Will Rice

Hey there! I'm Will.

I am an Assistant Professor of Outdoor Recreation and Wildland Management in the Parks, Tourism, and Recreation Program and Department of Society and Conservation at the University of Montana. 

As the head of the Wildland and Recreation Management Research Lab at the University of Montana, my research seeks to provide wildland recreation managers with social science to improve the experiences of all visitors while preserving the ecosystems that support those experiences. This agenda focuses broadly on improving measurement and management of demand for recreational ecosystem services (e.g., physical, mental, and social wellbeing) in parks and protected areas. More specifically, I'm interested in the personal and social outcomes demanded by wildland recreationists and developing innovative tools and measures that can be used by public land managers to ensure the sustainable attainment of these outcomes. 

In service of this research agenda, I frequently collaborate with interdisciplinary teams of conservation social scientists, resource economists, recreation ecologists, tourism scholars, and agency partners.