Arizona State University partnered with the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) to co-host the virtual 2021 AAAS Annual Meeting titled “Understanding Dynamic Ecosystems.” CBO Director Leah Gerber and faculty affiliate Derrick Anderson facilitated a session called “The Art of Bringing Evidence to Decision-Making in Conservation Science.”
Many scientists working in conservation aspire to contribute “actionable science” to conservation practice. Yet, much of conservation science involves filling “knowledge gaps.” This is problematic because the linear or ‘deficit’ model of science communication is rarely relevant in supporting research-informed decision-making. Instead, actionable science for conservation must enable decision-makers to explore tradeoffs and estimate consequences (including ecological, economic and social) of choices.
Gerber and Anderson presented a conceptual framework for linking conservation knowledge to action, described an approach to integrate demand-driven science with technical tools such as decision analysis, and shared results from a large-scale empirical study of best practices associated with the production of actionable science emerging from interviews of leading conservation scientists.
For conservation scientists to become agents of change in addressing conservation challenges, the reward model, resource allocation, and culture of scientific organizations must shift toward supporting and prioritizing actionable science. The presented analyses provide useful guidelines for this process.
Videos of all presentations are available on the Knowledge Enterprise YouTube channel.
Read more about the conference: ASU virtually hosts world’s largest scientific meeting.