First Advisor

Craig W. Shinn

Term of Graduation

Spring 2025

Date of Publication

5-12-2025

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Public Affairs and Policy

Department

Urban Studies and Planning

Language

English

Subjects

Columbia River Basin, Indigenous Issues, Institutions, Natural Resource Governance, Power, Salmon Management

Physical Description

1 online resource (xiii, 1146 pages)

Abstract

As broad patterns of behavior influenced by norms and rules, institutions structure many aspects of modern society through coordination and the distribution of power. Due to the importance of common-pool natural resources to many aspects of society, they usually involve competition and lie at the intersection of multiple institutions. This combination of institutions, power disparities, and a competitive interest is what scholars have referred to as a "field." Fields can be complex, and the coordination among interests is generally done through a form of governance involving a wide array of laws, regulations, and actors. When at least one of these actors is an Indigenous group with a strong tie to the resource of interest, the structure of power has important theoretical and practical implications. To better understand these implications, the overarching research question is how does the structure of power in natural resource governance fields impact governance outcomes and institutional stability?

Using an in-depth case study and semi-structured interviews, this research question is explored with a focus on integrating Indigenous interests in natural resources governance. This case study is centered on the governance of salmon and steelhead in the Columbia River Basin and includes two broad components. First, an extensive historical institutional analysis was done to identify the trends and events that have influenced change in this governance field and converged to create the current structure of power. The second component is a relational analysis of power to understand how the current governance field distributes power among the various actors involved and how that affects outcomes (i.e., decisions) and the stability of the field. The relational analysis includes data from 38 semi-structured interviews with individuals with experience in this governance field. This research integrates the macro-institutional influences and micro-level individual perspectives to analyze the role that institutions and power play in influencing sensemaking and decision-making. The results of this analysis are then used to elaborate on theories of power and institutional change and provide practical implications.

The research findings show that the migratory patterns of salmon and steelhead combined with the evolution of multiple institutional layers since time immemorial have created an incredibly complex governance structure in the Columbia River Basin. Currently, this structure privileges those actors with decision-making authority, which are essentially government entities and, to a lesser degree, a subset of Native American tribes. These decisions are fragmented across programs and jurisdictions, and each includes its own criteria and processes. The result is a governance structure beset by institutional inertia that produces outcomes reinforcing the status quo. This is problematic considering increasing landscape-scale stressors such as climate change and the growth of human populations.

Whereas the current governance structure is struggling to sustainably support salmon populations across the Basin, the pre-contact Indigenous social-ecological system sustained large salmon runs for thousands of years. This was upended upon contact with Europeans, who instituted a new worldview and institutional structures. While those non-Indigenous structures are still dominant today, Native Americans continue to improve their position of power in the governance field. This exemplifies how instability caused by power disparities can prompt change in institutions and fields over time. This research shows that actors in fields can employ multiple strategies to accumulate power to institute change within the current structure or work to change the structure itself. Ultimately, this power can then be used to influence sensemaking events in terms of structure and content.

These findings contribute to both theory and practice. Theoretically, this research integrates Bourdieu's theory of practice, pragmatist philosophy, and relational sociological theories while bolstering them with empirical data. This research also bridges the macro-micro gap by integrating theories of sensemaking, institutions, and power and empirically grounding them through the concept of the habitus. From a practical perspective, the Columbia River Basin governance structure requires a combination of change to produce outcomes that result in more sustainable salmon and steelhead management, especially in light of systemic issues such as climate change. These changes could include elevating Native American perspectives and modifying how institutions structure and influence sensemaking. Absent change, the current governance structure will continue to struggle to sustainably manage salmon populations, which, in turn, will continue to have detrimental effects on Indigenous peoples.

Rights

© 2025 Christopher Michael Page

In Copyright. URI: http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).

Persistent Identifier

https://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/43887

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