The Environmental Information: Use and Influence research program is featured in the latest issue of Marine Ecosystems and Management (MEAM) in an article titled “Get Your Research off the Shelf and Into Policy: Writing Reports and Briefs that Influence Decision Making.” Written in the form of an interview, this brief article outlines the research agenda […]
Who Uses the Results of Long-Term Environmental Monitoring Programs? A New Study by EIUI Team Members
For over 25 years the Gulfwatch Contaminants Monitoring Program of the Gulf of Maine Council on the Marine Environment has annually measured chemical contaminants in the Gulf of Maine, including the Bay of Fundy using the internationally employed Mussel Watch methodology. Designed to “provide environmental and resource managers with information to support sustainable use of […]
EIUI Team Member Speaks at Calgary Conference on Environmental Contamination and Response
Ian Stewart presented a paper at the 40th AMOP Technical Seminar on Environmental Contamination and Response (AMOP), hosted by Environment Canada and Climate Change, 3-5 October 2017, in Calgary. The seminar focused largely on the fate, behaviour, effects and response options to oil spills in marine environments, particularly regarding ice conditions. Over 90 papers, given […]
EIUI Team Member Speaks at the 9th Canadian Science Policy Conference, Ottawa
Suzuette Soomai, Postdoctoral Fellow with the EIUI research program, will participate in a panel organized by the Canada Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) at the 2017 Canadian Science Policy Conference (CSPC), 1-3 November 2017, in Ottawa. The panel, “Science for Decision-Making at Fisheries and Oceans Canada: The Past, Present, and Future,” will discuss the […]
EIUI at the 2017 Sustainable Oceans Conference
Collaboration, communication, and creativity – the 2017 Sustainable Oceans Conference encouraged participants to consider these three perspectives when addressing today’s coastal and ocean management challenges. This conference, held in Halifax on 22-23 September 2017, provided six members of the EIUI research program with an opportunity to report about current and ongoing research initiatives. Now in […]
EIUI Participates in the 39th Annual Meeting of the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization
Suzuette Soomai, Postdoctoral Fellow with the Environmental Information: Use and Influence research program, attended the 39th annual meeting of the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO), 18-22 September 2017 in Montréal, Canada. Over 180 delegates from 11 of the 12 NAFO Contracting Parties attended the meeting. The participants were welcomed to the meeting and to Canada […]
Current Literature: Do Search Engine Result Pages Influence How People Select Information?
“Current Literature” is a recurring feature highlighting recent publications of interest on the science-policy interface. One of the common ways people find and access information is through search engines like Google and Bing. While search engines can be useful tools and definitely aid users in locating information, the way they are structured can pose challenges […]
Policy Dialogue and Engagement between NGOs and Governments: Views from the Bay of Fundy
In a recent book chapter in Policy Work in Canada: Professional Practices and Analytical Capacities Bryan Evans and Adam Wellstead explored the working relationship of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and government staff in a policy- and decision-making context (Evans & Wellstead, 2017). In my experience as vice-chair of the Bay of Fundy Ecosystem Partnership (BoFEP), this […]
Current Literature: Environmental Assessments and Public Consultations
“Current Literature” is a recurring feature highlighting recent publications of interest on the science-policy interface. Despite the fact that Canada has had a formal environmental assessment (EA) process since the 1970s, it remains highly criticized by academics and practitioners alike (MacKinnon, 2017). Currently, the federal government is undertaking a review of the Canadian Environmental Assessment […]
Science Outside the Lab North: Investigating Science and Policy in Canada. Part II: Decision-Making
As noted in Part I, along with 11 other Canadian graduate students, I was given the opportunity to attend the second science-policy workshop Science Outside the Lab North (SOtL) in Ottawa and Montreal, earlier this spring. In this post, I outline some of the key themes of the workshop. Not surprisingly, with such a diverse […]