A new paper has been published based on work carried for SPIRAL, authored by Kerry Waylen and Juliette Young. This paper focuses on the first phase of the UK National Ecosystem Assessment.

The SPIRAL project ended at the end of 2013. This News category will no longer be updated. The site however will still be accessible for a number of years.  The Project's outputs and conclusions can be found in the Documents section.

The SPIRAL paper "Balancing credibility, relevance and legitimacy: A critical assessment of trade-offs in science–policy interfaces" has been published in "Science and Public Policy Advance Access" of August 2013.

Sustainable management of complex ecosystems requires clear understanding of uncertainty. However, scientific guidance documents show a lack of clarity and coherence regarding uncertainties and tend to focus solely on the need for more data or monitoring, new research indicates. The researchers suggest that scientific guidance should recognise uncertainty as an inherent part of any complex ecosystem.

Against the background of a continuing biodiversity loss there is a strong need to improve the interfaces between science and policy. Many approaches for such interfaces exist, the most recent being the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES). A less prominent approach to interface science with policy consists of research projects directly linking with decision makers.The SPIRAL paper "Improving the Science-Policy Interface of Biodiver sity Research Projects" in GAIA present insights and recommendations on how to do this successfully, highlighting among others the role of facilitating mutual learning and enhancing interface expertise in institutions.

Authors: Carsten Neßhöver, Johannes Timaeus, Heidi Wittmer, Annamaria Krieg, Nicoleta Geamana, Sybille van den Hove, Juliette Young, Allan Watt

Read the paper online

Global change is occurring in complex socio-ecological systems. Understanding the intricate, medium- to long-term changes in our land, air and water requires advanced knowledge in measurement, modelling and prediction. Responding to these changes requires effective communication of the science in order to underpin innovative policies.

This Joint International MSc at Dublin University course aims to respond to these challenges and targets to suit skilled motivated science graduates wishing to develop a scientific career in ecosystem research as well as those aiming to contribute to evidence-based environmental policy.

 

From Monday 15th to Thursday 18th April, over 200 scientists from 66 European research institutes and more than 25 countries, together with European policy makers, have been developing scientifically sound, evidence-based recommendations on how to implement and realize the 2020 European Biodiversity Strategy. This conference was organized by the European biodiversity research network ALTER-Net, together with the European Commission.

In order to inform the development of the first draft of the IPBES strategy, organisations active in the field of biodiversity and ecosystem services are invited to participate in a survey to gather their views on stakeholder engagement in IPBES. Following an open government and stakeholder review of this draft, the strategy will be updated and presented to the next session of the IPBES Plenary (IPBES-2) for consideration.



Horizon Management News has a short article about SPIRAL in its March issue. Read it here.

March 13th 2013 -- The President of the European Commission, José Manuel Barroso, has announced today the creation of a Science and Technology Advisory Council. This informal advisory body held its first meeting today in Brussels. 

President Barroso said: "Science and innovation are key drivers for European competitiveness, economic growth and the creation of new jobs. This Advisory Council will focus on science and technology related topics that are of cross-cutting nature, with a clear societal dimension. It will identify the issues of value where science, research and innovation can contribute to support future development in Europe".