Measuring the use of research-based information is a difficult task, as perhaps best summed up by Nutley, Walter and Davies: “we are unlikely any time soon to see . . . comprehensive evidence neatly linking research, research use, and research impacts” (2007, p. 271). Despite the challenge, it is important to try, for at least […]
Public Policy & Decision-Making
Reshaping Policy Development: Public Consultation and Advisory Processes
The function of public consultation and advisory processes in the development of public policy is complex and evolving. Some recent literature on this subject offers insights about the numerous roles that these processes can play in informing and developing policies and other governance practices, both at a global level and within a democratically governed state […]
Information Flow Frameworks: Communication of Research-Based Information into Policy
The demand for usable scientific information is increasing along with a greater need to understand how research-based information flows in pathways into both policy and practice settings. Yet, a number of issues with respect to the pathways, through which information is obtained, can impede the use of research in decision-making. The literature on this subject […]
New EIUI Book about the Science-Policy Interface to be Published in May 2016
The EIUI Research team is very pleased to announce that Science, Information, and Policy Interface for Effective Coastal and Ocean Management will be published by CRC Press (division of Taylor & Francis) on 16 May 2016. This volume, edited by Bertrum H. MacDonald, Suzuette S. Soomai, Elizabeth M. De Santo, and Peter G. Wells, brings […]
EIUI Team Member Publishes a Paper on Assessing Public ‘Participation’ in Environmental Decision-Making
Elizabeth De Santo, Department of Earth and Environment at Franklin & Marshall College, Pennsylvania, and Adjunct Professor at Dalhousie University, recently published a new paper about public consultations regarding marine protected areas in the UK. The paper provides an assessment of public consultation processes and outlines implications resulting from the erosion of public confidence in the […]
Citizen Science – Achieving a Balance with Government Programs
An editorial in the latest issue of the Proceedings of the Nova Scotian Institute of Science (PNSIS) calls for a debate about the role of citizen science in environmental initiatives in Canada (Wells & Richardson, 2015). “Citizen science” refers to the collection and analysis of data by amateur or nonprofessional scientists. Environmental monitoring programs initiated […]
Suzuette Soomai Completes her Doctoral Research on the Role of Fisheries Information
Suzuette Soomai, Interdisciplinary PhD student with the EIUI research program, successfully defended her doctoral dissertation on 30 October 2015. Her research focused on the role of fisheries scientific information in policy- and decision-making for fisheries management. She studied the information pathways – production, communication, and use of scientific information – at the operational level in […]
EIUI Researcher Presents Paper at 2015 Digital Earth Conference
On 5-9 October 2015 delegates from around the world came to Halifax to participate in the 9th International Symposium on Digital Earth – “Towards a One-World Vision for the Blue Planet.” As a concept, Digital Earth aims to virtually represent the planet’s environments and social systems in a geographical framework for various research applications. The […]
EIUI Participates in the 41st IAMSLIC Conference
Suzuette Soomai, PhD Candidate and a member of the EIUI research program, participated in the 41st International Association of Aquatic and Marine Science Libraries and Information Centers (IAMSLIC) Annual Conference, “Blue Growth: Motivating innovations in aquatic information management,” hosted by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations in Rome, Italy, on September […]
EIUI Partnership Initiatives with the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization
The Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO) recently released its Annual Report which includes an account of the research partnership with EIUI on page 18. The Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO) is a regional, intergovernmental fisheries management body that conducts scientific research, provides advice, and facilitates cooperation among its members on management and conservation of fisheries […]