Jeffrey Jenkins is an Assistant Professor of Parks and Protected Areas in the Department of Management of Complex Systems at University of California, Merced. Dr. Jenkins’ work broadly addresses the connections between parks, people, and changing environmental conditions. His studies in the Sierra Nevada reveal the interdependencies between these domains through consideration of the efficacy of use limits and visitor use management strategies, coordination with regional planning and gateway communities, and adaptive management of visitation given climatic hazards, including wildland fire and prolonged drought conditions. He works with managers from the NPS, USFS, and BLM on projects in front country and wilderness settings, as well as with various NGO and community organizations. Dr. Jenkins has also worked extensively throughout Latin America on topics related to rural development, conservation, and ecotourism that interface with protected areas. 

Recent articles

Jenkins, J. S., Abatzoglou, J. T., Rupp, D. E., & Fleishman, E. (2023). Human and climatic influences on wildfires ignited by recreational activities in national forests in Washington, Oregon, and California. Environmental Research Communications. https://doi.org/10.1088/2515-7620/acf4e2

Brown, M., & Jenkins, J. S. (2023). Wildfire-driven entry closures influence visitor displacement and spending to alternative park entrance corridors and gateway communities around Yosemite National Park. Journal of Outdoor Recreation and Tourism, 43, 100675. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jort.2023.100675

Jenkins, J. S., Abatzoglou, J. T., Wilkins, E. J., & Perry, E. E. (2023). Visitation to national parks in California shows annual and seasonal change during extreme drought and wet years. PLOS Climate, 2(8), e0000260. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pclm.0000260

Thapa, S. B., Jenkins, J. S., & Westerling, A. L. (2023). Perceptions of wildfire management practices in a California wildland-urban interface. Environmental Advances, 12, 100382. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envadv.2023.100382

Jenkins, J. S., Abatzoglou, J. T., & Peterson, B. A. (2023). Spring snowpack influences in the volume and timing of spring and peak season overnight visitation to Yosemite Wilderness. Weather, Climate, and Society. https://doi.org/10.1175/WCAS-D-22-0099.1

Jenkins, J. (2022). Science and the evolving management of environmental hazards at Yosemite National Park. Parks Stewardship Forum, 38(3). https://doi.org/10.5070/P538358969

Jenkins, J., Arroyave, F., Brown, M., Chavez, J., Ly, J., Origel, H., & Wetrosky, J. (2021). Assessing Impacts to National Park Visitation From COVID-19: A New Normal for Yosemite?. Case Studies in the Environment, 5(1). https://doi.org/10.1525/cse.2021.1434075

Jenkins, J., van Wagtendonk, J., and Fincher, M. (2021). The evolution of management science to inform carrying capacity of overnight visitor use in the Yosemite Wilderness. International Journal of Wilderness, 27 (2): 22-39. https://ijw.org/evolution-management-science-carrying-capacity-overnight-visitors-yosemite-wilderness/

Arroyave, F., Romero, O., Jenkins, J., Heimeriks, G., Gore, M., Petersen, A. (2021). On the social and cognitive dimensions of wicked environmental problems characterized by conceptual and solution uncertainty. Advances in Complex Systems 24(3). https://doi.org/10.1142/S0219525921500053