Improving the transfer of coastal scientific knowledge : from concept to implementation

• Autor(es): Carapuço, Mafalda
• Data: 2016
• Identificador Persistente: http://hdl.handle.net/10451/28481
• Origem: Repositório da Universidade de Lisboa
• Assunto(s): Teses de doutoramento - 2016
• Tipo de Documento: Tese de doutoramento
• Idioma: Inglês
• Contribuidor(es): Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto da ULisboa; Taborda, Rui, 1966-; Andrade, César Freire de, 1955-

Descrição

Achieving coastal sustainability requires a comprehensive knowledge of the coastal environment. In this context, scientific knowledge plays a major role in understanding coastal processes at a wide range of spatial and temporal scales, as well as in the integration of different types of knowledge. However, scientific knowledge as not been used in full for the development of science-based coastal policies and management strategies, and ineffective scientific knowledge transfer arises as a major obstacle in knowledge integration. Several reasons for ineffective knowledge transfer have been suggested in the literature, most of which related with communication gaps. The main objective of the present work is to find means to improve the transfer of coastal scientific knowledge fostering its incorporation into coastal management. This study was based upon a conceptual approach supported in a comprehensive literature review and grounded in theoretical developments. Results benefits from the author’s experience gathered from different projects developed under the framework of the resent study. The first step to achieve the main objective of this work was to identify who are the key coastal actors and understanding the way they interact: this is of paramount importance in a knowledge-transferring framework as they are the audience that scientists aim to reach. Beside scientists, two other key coastal actors are policy-makers and managers, and society. Policy-makers and managers are responsible for the regulation of the coastal zone uses by establishing and implementing the policy framework for the coast. Society arises also as a key coastal actor as people benefit from the services provided by the coastal environment. Although society is frequently regarded as a passive intervenient, the fact is that the role of society in the definition of coastal strategies is increasing. Key coastal actors, their roles and links are schematized in The Coastal Knowledge Triangle. The second step was to identify the challenges faced by scientists in fostering scientific knowledge. Two major challenges were identified: the need to foster engagement among coastal actors, and the need to properly frame the message to be delivered. Engagement is grounded on empathy and goes beyond simple awareness of the problem. Four key enablers for successfully building engagement were identified: willingness, trust, competence and commitment. Framing the message helps turning scientific data into meaningful information for the target audience, and implies choosing the more adequate language (i.e., the manner in which scientific knowledge is traduced) and channels of communication (i.e., the manner in which the message is sent) according to the audience’s specificities. Interpersonal communication, video and websites are examples of widely used channels in science communication. The most adequate languages to traduce scientific knowledge are discourse (i.e., conceptual generalization of conversation), images (including photographs and graphical representations) and indicators. This study suggests that indicators the most efficient way to transmit inherently complex information in a simplified and applicable form, a conclusion in line with several international organizations. Considering their relevance, a common framework for the establishment of coastal geoindicators for sandy coast environments was developed in the scope of the present work. The third step was to identify mechanisms that scientists can adopt to connect with their audience. Each mechanism accounts for the audience specificities and conveys the message in a different way leading to different types and quantity of feedback. If adequately used, mechanisms improve the transfer of scientific knowledge by fostering engagement, minimizing framing effort and optimizing audiences’ feedback. The most widely known (and adopted) mechanism to transfer scientific knowledge is outreach (as formal education is not encompassed in the scope of this work). However, scientists’ must be aware that other mechanisms are available: crowdsourcing, managers-oriented tools and co-production. These mechanisms although in earlier stages of development are promising alternatives and should be considered as major opportunities to foster knowledge transfer. In the scope of the present work, a conceptual model was developed to help scientists in selecting the most adequate mechanism to convey the coastal message. In this selection, scientists must weigh the level of engagement of the audience and account for the feedback raised by each mechanism: outreach leads to coastal awareness; crowdsourcing to data generation; management-oriented tools generate information, and co-production boosts knowledge. The application of each mechanism and related feedback is thoroughly discussed in this work grounded in real-world applications. The adequate use of these mechanisms will lead to a knowledge-based society and will increase the participation of key coastal actors in decision-making. Therefore, scientists should actively pursue the goal of transferring their knowledge outside of the scientific community, by adopting the proper mechanisms to connect with their audience, developing their framing skills and acknowledging the benefits of engaging with others. Not only this is a social responsibility of scientists but, ultimately, it will also benefit the value of research endeavors towards [coastal] sustainability.