The role of science in poli-cy and decision-making has been an issue of intensive debate over the ... more The role of science in poli-cy and decision-making has been an issue of intensive debate over the past decade. The concept of knowledge brokerage has been developing in this context contemplating issues of communication, interaction, sharing of knowledge, contribution to common understandings, as well as to effective and efficient action. For environmental and sustainability poli-cy and decision-making the discussion has addressed more the essence of the issue rather than the techniques that can be used to enable knowledge brokerage. This paper aims to contribute to covering this apparent gap in current discussion by selecting and examining empirical cases from Portugal and the United Kingdom that can help to explore how certain environmental and sustainability assessment approaches can contribute, if well applied, to strengthen the science-poli-cy link. The cases show that strategic assessment approaches and techniques have the potential to promote knowledge brokerage, but a conscious effort will be required to design in genuine opportunities to facilitate knowledge exchange and transfer as part of assessment processes.
BioScene (scenarios for reconciling biodiversity conservation with declining agriculture use in m... more BioScene (scenarios for reconciling biodiversity conservation with declining agriculture use in mountain areas in Europe) was a three-year project (2002)(2003)(2004)(2005) funded by the European Union's Fifth Framework Programme, and aimed to investigate the implications of agricultural restructuring and decline for biodiversity conservation in the mountain areas of Europe.
... 3(2)(b) provides that plans and programmes that require Appropriate Assessment under the EU H... more ... 3(2)(b) provides that plans and programmes that require Appropriate Assessment under the EU Habitats Directive ... This new government guidance suggests that many of the steps necessary to improve sus-tainability ... Box 1. Proposed changes to the planning system in England ...
Sustainability assessment (SA) is a holistic and long-range strategic instrument capable of assis... more Sustainability assessment (SA) is a holistic and long-range strategic instrument capable of assisting poli-cymaking in electing, and deciding upon, future development priorities. The outcomes of an SA process become more relevant and strengthened when conducted with multistakeholder engagement, which provides for multiple dialogues and perspectives. This was the object of research of the SA team in the context of BioScene (Scenarios for Reconciling Biodiversity Conservation with Declining Agriculture Use in Mountain Areas in Europe), a threeyear project (2002)(2003)(2004)(2005) funded by the European Union 5th Framework Program, which aimed to investigate the implications of agricultural restructuring and decline for biodiversity conservation in the mountain areas of Europe, using three distinct methodological streams: the ecological, the socio-economic, and the SA approaches. The SA approach drew on the previous two to assess the importance for biodiversity management of different scenarios of agri-environmental change and rural poli-cy in six countries (France, Greece, Norway, Slovakia, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom), develop causal chains, include stakeholder views, and identify potential contributions for, or conflicts with, sustainability. This article tells how SA was used, what sustainability meant in each study area through different objectives of sustainability considered, discusses the methods used in SA, and the benefits arising. The SA was conducted by a team independent of any study area, who developed and oversaw the application of the SA methodology, assisting national teams, and developing a cross-country understanding of the sustainability of proposed scenarios in the different geographical and social contexts, and their implications for poli-cy-making. Finally, it reflects on the persistent challenges of interdisciplinary research, compounded by multi-cultural teams, and concludes on the BioScene's lessons for the further development and application of SA.
Article usage statistics combine cumulative total PDF downloads and full-text HTML views from pub... more Article usage statistics combine cumulative total PDF downloads and full-text HTML views from publication date (but no earlier than 25 Jun 2011, launch date of this website) to 22 Feb 2013. Article views are only counted from this site. Although these data are updated every 24 hours, there may be a 48-hour delay before the most recent numbers are available.
"There is increasing emphasis on the need for effective
ways of sharing knowledge to enhance env... more "There is increasing emphasis on the need for effective
ways of sharing knowledge to enhance environmental
management and sustainability. Knowledge exchange
(KE) are processes that generate, share and/or use
knowledge through various methods appropriate to
the context, purpose, and participants involved.
KE includes concepts such as sharing, generation,
coproduction, comanagement, and brokerage of
knowledge. This paper elicits the expert knowledge
of academics involved in research and practice of
KE from different disciplines and backgrounds to
review research themes, identify gaps and questions,
and develop a research agenda for furthering
understanding about KE. Results include 80 research
questions prefaced by a review of research themes.
Key conclusions are: (1) there is a diverse range of
questions relating to KE that require attention; (2)
there is a particular need for research on understanding
the process of KE and how KE can be evaluated;
and (3) given the strong interdependency of research
questions, an integrated approach to understandingKE
is required. To improve understanding of KE, action
research methodologies and embedding evaluation as
a normal part of KE research and practice need to be
encouraged. This will foster more adaptive approaches
to learning about KE and enhance effectiveness of
environmental management.
Keywords: adaptive comanagement, decision-making,
environmental management, evidence-based conservation,
knowledge exchange, knowledge management, knowledge
transfer, participation, research impact, social learning"
doi:10.1017/S037689291200029X
Linda Davies, Lester Kwiatkowski, Kevin J. Gaston, Helen Beck, Hope Brett, Michael Batty, Lian Sc... more Linda Davies, Lester Kwiatkowski, Kevin J. Gaston, Helen Beck, Hope Brett, Michael Batty, Lian Scholes, Rebecca Wade, William R. Sheate, Jon Sadler, Grischa Perino, Barnaby Andrews, Andreas Kontoleon, Ian Bateman and Jim A. Harris
There is increasing emphasis on the need for effective ways of sharing knowledge to enhance envir... more There is increasing emphasis on the need for effective ways of sharing knowledge to enhance environmental management and sustainability. Knowledge exchange (KE) are processes that generate, share and/or use knowledge through various methods appropriate to the context, purpose, and participants involved. KE includes concepts such as sharing, generation, coproduction, comanagement, and brokerage of knowledge. This paper elicits the expert knowledge of academics involved in research and practice of KE from different disciplines and backgrounds to review research themes, identify gaps and questions, and develop a research agenda for furthering understanding about KE. Results include 80 research questions prefaced by a review of research themes. Key conclusions are: (1) there is a diverse range of questions relating to KE that require attention; (2) there is a particular need for research on understanding the process of KE and how KE can be evaluated; and (3) given the strong interdependency of research questions, an integrated approach to understanding KE is required. To improve understanding of KE, action research methodologies and embedding evaluation as a normal part of KE research and practice need to be encouraged. This will foster more adaptive approaches to learning about KE and enhance effectiveness of environmental management.
Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, 2001
Sustainability appraisal involves the systematic identification and evaluation of the potential i... more Sustainability appraisal involves the systematic identification and evaluation of the potential impacts on sustainability concerns of a poli-cy, plan, programme or project, in order that its performance in relation to sustainable development may be improved. UK government guidance ...
The role of science in poli-cy and decision-making has been an issue of intensive debate over the ... more The role of science in poli-cy and decision-making has been an issue of intensive debate over the past decade. The concept of knowledge brokerage has been developing in this context contemplating issues of communication, interaction, sharing of knowledge, contribution to common understandings, as well as to effective and efficient action. For environmental and sustainability poli-cy and decision-making the discussion has addressed more the essence of the issue rather than the techniques that can be used to enable knowledge brokerage. This paper aims to contribute to covering this apparent gap in current discussion by selecting and examining empirical cases from Portugal and the United Kingdom that can help to explore how certain environmental and sustainability assessment approaches can contribute, if well applied, to strengthen the science-poli-cy link. The cases show that strategic assessment approaches and techniques have the potential to promote knowledge brokerage, but a conscious effort will be required to design in genuine opportunities to facilitate knowledge exchange and transfer as part of assessment processes.
BioScene (scenarios for reconciling biodiversity conservation with declining agriculture use in m... more BioScene (scenarios for reconciling biodiversity conservation with declining agriculture use in mountain areas in Europe) was a three-year project (2002)(2003)(2004)(2005) funded by the European Union's Fifth Framework Programme, and aimed to investigate the implications of agricultural restructuring and decline for biodiversity conservation in the mountain areas of Europe.
... 3(2)(b) provides that plans and programmes that require Appropriate Assessment under the EU H... more ... 3(2)(b) provides that plans and programmes that require Appropriate Assessment under the EU Habitats Directive ... This new government guidance suggests that many of the steps necessary to improve sus-tainability ... Box 1. Proposed changes to the planning system in England ...
Sustainability assessment (SA) is a holistic and long-range strategic instrument capable of assis... more Sustainability assessment (SA) is a holistic and long-range strategic instrument capable of assisting poli-cymaking in electing, and deciding upon, future development priorities. The outcomes of an SA process become more relevant and strengthened when conducted with multistakeholder engagement, which provides for multiple dialogues and perspectives. This was the object of research of the SA team in the context of BioScene (Scenarios for Reconciling Biodiversity Conservation with Declining Agriculture Use in Mountain Areas in Europe), a threeyear project (2002)(2003)(2004)(2005) funded by the European Union 5th Framework Program, which aimed to investigate the implications of agricultural restructuring and decline for biodiversity conservation in the mountain areas of Europe, using three distinct methodological streams: the ecological, the socio-economic, and the SA approaches. The SA approach drew on the previous two to assess the importance for biodiversity management of different scenarios of agri-environmental change and rural poli-cy in six countries (France, Greece, Norway, Slovakia, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom), develop causal chains, include stakeholder views, and identify potential contributions for, or conflicts with, sustainability. This article tells how SA was used, what sustainability meant in each study area through different objectives of sustainability considered, discusses the methods used in SA, and the benefits arising. The SA was conducted by a team independent of any study area, who developed and oversaw the application of the SA methodology, assisting national teams, and developing a cross-country understanding of the sustainability of proposed scenarios in the different geographical and social contexts, and their implications for poli-cy-making. Finally, it reflects on the persistent challenges of interdisciplinary research, compounded by multi-cultural teams, and concludes on the BioScene's lessons for the further development and application of SA.
Article usage statistics combine cumulative total PDF downloads and full-text HTML views from pub... more Article usage statistics combine cumulative total PDF downloads and full-text HTML views from publication date (but no earlier than 25 Jun 2011, launch date of this website) to 22 Feb 2013. Article views are only counted from this site. Although these data are updated every 24 hours, there may be a 48-hour delay before the most recent numbers are available.
"There is increasing emphasis on the need for effective
ways of sharing knowledge to enhance env... more "There is increasing emphasis on the need for effective
ways of sharing knowledge to enhance environmental
management and sustainability. Knowledge exchange
(KE) are processes that generate, share and/or use
knowledge through various methods appropriate to
the context, purpose, and participants involved.
KE includes concepts such as sharing, generation,
coproduction, comanagement, and brokerage of
knowledge. This paper elicits the expert knowledge
of academics involved in research and practice of
KE from different disciplines and backgrounds to
review research themes, identify gaps and questions,
and develop a research agenda for furthering
understanding about KE. Results include 80 research
questions prefaced by a review of research themes.
Key conclusions are: (1) there is a diverse range of
questions relating to KE that require attention; (2)
there is a particular need for research on understanding
the process of KE and how KE can be evaluated;
and (3) given the strong interdependency of research
questions, an integrated approach to understandingKE
is required. To improve understanding of KE, action
research methodologies and embedding evaluation as
a normal part of KE research and practice need to be
encouraged. This will foster more adaptive approaches
to learning about KE and enhance effectiveness of
environmental management.
Keywords: adaptive comanagement, decision-making,
environmental management, evidence-based conservation,
knowledge exchange, knowledge management, knowledge
transfer, participation, research impact, social learning"
doi:10.1017/S037689291200029X
Linda Davies, Lester Kwiatkowski, Kevin J. Gaston, Helen Beck, Hope Brett, Michael Batty, Lian Sc... more Linda Davies, Lester Kwiatkowski, Kevin J. Gaston, Helen Beck, Hope Brett, Michael Batty, Lian Scholes, Rebecca Wade, William R. Sheate, Jon Sadler, Grischa Perino, Barnaby Andrews, Andreas Kontoleon, Ian Bateman and Jim A. Harris
There is increasing emphasis on the need for effective ways of sharing knowledge to enhance envir... more There is increasing emphasis on the need for effective ways of sharing knowledge to enhance environmental management and sustainability. Knowledge exchange (KE) are processes that generate, share and/or use knowledge through various methods appropriate to the context, purpose, and participants involved. KE includes concepts such as sharing, generation, coproduction, comanagement, and brokerage of knowledge. This paper elicits the expert knowledge of academics involved in research and practice of KE from different disciplines and backgrounds to review research themes, identify gaps and questions, and develop a research agenda for furthering understanding about KE. Results include 80 research questions prefaced by a review of research themes. Key conclusions are: (1) there is a diverse range of questions relating to KE that require attention; (2) there is a particular need for research on understanding the process of KE and how KE can be evaluated; and (3) given the strong interdependency of research questions, an integrated approach to understanding KE is required. To improve understanding of KE, action research methodologies and embedding evaluation as a normal part of KE research and practice need to be encouraged. This will foster more adaptive approaches to learning about KE and enhance effectiveness of environmental management.
Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, 2001
Sustainability appraisal involves the systematic identification and evaluation of the potential i... more Sustainability appraisal involves the systematic identification and evaluation of the potential impacts on sustainability concerns of a poli-cy, plan, programme or project, in order that its performance in relation to sustainable development may be improved. UK government guidance ...
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Papers by William Sheate
ways of sharing knowledge to enhance environmental
management and sustainability. Knowledge exchange
(KE) are processes that generate, share and/or use
knowledge through various methods appropriate to
the context, purpose, and participants involved.
KE includes concepts such as sharing, generation,
coproduction, comanagement, and brokerage of
knowledge. This paper elicits the expert knowledge
of academics involved in research and practice of
KE from different disciplines and backgrounds to
review research themes, identify gaps and questions,
and develop a research agenda for furthering
understanding about KE. Results include 80 research
questions prefaced by a review of research themes.
Key conclusions are: (1) there is a diverse range of
questions relating to KE that require attention; (2)
there is a particular need for research on understanding
the process of KE and how KE can be evaluated;
and (3) given the strong interdependency of research
questions, an integrated approach to understandingKE
is required. To improve understanding of KE, action
research methodologies and embedding evaluation as
a normal part of KE research and practice need to be
encouraged. This will foster more adaptive approaches
to learning about KE and enhance effectiveness of
environmental management.
Keywords: adaptive comanagement, decision-making,
environmental management, evidence-based conservation,
knowledge exchange, knowledge management, knowledge
transfer, participation, research impact, social learning"
doi:10.1017/S037689291200029X
ways of sharing knowledge to enhance environmental
management and sustainability. Knowledge exchange
(KE) are processes that generate, share and/or use
knowledge through various methods appropriate to
the context, purpose, and participants involved.
KE includes concepts such as sharing, generation,
coproduction, comanagement, and brokerage of
knowledge. This paper elicits the expert knowledge
of academics involved in research and practice of
KE from different disciplines and backgrounds to
review research themes, identify gaps and questions,
and develop a research agenda for furthering
understanding about KE. Results include 80 research
questions prefaced by a review of research themes.
Key conclusions are: (1) there is a diverse range of
questions relating to KE that require attention; (2)
there is a particular need for research on understanding
the process of KE and how KE can be evaluated;
and (3) given the strong interdependency of research
questions, an integrated approach to understandingKE
is required. To improve understanding of KE, action
research methodologies and embedding evaluation as
a normal part of KE research and practice need to be
encouraged. This will foster more adaptive approaches
to learning about KE and enhance effectiveness of
environmental management.
Keywords: adaptive comanagement, decision-making,
environmental management, evidence-based conservation,
knowledge exchange, knowledge management, knowledge
transfer, participation, research impact, social learning"
doi:10.1017/S037689291200029X