist whose research broadly examines how animals encounter environmental variation and how that affects their ecology and evolution. Much of his work has focused on amphibians that rely on ephemeral or seasonal wetlands for breeding, including desert and northern prairie ecosystems. More recently his work has expanded to movement patterns of large mammals on human-dominated (agricultural) ecosystems. He was a co-author on the North Dakota SWAP Climate addendum in 2015, and on several papers on RAD with the team led by Laura Thompson and Abby Lynch. He also consults with the Sicangu Climate Center in support of their climate adaptation efforts, and advocates for Tribal leadership on conservation and climate adaptation work.
Ellie Brown is an ecologist who has been involved with research and science-based natural resource management throughout her career. Her background as a research scientist includes field work on avian behavior and ecology in Australia and New Zealand, and on tropical rainforest ecology in Papua New Guinea. In other positions, she has directed the implementation of international development projects; and has served as an environmental consultant to the World Bank and other multilateral development organizations. As a USGS scientist, Ellie is currently the deputy director of the Science & Decisions Center. With co-author Ken Williams, she has written a number of publications on adaptive management, including the US Department of the Interior Adaptive Management Applications Guide.
Katherine Siegel is an assistant professor at University of Colorado-Boulder, affiliated with the Geography Department, the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Science, and the Environmental Data Science Innovation & Impact Lab. She is interested in the impacts of changing disturbance regimes on ecological transformations, with a current focus on wildfires in forests of the western US. She draws on interdisciplinary methods, including large-scale geospatial analyses and semi-structured interviews.
Webinar Recording
Interested in Exploring Our Other Webinars?
Check out previously recorded webinars on our website!