Environmental Expertise: Connecting Science, Policy and Society

290 Pages·2019·8.684 MB·English

by  Esther Turnhout, Willemijn Tuinstra, Willem Halffman

EnvironmentalExpertise
Animportantgoalofenvironmentalresearchistoinformpolicyanddecisionmaking.
However,environmentalexpertsworkingattheinterfacebetweenscience,policy,and
societyfacecomplexchallenges,includinghowtoidentifysourcesofdisagreement
overenvironmentalissues,communicateuncertaintiesandlimitationsofknowledge,
andtacklecontroversialtopicssuchasgeneticmodificationortheuseofbiofuels.This
bookdiscussestheproblemsenvironmentalexpertsencounterintheinteraction
betweenknowledge,society,andpolicyonbothapracticalandaconceptuallevel.Key
findingsfromsocialscienceresearchareillustratedwitharangeofcasestudies,from
fisheriestofracking.Thebookoffersguidanceonhowtotacklethesechallenges,
equippingreaderswithtoolstobetterunderstandthediversityofenvironmental
knowledgeanditsroleincomplexenvironmentalissues.Writtenbyleadingnaturaland
socialscientists,thistextprovidesanessentialresourceforstudents,scientists,and
professionalsworkingatthescience–policyinterface.
esther turnhout isaprofessorattheForestandNatureConservationPolicy
GroupofWageningenUniversity,theNetherlands.Herresearchprogramme,‘The
PoliticsofEnvironmentalKnowledge’,includesresearchintothedifferentrolesexperts
playatthescience–policyinterface,thepoliticalimplicationsofpolicy-relevant
environmentalknowledge,andtheinteractionbetweenscience,society,andcitizens.
willemijn tuinstra worksasanindependentadvisoronknowledge
developmentforenvironmentalpolicy.Sheadvisesresearchinstitutesandcivilservants
onproceduralaspectsofstakeholderparticipation,scenariodevelopment,anddealing
withuncertainties.ShehasbeeninvolvedinprojectsfortheEuropeanEnvironment
AgencyandtheInternationalInstituteforAppliedSystemsAnalysis.
willem halffmanisanassociateprofessorintheFacultyofScienceatRadboud
University,Nijmegen.Hisworkfocusesonstudyinghowscientificknowledgeis
validatedandhowscientistsadvisepublicdecisionmaking.Hehasmorethan20years’
experienceteachingscienceandsocietycoursestonaturalscientists.
“Thenovelperspectivesinthisbook,aswellasitscasesandconceptualadvances,
willcomeasawelcomeresourceforthoseinterestedinunderstandingthe
controversiesaroundtheuseofenvironmentalexpertise.Equally,itwillbe
welcomedbyenvironmentalscientistsseekingtonavigatetheshoalsofpracticing
andrepresentingscienceontheonehand,andeffectivecommunicationandmaking
adifferenceintheworldontheother.”
–ArunAgrawal,UniversityofMichigan
“Thisbookisimportantandtimely.Therehasneverbeforebeensuchgreatneed
forevidencetounderpinenvironmentalpolicy,andyetthereisalsoagrowing
appreciationamongresearchersofthecomplexitiesandrisksassociatedwith
engagingwiththepolicycommunity.Thebookisrootedinthelatesttheoretical
understandingsfromsocialscience,explainedinanaccessibleway,anditvery
quicklymovesfromtheorytopractice,showinghowtheseinsightscaninformhow
environmentalscientistsworkaroundcontroversialtopics.Theuseofin-depthcase
studiescomplementsthewidespreaduseofhelpfulexamplesthroughoutthetext.I
havefoundreadingthisbookbothinspiringandinstructive,andbelievethatmany
researcherswillbenefitconsiderablyfromreadingit.Iwillcertainlybe
recommendingittocolleagues.”
–MarkReed,NewcastleUniversity
“Theprincipalauthorshavedoneaverysmartandnoveljobwiththisbook,
bringingtogetherinsightsfromenvironmentalscience,policystudies,science
studiesandthephilosophyofscienceinathoroughlypracticalway.Thebookshould
reallyhelppractitionersappreciatewaystohandlethecomplexitiesof
environmentalpolicy-makingincontextsofuncertainty,conflictingbeliefsand
competingsocietalvalues.”
–SteveYearley,IASH,UniversityofEdinburgh
Environmental Expertise
Connecting Science, Policy, and Society
ESTHERTURNHOUT
WageningenUniversity,theNetherlands
WILLEMIJNTUINSTRA
OpenUniversiteit,theNetherlands
WILLEM HALFFMAN
RadboudUniversity,Nijmegen,theNetherlands
Withcontributionsfrom
SilkeBeck,HeleendeConinck,ThomasGieryn,MikeHulme,Marga
Jacobs,PhilMacnaghten,ClarkMiller,KatjaNeves,MartinPastoors,
AdRagas,ClaireWaterton,andLaurenceWilliams
UniversityPrintingHouse,CambridgeCB28BS,UnitedKingdom
OneLibertyPlaza,20thFloor,NewYork,NY10006,USA
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79AnsonRoad,#06–04/06,Singapore079906
CambridgeUniversityPressispartoftheUniversityofCambridge.
ItfurtherstheUniversity’smissionbydisseminatingknowledgeinthepursuitof
education,learning,andresearchatthehighestinternationallevelsofexcellence.
www.cambridge.org
Informationonthistitle:www.cambridge.org/9781107098749
DOI:10.1017/9781316162514
©EstherTurnhout,WillemijnTuinstraandWillemHalffman2019
Thispublicationisincopyright.Subjecttostatutoryexception
andtotheprovisionsofrelevantcollectivelicensingagreements,
noreproductionofanypartmaytakeplacewithoutthewritten
permissionofCambridgeUniversityPress.
Firstpublished2019
PrintedandboundinGreatBritainbyClaysLtd,ElcografS.p.A.
AcataloguerecordforthispublicationisavailablefromtheBritishLibrary.
ISBN978-1-107-09874-9Hardback
ISBN978-1-107-49167-0Paperback
Additionalresourcesforthispublicationatwww.cambridge.org/turnhout.
CambridgeUniversityPresshasnoresponsibilityforthepersistenceoraccuracyof
URLsforexternalorthird-partyinternetwebsitesreferredtointhispublication
anddoesnotguaranteethatanycontentonsuchwebsitesis,orwillremain,
accurateorappropriate.
Contents
ListofContributors pageix
Preface xi
ListofAbbreviations xvi
1 Introduction:ThePlightoftheEnvironmentalScientist
willem halffman, esther turnhout, and
willemijn tuinstra 1
1.1 ScienceandtheEnvironment 1
1.2 TheChallengesforEnvironmentalProfessionals 2
1.3 TheBook 6
2 WhatIsScience?(AndWhyDoesThisMatter?)
willem halffman 11
2.1 TrustMe,I’maScientist 11
2.2 TheReputationofScienceandItsUses 12
2.3 ScienceasaParticularWayofReasoning 16
2.4 ScienceasaParticularWaytoOrganiseKnowledge
Creation 20
2.5 TheDiversityoftheSciences 24
2.6 SoHowDoWeProceed? 31
3 Frames:BeyondFactsVersusValues
willem halffman 36
3.1 WhatAreFrames? 36
3.2 FramingandtheSciences 39
3.3 HowtoIdentifyFramesinLanguage 41
3.4 InstitutionalFrames 48
3.5 TheNatureofFrames 50
3.6 TheRelevanceofFrameReflection 54
v
vi Contents
CaseAFramingClimateChange
mike hulme 58
4 Science,Politics,andthePublicinKnowledgeControversies
esther turnhout and thomas gieryn 68
4.1 Introduction 68
4.2 SpeakingTruthtoPowerandtheLinearModel
ofScience–SocietyRelationships 70
4.3 Science,Policy,andPoliticsinKnowledgeControversies 72
4.4 ScienceandthePublicinKnowledgeControversies 75
4.5 MakingSenseofKnowledgeControversies 77
4.6 BuildingTrust 78
CaseBWhatDoes‘Climategate’TellUsAbout
PublicKnowledgeControversies?
silke beck 82
CaseCWhoseDeficitAnyway?Institutional
MisunderstandingofFracking-ScepticalPublics
laurence williams and phil macnaghten 90
5 TheLimitstoKnowledge
willemijn tuinstra, ad ragas, and willem
halffman 104
5.1 Introduction 104
5.2 DifferentConceptionsofUncertainty 104
5.3 DifferentConceptionsofRisk 107
5.4 RiskPerceptionandTrust 108
5.5 DealingwithUncertaintyinPolicyPractices 110
5.6 ConceptualisingStrategiestoDealwithUncertainty
andRisk 112
5.7 Conclusion 115
CaseDAngryBulbs
ad ragas and marga jacobs 117
6 UsableKnowledge
willemijn tuinstra, esther turnhout, and willem
halffman 126
6.1 Introduction 126
6.2 WhatDoScientificExpertsDo? 127
6.3 CharacterisingScience–PolicyDynamics 128
6.4 StrategiestoConnectKnowledgeProductionandUse 131
Contents vii
6.5 WhatCountsasUsableKnowledge? 133
6.6 TheImportanceofContext 135
6.7 StartingfromPracticeandLooking
forImpact 135
6.8 Credibility,Salience,andLegitimacy 137
CaseEExpertiseforEuropeanFisheriesPolicy
willem halffman and martin pastoors 141
7 InterdisciplinarityandtheChallengeofKnowledge
Integration
esther turnhout 152
7.1 WhyIntegrate? 152
7.2 WhatIsInterdisciplinarity? 154
7.3 BarrierstoKnowledgeIntegration 155
7.4 ApproachestoKnowledgeIntegration 156
7.5 ThePoliticsofKnowledgeIntegration 161
CaseFKnowledgeIntegrationintheMillenniumEcosystem
Assessment
clark miller 165
CaseGIntegratedAssessmentforLong-Range
TransboundaryAirPollution
willemijn tuinstra 176
8 LayExpertise
esther turnhout and katja neves 184
8.1 Introduction 184
8.2 TheValueofLayExpertise 185
8.3 WhatHappensWhenDifferentFormsofKnowledge
Meet? 187
8.4 KnowledgeasSituatedPractice 190
8.5 ParticipatoryKnowledgeProduction 192
8.6 Conclusion 195
CaseHLayExpertiseandBotanicalScience:ACase
ofDynamicInterdependenciesinBiodiversityConservation
katja neves 200
CaseITheLoweswaterCareProject
claire waterton 210
viii Contents
9 EnvironmentalExpertsattheScience–Policy–Society
Interface
esther turnhout 222
9.1 NavigatingtheScience–Policy–SocietyInterface 222
9.2 Servicing 224
9.3 Advocating 226
9.4 Diversifying 228
9.5 ExpertRolesandDilemmas 229
9.6 EthicsandIntegrityattheScience–Policy–Society
Interface 231
CaseJGroupthinkandWhistleBlowersinCO Capture
2
andStorage
heleen de coninck 234
10 EnvironmentalKnowledgeinDemocracy
esther turnhout, willem halffman,
and willemijn tuinstra 247
10.1 ImprovingEnvironmentalKnowledge 247
10.2 BeyondTechnocracy 249
10.3 DemocratisingEnvironmentalKnowledge 251
10.4 DemocraticExpertInstitutions 254
11 Conclusion:Science,Reason,andtheEnvironment
willem halffman, willemijn tuinstra,
and esther turnhout 257
Index 263
Contributors
SilkeBeck
HelmholtzCentreforEnvironmentalResearch–UFZ,Leipzig,Germany
HeleendeConinck
DepartmentofEnvironmentalScience,RadboudUniversity,Nijmegen,the
Netherlands
WillemHalffman
InstituteforScienceinSociety,RadboudUniversity,Nijmegen,the
Netherlands
MikeHulme
DepartmentofGeography,UniversityofCambridge,Cambridge,UK
ThomasGieryn
DepartmentofSociology,IndianaUniversity,Bloomington,IN,USA
MargaJacobs
FacultyofManagement,ScienceandTechnology(MST),OpenUniversiteit,
Heerlen,theNetherlands
PhilMacnaghten
Knowledge,TechnologyandInnovationGroup,WageningenUR,
Wageningen,theNetherlands
ClarkMiller
SchoolfortheFutureofInnovationinSociety,ArizonaStateUniversity,
Tempe,Arizona,USA
KatjaNeves
DepartmentofSociologyandAnthropology,ConcordiaUniversity,Montreal,
Canada
ix