Anna Lawrence

Improving the science–policy–practice interface: decision support system uptake and use in the forestry sector in Great Britain

Over the last decade, researchers have developed a range of decision support systems (DSS) which seek to improve the evidence-base for decision-making in the forestry sector in Great Britain. Many are now integral to the systems of forest management and planning used. However, in some cases, levels of adoption have been lower than expected. This problem is neither unique to Great Britain nor to forestry, and increasingly it is being explained in terms of the quality of stakeholder engagement during DSS development and implementation. Thus, social research was undertaken to understand the factors affecting DSS uptake. The methods included an online survey completed by 81 members of the Institute of Chartered Foresters and Forestry Commission staff and 30 semi-structured interviews with stakeholders. Four sets of factors were seen to influence uptake: professional judgement and cultural resistance; communication and access; training, support and consolidation; and meeting user requirements. More generally, our conclusions highlight the need for a shift in the quality of interactions at the science–policy–practice interface: from knowledge-transfer (a unidirectional “bridging of gaps”) to knowledge-exchange (dialogue between collaborating partners) and knowledge-interaction (shared cultures and institutions).

Citizen science networks in natural history and the collective validation of biodiversity data.

Biodiversity data are in increasing demand to inform policy and management. A substantial portion of these data is generated in citizen science networks. To ensure the quality of biodiversity data, standards and criteria for validation have been put in place. We used interviews and document analysis from the United Kingdom and The Netherlands to examine how data validation serves as a point of connection between the diverse people and practices in natural history citizen science networks. We found that rather than a unidirectional imposition of standards, validation was performed collectively. Specifically, it was enacted in ongoing circulations of biodiversity records between recorders and validators as they jointly negotiated the biodiversity that was observed and the validity of the records. These collective validation practices contributed to the citizen science character or natural history networks and tied these networks together. However, when biodiversity records were included in biodiversity-information initiatives on different policy levels and scales, the circulation of records diminished. These initiatives took on a more extractive mode of data use. Validation ceased to be collective with important consequences for the natural history networks involved and citizen science more generally.

Local government and urban forest governance: insights from Scotland

ABSTRACT While the benefits of urban forests (UFs) are well-researched, less is known about how to steer collective action for conserving and strengthening this resource, and particularly the role of local government. We address this knowledge gap through a study of urban forest governance in Scotland, United Kingdom. Applying a mixed-methods approach including semi-structured interviews, document analysis and surveys, covering 26 out of the total of 32 Scottish local authorities (LAs), we show that UF management by Scottish LAs is largely reactive. This can be explained by limited funding and knowledge of the resource, poor knowledge of the scale and state of the UF, fragmented management structures, and the tendency to perceive trees as a liability as opposed to an asset. However, some LAs successfully resist this trend through city officials acting as frontrunners within their organisations. They do so by championing activities such as investing in tools for socioeconomic valuation of the UF, pursuing grant funding, breaking down silos through organisational reorganisation, preparing city-level trees and woodland strategies, cross-sectoral partnership working and community engagement. Fundamental change, however, relies on the combination of these activities and therefore requires a whole-organisation commitment to UF sustainability across different domains relevant to predicting UF outcomes.

Forests in Common and Their Contribution to Local Development

In this chapter, we look at the role that a forest held in common can play in supporting local development and promoting the livelihood of the local community. Four dissimilar cases in Italy, Slovenia, Sweden and UK are described and analysed by applying the Sustainable Livelihood Framework. Despite very different pre-requisites and local conditions, our results show that all cases contain rules to maintain the extent and function of natural assets, and they contributed to the mobilisation of different types of capital. In each case there is evidence of interaction with higher governance levels, which protects the group’s room for action. The provision of access to natural and physical resources for rural people in a broader sense illustrates the cases’ orientation towards public good.