Search

1. Evidence-based policy requires researchers to provide the answers to ecological questions that are of interest to policy makers. To find out what those questions are in the UK, representatives from 28 organizations involved in policy, together with scientists from 10 academic institutions, were asked to generate a list of questions from their organizations. 2. During a 2-day workshop the initial list of 1003 questions generated from consulting at least 654 policy makers and academics was used as a basis for generating a short list of 100 questions of significant policy relevance. Short-listing was decided on the basis of the preferences of the representatives from the policy-led organizations. 3. The areas covered included most major issues of environmental concern in the UK, including agriculture, marine fisheries, climate change, ecosystem function and land management. 4. The most striking outcome was the preference for general questions rather than narrow ones. The reason is that policy is driven by broad issues rather than specific ones. In contrast, scientists are frequently best equipped to answer specific questions. This means that it may be necessary to extract the underpinning specific question before researchers can proceed. 5. Synthesis and applications. Greater communication between policy makers and scientists is required in order to ensure that applied ecologists are dealing with issues in a way that can feed into policy. It is particularly important that applied ecologists emphasize the generic value of their work wherever possible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents several environmental questions formulated by the British environmental policy makers as an exercise of role-reversing. These questions, labeled as "high policy relevance," are aimed to facilitate the process of whittling down the number of questions. Among the questions formulated are centered on the time it takes for the seabed to recover from disturbance such as dredging, wind-farm construction, and oil and gas extraction; the impacts of recreational activities on biodiversity; the effects of domestic cats on vertebrate populations in rural and urban environments; the consequences for biodiversity of changes in water quality and sedimentation in rivers; and on the reason why woodland birds declined.