George Mason University

I am associate professor in the Department of Public and International Affairs at George Mason University (with a joint appointment in the Department of Environmental Science and Policy). I teach courses on environmental policy and on research methods and data analysis. I currently have two main areas of research. One focuses on community-based conservation in rural areas of developing countries, with recent papers looking specifically at the CAMPFIRE program in Zimbabwe. The second addresses the management of so-called 'wicked' environmental problems. Wicked problems refer to policy dilemmas in which multiple and compounding risks and uncertainties combine with sharply divergent public values to generate contentious political stalemates. In particular, several colleagues and I have examined the US Forest Service's ongoing struggle to develop a broadly acceptable management plan for the Sierra Nevada national forests of California.

I have a Ph.D. in environmental policy (University of Maryland, 2000); an M.S. in conservation biology (University of Maryland ,1998); an M.A. in education (State University of New York at Albany, 1972); and a B.A. in English (Haverford College, 1971). Before entering the University of Maryland in 1996 to study environmental issues, I taught English for more than 20 years in Albany, New York's inner-city alternative public high schools.

Publications

Balint, P.J., R.E. Stewart, A. Desai, and L.C. Walters. Managing Wicked Environmental Problems. Washington, DC: Island Press (forthcoming).

Balint, P.J., and J. Mashinya. 2009. CAMPFIRE during Zimbabwe's National Crisis: Local Impacts and Broader Implications for Community-Based Wildlife Management. Society & Natural Resources (in press).

Balint, P.J., and J. Mashinya. 2008. CAMPFIRE through the Lens of the ‘Commons’ Literature: Nyaminyami Rural District in Post-2000 Zimbabwe. Journal of Southern African Studies 34(1):127-143.

Balint, P.J. 2007. Practicing What We Preach: Approaching Praxis through Classroom Governance. Journal of Public Affairs Education 13(3/4):509-518..

Balint, P.J. 2007. A Proposed General Model for Southern African Community-Based Wildlife Management. Human Dimensions of Wildlife 12(3):169-179.

Balint, P.J. 2006. Improving Community-Based Conservation near Protected Areas: The Importance of Development Variables. Environmental Management 38(1):137-148.

Balint, P.J. 2006. Bringing Solar Home Systems to Rural El Salvador: Lessons for Small NGOs. Energy Policy 34(6):721-729.

Balint, P.J., and J. Mashinya. 2006. The Decline of a Model Community-Based Conservation Project: Governance, Capacity, and Devolution in Mahenye, Zimbabwe. Geoforum 37(5):805-815.

Balint, P.J., R.E. Stewart, A. Desai, and L.C. Walters. 2006. Managing Wicked Environmental Problems: Integrating Public Participation and Adaptive Management. Proceedings of the 2006 National Convention of the Society of American Foresters. Pittsburgh, PA, Oct 25-29.

Balint, P.J. 2005. Problems in Community-Based Conservation. Center for Global Studies Bulletin 2(1):3-4.

Mealey, S.P., J.W. Thomas, H.J. Salwasser, R.E. Stewart, P.J. Balint, and P.W. Adams. 2005. Precaution in the American Endangered Species Act: A Precursor to Environmental Decline. The Case of the Northwest Forest Plan. In R. Cooney and B. Dickson, editors. Biodiversity and the Precautionary Principle: Risk and Uncertainty in Conservation and Sustainable Use. London, UK: Earthscan.

Stewart, R.E., L.C. Walters, P.J. Balint, and A. Desai. 2004. Managing Wicked Environmental Problems. Sacramento, CA: USDA Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Region.

Balint, P.J. 2003. How Ethics Shape the Policy Preferences of Environmental Scientists: What We Can Learn from Lomborg and His Critics. Politics and the Life Sciences 22(1):14-23.

Badarch, D., R.A. Zilinskas, and P.J. Balint, editors. 2003. Mongolia Today: Science, Culture, Environment, and Development. London, UK: Routledge Curzon.

Balint, P.J., and J.A. Steinberg. 2003. Conservation Case Study of the Gobi Bear. In D. Badarch, R.A. Zilinskas, and P.J. Balint, editors. Mongolia Today: Science, Culture, Environment, and Development. London, UK: Routledge Curzon, pp. 238-257.

Walters, L.C., P.J. Balint, A. Desai, and R.E. Stewart. 2003. Risk and Uncertainty in Management of the Sierra Nevada National Forests. Sacramento, CA: USDA Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Region.

Balint, P.J. 2001. Improving Science and Security Policy: Results from an Informal Survey of Experts. Report for the MacArthur Foundation.

Zilinskas, R.A., and P.J. Balint, editors. 2001. The Human Genome Project and Minority Communities: Ethical, Social, and Political Dilemmas. Westport, CT: Praeger.

Zilinskas, R.A., and P.J. Balint. 2001. The HGP and Minority Communities: The Importance of Dialogue and Access to Information. In R.A. Zilinskas and P.J. Balint, editors. The Human Genome Project and Minority Communities: Ethical, Social, and Political Dilemmas. Westport, CT: Praeger, pp. 125-134.

Balint, P.J. 2000. Balancing Conservation and Development in Rural El Salvador: Results from Two Case Studies. Ph.D. dissertation, University of Maryland.

Destler, I.M., and P.J. Balint. 2000. The New Politics of American Trade: Trade, Labor, and the Environment. Washington, DC: Institute for International Economics.

Balint, P.J. 1999. Marine Biotechnology: A Proposal for Regulatory Reform. Politics and the Life Sciences 18(1):25-30.

Balint, P.J. 1999. Drinking Water and Sanitation in the Developing World: The Miskito Coast of Honduras and Nicaragua as a Case Study. Journal of Public and International Affairs 10(1):99-117.

Balint, P.J., R.R. Colwell, J.J. Gutrich, D. Hite, M. Levin, S. Stenquist, H. Whiteman, and R.A. Zilinskas. 1998. Risks and Benefits of Marine Biotechnology: Conclusions and Recommendations. In R.A. Zilinskas and P.J. Balint, editors. Genetically Engineered Marine Organisms: Environmental and Economic Risks and Benefits. Boston: Kluwer, pp. 213-220.

Zilinskas, R.A., and P.J. Balint, editors. 1998. Genetically Engineered Marine Organisms: Environmental and Economic Risks and Benefits. Boston: Kluwer.