Using researcher and stakeholder perspectives to develop promising practices to improve stakeholder engagement in the solutions-driven research process

Abstract

Translational approaches to science have the potential to produce research that better meets the needs of community stakeholders and advances scientific understanding. Researchers involved in translational research make committed efforts to increased engagement and communication with stakeholders throughout the research process, from planning through implementation and evaluation. Referred to as solutions-driven research within the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Office of Research Development, this approach is being piloted on Cape Cod (Barnstable County), Massachusetts. EPA researchers are working in close coordination with community partners on the Cape to better understand and address challenges with managing nonpoint source nitrogen. The pilot also aims to assess the usefulness of solutions-driven research approaches for application in future EPA research efforts. Using semi-structured interviews with researchers and other stakeholders, we examined researchers' and stakeholders' perspectives on the impacts of intentional and intensive stakeholder engagement on research efforts to improve coastal water quality. This study provides a reflexive assessment of the perceived benefits and drawbacks for researchers and other stakeholders when there is an institutional expectation of an increased focus on engagement. We found that engagement has been truly intertwined with research in the pilot, participants perceived an improvement in research usefulness through developing valuable collaborative relationships, and that these relationships required significant time commitments to maintain. We also identified a need for an efficient infrastructure for developing and distributing communication materials for continued engagement with diverse stakeholders throughout the research process. The paper provides transferable practices for researchers seeking to use a solutions-driven research approach based on lessons learned thus far in how to support researchers and research planning in simultaneously prioritizing effective engagement and sound collaborative environmental science research to address a localized environmental challenge. This is an innovative approach in that interviews occurred as the implementation phase of the project began, with the goal of implementing the lessons learned outlined here in the ongoing project.

Stakeholder Communication and Its Impact on Participatory Development Planning in Rural Areas

“…Several studies have shown that stakeholder characteristics determine the decision-making process and development process. The community has much discussion but only involves citizens who are most motivated and voluntarily to participate, involving people who are better off in terms of income, education, and status [50][51][52][53][54][55][56].…”

Using science communication research to practice iterative engagement in collaborative nutrient management

“…To evaluate the effectiveness of this new approach to engagement, social scientists were engaged from the start of the project to its completion to capture the experience of the various stakeholders. These researchers used formative (mid-project) [Canfield, Mulvaney & Chatelain, 2022] and end-of-project data collection methods including autoethnography, content analysis, and semi-structured interviews with researchers and external stakeholders.…”

“…We then describe the methods used in our internal evaluation, including how the formative evaluation results were incorporated into the ongoing project. We next compare the results of the interviews held at the end of the project with those conducted mid-project [Canfield et al, 2022]. We finally discuss the value of internal two-stage evaluation, and lessons learned to improve future transdisciplinary projects using evaluation of science communication and public engagement with research.…”

Exactly Where Does the River Need Space to Move? Seeking Participatory Translation of Fluvial Geomorphology into Flood Management

“…Here, we analyze the process to respond to recent calls to provide recommendations for effective stakeholder‐driven, translational environmental research in the U.S. (Canfield et al. 2021). We do this by asking, what are opportunities and challenges in stakeholder‐driven, translational research in fluvial geomorphology‐informed flood management in the United States?…”

“…This article taps into a decade-long, stakeholder-driven process in Massachusetts, USA that attempted to reprioritize river flood management by giving rivers room to move. Here, we analyze the process to respond to recent calls to provide recommendations for effective stakeholder-driven, translational environmental research in the U.S. (Canfield et al 2021). We do this by asking, what are opportunities and challenges in stakeholder-driven, translational research in fluvial geomorphology-informed flood management in the United States?…”