ABSTRACT: The Central Grasslands region of North America provides crucial habitat for a myriad of bird and wildlife species and vital resources for human communities. This ecosystem is in rapid decline mainly due to cropland conversion, climate change, and invasive plant species. Current conservation efforts have not stopped this decline, highlighting the need for a shift in conservation delivery strategies that incorporate local populations within this landscape. Furthermore, grassland management decisions are multidimensional and complex, requiring social science to understand, yet this research has not often been coordinated among social scientists nor integrated into conservation delivery strategies. To improve the integration of social science knowledge into conservation delivery, we synthesized existing conservation social science research related to grassland management decision-making, examined social science needs and priorities of grassland conservation delivery professionals, and used the aforementioned information to create a plan that identifies challenges and opportunities for grassland conservation delivery and includes a research priority list for future social science research to benefit grassland conservation. The grassland management social science literature review underscored the importance of conducting more transdisciplinary, community-based and participatory grassland conservation projects. These strategies will increase the reach, effectiveness and equity of conservation efforts and help ensure long-term grassland persistence across the Central Grasslands. This project with its combination of data sources provides a good understanding of the current state of knowledge and related research needs, while making this information available to grassland conservation professionals. It also provides a starting point for conservation social scientists to coordinate and collaborate on future research that is useful and usable to grassland conservation professionals within the Central Grasslands.
