On 4 February 1970, the oil tanker SS Arrow ran aground on the rocks of Chedabucto Bay on Nova Scotia’s east coast and four days later about two thirds of the 14,700 ton cargo of Bunker C oil spilled into the Bay. Recently, I collaborated with two Department of Fisheries and Oceans-Bedford Institute of Oceanography […]
Science-Policy Interface
Evidence-Informed Decision Making: A Timely Graduate Course
The scheduling of the graduate course, “Information in Public Policy and Decision Making,” offered by the Dalhousie University School of Information Management could hardly be more timely or important. Troubling as the COVID-19 pandemic has been, as the virus infiltrated countries and caused havoc around the globe, it presented an exceptional case for students to […]
Managing Biodiversity beyond National Jurisdiction: New Publications Examine Ongoing Treaty Negotiations at the United Nations
The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), a landmark international treaty that entered into force in 1994, provides the legal framework for the sustainable development of the oceans. UNCLOS covers a wide range of issues in a text containing over 300 articles. Over the decades since the treaty’s completion in 1982, […]
Chemical Contaminants in the Gulf of Maine and Bay of Fundy: New Paper on Monitoring, with Policy Implications
The Environmental Information: Use and Influence research program has had a long affiliation with the Gulf of Maine Council on the Marine Environment (GOMC) through preparation of bibliographies of the GOMC publications (Cordes et al, 2006; Ross et al., 2014), evaluation of the use and influence of that literature (Cossarini et al., 2014; MacDonald et […]
Improving Use of Research-Based Information in Policy Contexts
The importance of evidence-informed decision-making is being recognized more and more within the broader scientific and political landscape. For critical issues like climate change, well-informed and structured policies can bring substantial progress to current and future mitigation and adaptation strategies. This awareness has resulted in increased efforts to design science-policy engagement strategies and best practices […]
Challenges in Measuring the Use and Influence of Research-Based Information
Conducting research and producing reports are important pursuits, but they are only some of the activities found in research-to-policy processes. When data have been collected, analysed, and reports prepared, the next step, namely, communication, can be fraught with challenges that can impede use of the research. Some studies are conducted to address questions posed directly […]
The Role of Public Consultations and Public Advisory Processes in Decision Making
Over the last several decades, the role of public participation in policy and decision making has expanded in scope and importance. Public participation is being used increasingly to complement technical expertise and empirical evidence in decision-making processes, both to strengthen the democratic legitimacy of policies and to benefit from a wide range of experiential knowledge. […]
Enablers and Barriers in the Communication of Research Information for Policy Development
The development of meaningful policies is dependent on effective communication of research-based information and evidence from scientists and other researchers to policymakers. Poor communication of research-based information can have serious consequences for environmental management. This post explores factors that enable and prevent the communication of research-based information into public policy contexts, including language, accessibility of […]
Pathways and Models: Recent Literature on Communication of Research Information
A gap in the flow of information often exists between science and policy. This gap commonly occurs in the science-policy interface. Many social processes and components may exist at the interface in order to bridge information flow. Within the interface, a complex meshwork of models (about knowledge transfer, science-policy advice, influence), pathways, and organizations can […]
New EIUI Paper: Environmental NGOs Deploy Information Strategies at the Science-Policy Interface for Marine Conservation
Scientists and policy makers alike are increasingly interested in participatory forms of governance. Recent research has found that when non-state actors are involved in the processes of environmental policy-making an opportunity is presented to strengthen the uptake of information, and improve the credibility, legitimacy and relevance of decisions. Environmental non-governmental organizations (ENGOs) are an important, […]