Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Narrative Of The Wild: An Autoethnographic Exploration Of Protected Areas Within The United States Of America, Isaac S. Reimer

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

As conditions for the global environment continue to degrade and the climate crisis deepens, wilderness and protected areas (PAs) serve as a bulwark for sustainability goals. As much of the protections and strengths of PAs stem from the public’s opinion of them, this research seeks to further understand the communicative underpinnings of PAs. Utilizing autoethnography and applying it to a rhetorical framework, this study explores the constitutive qualities narrative in conjunction with the wilderness can possess. The results offer suggestions for future communication scholars and advocates to employ while discussing and communicating about the wilderness.