An introduction to achieving policy impact for early career researchers

Abstract

Scientists are increasingly required to demonstrate the real world tangible impacts arising from their research. Despite significant advances in scholarship dedicated to understanding and improving the relationships between science, policy and practice, much of the existing literature remains high level, theoretical, and not immediately accessible to early career researchers (ECRs) who work outside of the policy sciences. In this paper, we draw on the literature and our own experiences working in the environmental sciences to provide an accessible resource for ECRs seeking to achieve policy impact in their chosen field. First, we describe key concepts in public policy to provide sufficient background for the non-expert. Next, we articulate a number of practical steps and tools that can help ECRs to identify and enhance the policy relevance of their research, better understand the policy world in practice and identify a range of pathways to achieving impact. Finally, we draw on our personal experiences to highlight some of the key individual characteristics and values that are needed to operate more effectively at the interface of science, policy and practice. Our hope is that the information and tools provided here can help to empower ECRs to create their own pathways to impact that best suit their individual goals, circumstances, interests and strengths.

The twenty-first century experimenting society: the four waves of the evidence revolution

“…There has been growing attention to use of evidence to inform policy, with recent reviews of what that literature tells us; e.g., Langer et al (2016), and Oliver and Cairney (2019). However, the main focus of this literature is on the approaches researchers can take to support the use of research findings in policy (e.g., Evans and Cvitanoivc, 2018), such as engage users in the setting of research questions or the production of the research itself. This paper is as much concerned with the demand side as the supply side, describing initiatives from research commissioners and users, not just producers and how to support demand.…”

Operationalizing the IUCN Red List of Ecosystems in public policy

“…The inclusion of RLE in policy should focus on the development of a policy strategy comprising a series of policy instruments to achieve these objectives within a policy process (Barton, Ring, & Rusch, 2017), which can include the following steps (Evans & Cvitanovic, 2018): (a) identification of the problem, which under the RLE approach has the clear objective "to reduce risks to threatened ecosystems and to maintain the nonthreat status of the other ones," (b) policy formulation and decision making, focused on a series of policy instruments from different policy fields to address the preceding objective (see Rogge & Reichardt, 2016), (c) implementation, avoiding contradiction, and ensuring consistency and coherence between the instruments. The alignment of the elements of the policy mix should generate a synergistic interaction, being effective in reducing ecosystem risks (Dovers & Hussey, 2013;Evans & Cvitanovic, 2018), and (d) monitoring and evaluation, such that continuous RLE reassessments update the threat status of ecosystems to inform the policy process and required adjustments and modifications (policy learning and adaptation; Evans & Cvitanovic, 2018;Rogge & Reichardt, 2016).…”

How to Sustain Fisheries: Expert Knowledge from 34 Nations

“…Many participants are a part of both the scientific commission and the commission [64][65][66][67]. This science-based commitment to ecosystem-based management has, since 1982 (when CCAMLR was founded), contributed to the recovery of previous overfished stocks, and sustainable management of the Southern ocean ecosystems, including fisheries [39,68,69].…”