The rock outcrops and cliffs of Shenandoah National Park provide habitat for several rare and endangered plant and animal species. The location of the world-famous ridgeline parkway, Skyline Drive, makes many outcrops and cliffs within the park readily accessible to the park's 1.2 million annual visitors. Consequently, visitor use of cliff areas has led to natural resource impacts, including marked decreases in size and vigor of known rare plant populations. Despite the clear ecological value and potential threats to the natural resources at cliff areas in the park, managers possess little information on visitor use of cliff sites and presently have no formal planning document to guide management. Thus, a park wide study of cliff sites was initiated during the 2005 visitor use season. As part of this research effort, the study presented in this thesis integrated data from resource impact measurements and visitor use observation to help assess the effects of recreational use on the natural resources of one heavily used cliff site in the park, Little Stony Man Cliffs. Results of resource impact measurements indicate that several nodal areas of high disturbance (bare soil) are present on the cliff-top and cliff-bottom. Additionally, visitor observation data point to several possible visitor use factors that may contribute to cliff-top impacts, including concentrated levels of use during certain times of day and days of the week, and frequent trampling of soil and vegetation by visitors. The information from the study presented in this thesis will help assist Shenandoah National Park staff in developing a cliff resource management plan that will protect park resources while providing opportunities for visitor enjoyment. / Master of Science

The red-cockaded woodpecker (Picoides borealis) is a federally endangered species. As such, populations need to be increased in order to achieve recovery goals outlined by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. My thesis is composed of two chapters that represent opposite sides of this issue. The first chapter investigates whether military training activity negatively affects red-cockaded woodpeckers. Military installations in the southeastern United States contain several of the largest remaining red-cockaded woodpecker populations. Six of the 15 installations harboring these birds are designated primary core populations; thus, population increases on these sites are critical to recovery of the species. However, restrictions on military training activity associated with red-cockaded woodpecker protection are a cause of concern on military installations that sometimes constrains management for population growth. Current restrictions are based on assumptions of potential impacts rather than scientific evidence, so we evaluated two different restriction regimes to test for training activity effects. The second chapter concerns how to induce populations to grow more rapidly through natural processes. As a cooperative breeder, red-cockaded woodpeckers preferentially compete for existing breeding positions and queue in the form of helping or floating to obtain a breeding vacancy, rather than create new territories. I used 20 years of demographic data collected as part of a long-term monitoring study of red-cockaded woodpeckers to investigate mechanisms that stimulate territory creation in this cooperatively breeding species. / Master of Science

Road construction and maintenance throughout the country continues to be one of the largest contributors of sediment pollution to aquatic systems. Though impacts of road networks on aquatic systems can be potentially severe, little work has been performed to evaluate the effect that road spatial location within a watershed has on water quality. To address this issue from a quantitative perspective, a "Road Impact Factor" protocol was designed to identify potential erosion-prone segments of road networks based on road gradient, spatial location based on hydrologic flow length, surface composition, and water control installations. The protocol was developed for two regions in Central Idaho and Eastern Oregon. We then used the hydrologic travel time procedure, developed for use in the Hydrologic Engineering Center Hydrologic Modeling System (HEC-HMS) runoff and routing model, in order to characterize the spatial distribution of potential road runoff impacts within the study areas. Ten macroinvertebrate metrics sensitive to sedimentation (i.e. % Intolerant Taxa, Hilsenhoff Biotic Index, etc.) were analyzed to test the significance of the spatial distribution of Road Impact Factors. These 10 metrics were analyzed under the hypothesis that values will be lower for those study areas that have a higher degree of road impact and a lower distance between the road segments and stream reaches. Results of a quadrant analysis and hierarchical clustering analysis showed hypothesized trends for several metrics in Idaho, though the trends were not strong. No trends were observed in Oregon. The variability in results is likely due to limitations of the input datasets. / Master of Science

No / When stepping down from one level to another, the leading limb has to arrest downward momentum of the body and subsequently receive and safely support bodyweight before level walking can begin. Such step downs are performed over a wide range of heights and predicting when and where contact between the landing limb and the lower level will be made is likely a critical factor. To determine if visual feedback obtained after movement initiation is habitually used in guiding landing behaviour, the present study determined whether pre-landing kinematics and the mechanics of landing would be modulated according to the type of visual feedback available during the stepping down phase. Ten healthy participants (32.3 ± 7.9 years) stepped, from a standing position, down from three different heights onto a forceplatform, either coming immediately to rest or proceeding directly to walking across the laboratory. Repeated trials were undertaken under habitual vision conditions or with vision blurred or occluded 2¿3 s prior to movement initiation. Pre-landing kinematics were assessed by determining, for the instant of landing, lead-limb knee and ankle angle, stepping distance, forwards positioning of the body CM within the base of support and the forwards and downwards body CM velocity. Landing mechanics for the initial contact period were characterized using lead limb vertical loading and stiffness, and trail limb un-weighting. When vision was occluded movement time, ankle plantarflexion and knee flexion were significantly increased compared to that determined for habitual vision, whereas forwards body CM positioning and velocity, vertical loading and stiffness, and trail limb un-weighting, were significantly reduced (p < 0.05). Similar adaptations were observed under blurred conditions, although to a lesser extent. Most variables were significantly affected by stepping task and step height. Subjects likely reduced forwards CM position and velocity at instant of landing, in order to keep the CM well away from the anterior border of the base of support, presumably to ensure boundary margins of safety were high should landing occur sooner or later than expected. The accompanying increase in ankle plantarflexion at instant of landing, and increase in single limb support time, suggests that subjects tended to probe for the ground with their lead limb under modified vision conditions. They also had more bodyweight on the trail limb at the end of the initial contact period and as a consequence had a prolonged weight transfer time. These findings indicate that under blurred or occluded vision conditions subjects adopted a cautious strategy where by they ¿sat back¿ on their trail limb and used their lead limb to probe for the ground. Hence, they did not fully commit to weight transfer until somatosensory feedback from the lead limb confirmed they had safely made contact. The effect of blurring vision was not identical to occluding vision, and led to several important differences between these conditions consistent with the use of impoverished visual information on depth. These findings indicate that online vision is customarily used to regulate landing behaviour when stepping down.

Understanding the social impacts of tourism is important as it enables tourism managers and developers to manage the impacts toward fostering vital community support for the industry. More so the distinction between the tangible and intangible social impacts can refine tourism management, development and marketing processes. The measurement and management of these impacts are fairly straight forward in developed countries. However in developing countries, such as South Africa, more challenges exist in identifying and managing their impacts to the benefit of a wider community. South Africa has one of the most unequal distributions of income in the world as well as a very high unemployment rate which all complicates the understanding and management of these impacts. All factors taken into account create prevailing socio-political, economic as well as cultural barriers. This translates into community members not necessarily obtaining tangible benefits from the tourism industry such as increased levels of income, job creation and infrastructure development for instance, which is the ideal situation. The social exchange theory explains that these residents might as a result deter their support for the tourism industry. However it is important to determine which types of benefits will lead to increased levels of community support and therefore the following research questions can be formulated: “What are the tangible and intangible social impacts of tourism on communities and how strong is the role they play in fostering community support for the tourism industry?” Therefore the primary goal of this thesis was to conduct a critical assessment of the social impacts of tourism on selected communities with reference to the tangible and intangible impacts. This primary goal was reached through the achievement of four objectives. The first objective was a critical analysis of literature pertaining to sociology and how communities perceive tourism from a sociological perspective. The review analysed communities’ roles in tourism, barriers that hinder them from partaking in the industry as well as recommendations that were made to overcome the barriers. The term “social impact” as well as models that explain how and why social impacts take place, were analysed. This objective provided a foundation for the rest of the study in terms of social impacts of tourism on communities. The second objective was to critically analyse the social impacts that originate as a result of tourism activity, but to interpret it from a tangible contrasted with intangible point of view. This was done in order to create a better understanding what role tangible and intangible social impacts play, as well as how strong a role it plays in influencing community perceptions. The third objective was to determine the residents’ perceptions of tangible and intangible social impacts of tourism on three tourism dependent communities in South Africa as well as to determine the variables that influence the perceptions of these impacts. This was done with the aim of creating a model for measuring the tangible and intangible social impacts of tourism which will allow for improved marketing and managing of tourism in South African communities. The distinction between the tangible and intangible social impacts of tourism in mind, a selfadministered questionnaire was distributed in three tourism-dependent communities in South Africa by means of probability sampling within stratified sampling. The communities included in the research were Clarens (n=251), Soweto (n=375) and Jeffreys Bay (n=417). The questionnaires were captured in Microsoft Excel and analysed in the IBM Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS v 20.0.0), while the software package, Analysis of Moment Structures (AMOS v 21.0.0) was utilised for the Structural Equation Model (SEM). The analysis of the data was done over three phases. The first phase was exploratory research which included the use of two-way frequency tables for compiling a combined community profile as well as two Exploratory Factor Analyses to explore the ways in which tangible and intangible social impacts can be grouped. In the second phase, Confirmatory Factor Analyses (CFA) revealed the theoretical model with four reliable tangible social impacts and two reliable intangible impacts. The tangible social impacts included: environmental improvement; environmental degradation; cost of daily living; and economic improvement while the intangible social impacts included: community upliftment and pride and community protection and education. The intangible social impact, community upliftment and pride was perceived as the most important impact, thus revealing the power of intangible social impacts for fostering community support for tourism. Significant to this study it was found that community members remained supportive of the industry, even if they are not directly involved in it. It was furthermore found that the communities are not homogenous which holds major implications for tourism planners and managers. This resulted in further analyses to compare the communities. Analyses were done in order to determine the influence of variables such as tourism perceptions, involvement in the tourism industry as well as residents’ levels of education on the perceptions of the tangible and intangible social impacts of tourism. Very few instances were found where these aspects acted as strong predictors of the perceptions of tangible and intangible social impacts of tourism. During the third and final phase, a model was developed for measuring the relationships between the tangible and intangible social impacts of tourism. This innovative model has been optimised so that it can be applied to other tourism dependents communities in South Africa. This model can thus assist tourism planners and managers to understand the tangible and intangible impacts as a result of tourism in the designated communities as well as how these communities will perceive the impacts. This model thus serves as a tool for maximising the positive social impacts created by tourism and minimising the negative, thus contributing to the sustainable development of the industry. The last objective was to draw conclusions and make recommendations with regard to the objectives of the study. The contributions of the study were also discussed as part of this objective. It was determined that this study makes multiple contributions towards social impact literature in tourism, towards the applicable methodology of determining social impacts in developing countries as well as practical contributions that will inform future planning and development in communities. This thesis firstly contributed towards the literature by distinguishing between tangible and intangible social impacts within a tourism and developmental context. These categorised social impacts can also be used in future research as it contributes to the research methodology through the development of a questionnaire that can measure the tangible and intangible social impacts of tourism within a South African context. This measuring instrument can also be used in future research. The finding which revealed that the intangible element (community upliftment and pride) was the most important to local residents has implications for tourism planning and development. It is therefore a factor that should be taken into account in future research. There are also several practical implications for tourism marketers, managers and developers. The development of the tangibleintangible impact model provides the latter with an instrument that can be used to measure and effectively manage the various social impacts of tourism. It is clear that communities cannot be seen as homogeneous, therefore individual planning should be done based on the character and composition of the applicable communities. / PhD (Tourism Management), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

Understanding the social impacts of tourism is important as it enables tourism managers and developers to manage the impacts toward fostering vital community support for the industry. More so the distinction between the tangible and intangible social impacts can refine tourism management, development and marketing processes. The measurement and management of these impacts are fairly straight forward in developed countries. However in developing countries, such as South Africa, more challenges exist in identifying and managing their impacts to the benefit of a wider community. South Africa has one of the most unequal distributions of income in the world as well as a very high unemployment rate which all complicates the understanding and management of these impacts. All factors taken into account create prevailing socio-political, economic as well as cultural barriers. This translates into community members not necessarily obtaining tangible benefits from the tourism industry such as increased levels of income, job creation and infrastructure development for instance, which is the ideal situation. The social exchange theory explains that these residents might as a result deter their support for the tourism industry. However it is important to determine which types of benefits will lead to increased levels of community support and therefore the following research questions can be formulated: “What are the tangible and intangible social impacts of tourism on communities and how strong is the role they play in fostering community support for the tourism industry?” Therefore the primary goal of this thesis was to conduct a critical assessment of the social impacts of tourism on selected communities with reference to the tangible and intangible impacts. This primary goal was reached through the achievement of four objectives. The first objective was a critical analysis of literature pertaining to sociology and how communities perceive tourism from a sociological perspective. The review analysed communities’ roles in tourism, barriers that hinder them from partaking in the industry as well as recommendations that were made to overcome the barriers. The term “social impact” as well as models that explain how and why social impacts take place, were analysed. This objective provided a foundation for the rest of the study in terms of social impacts of tourism on communities. The second objective was to critically analyse the social impacts that originate as a result of tourism activity, but to interpret it from a tangible contrasted with intangible point of view. This was done in order to create a better understanding what role tangible and intangible social impacts play, as well as how strong a role it plays in influencing community perceptions. The third objective was to determine the residents’ perceptions of tangible and intangible social impacts of tourism on three tourism dependent communities in South Africa as well as to determine the variables that influence the perceptions of these impacts. This was done with the aim of creating a model for measuring the tangible and intangible social impacts of tourism which will allow for improved marketing and managing of tourism in South African communities. The distinction between the tangible and intangible social impacts of tourism in mind, a selfadministered questionnaire was distributed in three tourism-dependent communities in South Africa by means of probability sampling within stratified sampling. The communities included in the research were Clarens (n=251), Soweto (n=375) and Jeffreys Bay (n=417). The questionnaires were captured in Microsoft Excel and analysed in the IBM Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS v 20.0.0), while the software package, Analysis of Moment Structures (AMOS v 21.0.0) was utilised for the Structural Equation Model (SEM). The analysis of the data was done over three phases. The first phase was exploratory research which included the use of two-way frequency tables for compiling a combined community profile as well as two Exploratory Factor Analyses to explore the ways in which tangible and intangible social impacts can be grouped. In the second phase, Confirmatory Factor Analyses (CFA) revealed the theoretical model with four reliable tangible social impacts and two reliable intangible impacts. The tangible social impacts included: environmental improvement; environmental degradation; cost of daily living; and economic improvement while the intangible social impacts included: community upliftment and pride and community protection and education. The intangible social impact, community upliftment and pride was perceived as the most important impact, thus revealing the power of intangible social impacts for fostering community support for tourism. Significant to this study it was found that community members remained supportive of the industry, even if they are not directly involved in it. It was furthermore found that the communities are not homogenous which holds major implications for tourism planners and managers. This resulted in further analyses to compare the communities. Analyses were done in order to determine the influence of variables such as tourism perceptions, involvement in the tourism industry as well as residents’ levels of education on the perceptions of the tangible and intangible social impacts of tourism. Very few instances were found where these aspects acted as strong predictors of the perceptions of tangible and intangible social impacts of tourism. During the third and final phase, a model was developed for measuring the relationships between the tangible and intangible social impacts of tourism. This innovative model has been optimised so that it can be applied to other tourism dependents communities in South Africa. This model can thus assist tourism planners and managers to understand the tangible and intangible impacts as a result of tourism in the designated communities as well as how these communities will perceive the impacts. This model thus serves as a tool for maximising the positive social impacts created by tourism and minimising the negative, thus contributing to the sustainable development of the industry. The last objective was to draw conclusions and make recommendations with regard to the objectives of the study. The contributions of the study were also discussed as part of this objective. It was determined that this study makes multiple contributions towards social impact literature in tourism, towards the applicable methodology of determining social impacts in developing countries as well as practical contributions that will inform future planning and development in communities. This thesis firstly contributed towards the literature by distinguishing between tangible and intangible social impacts within a tourism and developmental context. These categorised social impacts can also be used in future research as it contributes to the research methodology through the development of a questionnaire that can measure the tangible and intangible social impacts of tourism within a South African context. This measuring instrument can also be used in future research. The finding which revealed that the intangible element (community upliftment and pride) was the most important to local residents has implications for tourism planning and development. It is therefore a factor that should be taken into account in future research. There are also several practical implications for tourism marketers, managers and developers. The development of the tangibleintangible impact model provides the latter with an instrument that can be used to measure and effectively manage the various social impacts of tourism. It is clear that communities cannot be seen as homogeneous, therefore individual planning should be done based on the character and composition of the applicable communities. / PhD (Tourism Management), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

Au Québec, le suicide est un problème de santé publique majeur. Parmi les personnes affectées par le suicide, les professionnels en santé mentale qui travaillent auprès des suicidés sont souvent négligés par la recherche (Sanders, Jacobson, & Ting, 2005). Pourtant, le décès par suicide d’un client représente un risque occupationnel important pour ceux-ci et il peut être précurseur d’une crise personnelle et professionnelle (Chemtob, Bauer, Hamada, Pelowski, & Muraoka, 1989). Cette étude a pour objectif de mieux comprendre la nature et l’intensité des impacts personnels et professionnels chez des intervenants spécialisés à la suite du décès par suicide d’un client. Douze intervenantes spécialisées auprès d’une clientèle suicidaire ont participé à la recherche. Un devis de recherche exploratoire a privilégié l’utilisation d’un questionnaire autoadministré comprenant des questions de nature quantitative et qualitative. Ce questionnaire comprenait des questions sociodémographiques, la version française de l’échelle de l’effet des événements révisée (IES-R) et deux sections mesurant la nature et l’intensité des impacts sur 10 aspects de la vie personnelle et sur 16 aspects de la vie professionnelle. Des analyses descriptives ont été effectuées pour les données quantitatives. Pour les données qualitatives, une analyse thématique a été effectuée selon l’approche de Paillé et Mucchielli (2003). La complémentarité des résultats quantitatifs et qualitatifs a permis de présenter un portrait global des impacts. Selon nos résultats, la majorité des intervenantes éprouvent un stress aigu dans la première semaine suivant le suicide. Sur le plan de la vie personnelle, plusieurs intervenantes vivent une baisse de confiance en eux-mêmes, ressentent des émotions intenses, notent une diminution de leur qualité de vie et se plaignent d’une détérioration de leur santé physique, de leur qualité de sommeil et de leur habileté à gérer les problèmes de leur vie quotidienne. Sur le plan de la vie professionnelle, à l’inverse, la plupart des intervenantes sont en mesure de s’adapter à l’événement et de retirer des apprentissages qui contribuent à leur cheminement professionnel. Les intervenantes rapportent néanmoins des impacts négatifs sur la croyance en leurs compétences et leur jugement professionnel et sur leur vécu émotionnel au travail. Cette étude veut contribuer à l’élaboration de formations visant à mieux préparer les intervenants à faire face au décès par suicide de leur client.

Cette thèse concerne l'étude de la dynamique d'impacts de gouttes, dans des situations de friction réduite entre le substrat solide et la goutte liquide. Cette diminution de friction s'est faite au moyen d'un film d'air inséré entre le liquide et le solide. Il existe plusieurs stratégies permettant l'existence de ce film d'air : la première est d'utiliser le phénomène de caléfaction, ou effet Leidenfrost : un liquide approché d'une surface chauffée au delà d'une température critique s'évapore suffisamment rapidement pour pouvoir léviter sur sa propre vapeur, et ainsi être isolé de la surface solide. Dans certaines conditions, les surfaces super-hydrophobes micro-texturées permettent au liquide de rester dans un état "fakir", c'est à dire de n'être en contact qu'avec le sommet de micro-piliers, le reste du liquide demeurant au dessus d'un coussin d'air. Enfin, il a également été constaté que l'écoulement d'air engendré par le mouvement d'une surface solide peut induire une force de portance sur une goutte, et ainsi lui permettre de léviter au dessus de cette surface / In this thesis we study the dynamic of drop impacts, in situations of low friction between the liquid and the solid surface. This low friction can be obtained thanks to an air cushion trapped between the liquid and the solid, which can be achieved by several ways. The first one is the Leidenfrost effect : when a liquid is moved close to a hot surface, the evaparation rate can be sufficient make liquid levitate on its own vapour. In certain conditions, onto micro-patterned super-hydrophobic surfaces, a drop can be in a "fakir" state, which means that the contact is limited to the top of micro-pillars, the rest of the liquid is at the top of an air cushion. Finally, we also observed that the air flow due to a moving surface can generate a lift force which can permit the levitation of the drop

En Tunisie centrale, l'intensification agricole de l’agriculture irriguée engendre des impacts environnementaux locaux et régionaux liés à une consommation accrue en intrants et ressources, dont l’eau et le sol. En faveur d'une agriculture plus durable et pour éclairer les politiques publiques de développement agricole, il est nécessaire d’évaluer les impacts des pratiques agricoles et d’aménagement de conservation des eaux et des sols (ACES), et ceci à l’échelle d’un territoire. La question est ainsi de savoir comment mettre en oeuvre une démarche d'évaluation environnementale dans un contexte 1) de rareté de données fiables y compris statistiques, et de complexité des pratiques agricoles, 2) de proéminence des questions socioéconomiques sur les préoccupations environnementales 3) de méconnaissance de la perception des acteurs locaux sur ces questions et donc de difficulté à identifier des indicateurs pertinents (sur le plan scientifique et des acteurs) et mobilisables. Nous proposons une démarche innovante de conception et mise en oeuvre d’une approche participative regroupant différents types d’acteurs, pour leur permettre d’appréhender mutuellement leurs logiques et leurs perceptions des impacts des pratiques agricoles et des ACES. Cette démarche est conçue pour produire de l’information de qualité en valorisant les savoirs locaux, partager et prendre en compte les perceptions des différents acteurs, et enfin construire des consensus pour contribuer à l’élaboration de politiques d’ACES plus efficaces. Elle a été structurée en deux grandes étapes : la conception en communauté de pratique articulée à un diagnostic rapide participatif systémique et la mise en oeuvre d’ateliers participatifs. L’évaluation a mobilisé un double dispositif comprenant des observateurs extérieurs et une enquête de satisfaction auprès des participants. Elle s’appuie sur une grille d’évaluation de cette démarche, de ses produits et des effets induits à court terme. Le partage et la prise en compte des informations et des données collectées, mais aussi des expertises et perceptions des différents acteurs, a permis de produire des informations jugées satisfaisantes ou très satisfaisantes par la totalité des participants. Cela a nourri les connaissances de la quasi-totalité des acteurs et a contribué à une dynamique constructive d’apprentissage collectif. Notre démarche a nettement contribué à l’évolution des perceptions et à une plus forte compréhension mutuelle des agents de l’administration et des agriculteurs. Un tableau de bord regroupant les indicateurs mobilisés par chaque acteur a été discuté et a permis de mettre en évidence convergences et différences dans leurs grilles d’analyse. La structuration progressive et adaptative de la démarche, les choix des acteurs, des lieux de réalisation des ateliers et le recours à un animateur neutre ont été des facteurs très importants pour l’engagement et la mobilisation des acteurs, en particulier au niveau central, dans cet espace opérationnel de concertation sur les enjeux territoriaux, les pratiques agricoles et les ACES. Ce travail démontre l’intérêt de l’intégration de l’ingénierie de la concertation et de l’évaluation environnementale au sein d’une même démarche et sa faisabilité dans un contexte difficile pour la mise en oeuvre de politiques d’ACES. / IIn central Tunisia, the agricultural intensification of irrigated agriculture generates local and regional environmental impacts, linked to an increased consumption of inputs and resources, including water and soil. In favor of a more sustainable agriculture and in order to inform public policies of agricultural development, it is necessary to assess the impacts of agricultural practices and water and soil conservation planning (WSCP), and this at the territory scale. The question is how to implement an environmental assessment approach in a context of 1) scarcity of reliable data including statistics, and complexity of farming practices, 2) prominence of socio-economic issues over environmental concerns 3) lack of knowledge of the perception of local actors on these issues and therefore of difficulty in identifying relevant indicators (scientific and of the stakeholders) and mobilizable. We propose an innovative approach to design and implement a participative approach involving different types of actors, to enable them to get more insights into each other's logic and perceptions of the impacts of agricultural practices and WSCP. This approach is designed to produce quality information by valuing local knowledge, share and take into account the perceptions of different stakeholders, and finally, build a consensus to contribute to the development of more effective WSCP policies. This approach has been structured in two main stages: the design of a community of practices articulated to a participatory systemic rapid diagnosis and the implementation of participatory workshops. The evaluation mobilized a dual mechanism including external observers and a satisfaction survey among participants. The survey is based on an evaluation grid of this approach, its outcomes and its short term induced effect. Sharing and taking into account the information and data collected, as well as the expertise and perceptions of the various stakeholders, has made possible to produce information deemed satisfactory or very satisfactory by all the participants. This nourished the knowledge of almost all the stakeholders and contributed to a constructive dynamic of collective learning. Our approach has contributed significantly to the evolution of perceptions and to a stronger mutual understanding between government officials and farmers. A dashboard grouping the indicators mobilized by each stakeholder was discussed and allowed to highlight convergences and differences in their analysis grids. The gradual and adaptive structuring of the approach, the choices of the stakeholders, the venues for the workshops and the use of a neutral facilitator were very important factors for the commitment and the mobilization of the stakeholders, in particular at the central scale, in this operational space for consultation on territorial issues, agricultural practices and WSCP. This work demonstrates the interest of integrating the engineering of consultation and environmental assessment within one approach and its feasibility in a difficult context for the ACES policies implementation.

Ce travail de thèse a pour objectif de mettre en lumière les raisons et les manières avec lesquelles sont actuellement mises en œuvre des actions extérieures des collectivités territoriales (AECT). En effet, malgré un contexte « tendu » les collectivités territoriales continuent de développer des actions en lien avec l’international. Alors que se multiplient les discours sur la réciprocité et sont mis en avant les partenariats « gagnant-gagnant », on se demandera quels sont réellement les impacts des actions extérieures pour les territoires locaux français : Existe-t-il une cohérence entre les impacts escomptés et ceux réellement observables sur le territoire ? De même, on s’interrogera sur les logiques sous-tendant ces actions : La logique de solidarité internationale est-elle dépassée ? Le « référentiel » de l’action extérieure est-il en train d’évoluer ? Enfin, seront questionnées les modalités effectives de mise en œuvre des actions extérieures dans, et par, les collectivités territoriales : Quels sont les acteurs, internes et externes, impliqués ? Selon quelles modalités participent-ils à ce processus ? En ce sens, en se basant notamment sur notre expérience CIFRE en « coopération décentralisée » ainsi que sur une série d’entretiens de professionnels, sera appréhendée la mise en œuvre des AECT « par le bas » dans une approche proche de la sociologie de l’action publique. De plus, afin de saisir plus globalement cet « objet frontière », notre recherche alliera sciences du territoire et études des relations internationales. / The goal of this doctoral research is to highlight the reasons and how local authorities implement their foreign actions. Indeed, in spite of a tense context, local authorities continue to develop international actions. While the concepts of reciprocity and “win-win” partnership are emphasized in official speeches, we will wonder about the impact of these foreign actions for local French territories. Is there a real coherence between expected impacts and those which are effective on the territory? The patterns that underlie these actions will also be questioned. Is the logic of international solidarity obsolete? Is the foreign action framework evolving? Finally, the process of implementation of these foreign actions by the local authorities will be questioned. Who are the internal and external actors involved? How are they taking part in this process? In this way, using our professional experience in “decentralized cooperation” and a compilation of a series of interviews, we grasped foreign action implementation “from the bottom” with an approach which is close to the public action sociology. To understand this topic more globally, our research is based both on territory sciences and international relations studies.