Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/1959.11/19619
Title: How do civil servants view the importance of collaboration and scientific knowledge for climate change adaptation?
Contributor(s): Temby, Owen (author); Sandall, Jean (author); Cooksey, Ray W  (author)orcid ; Hickey, Gordon M (author)
Publication Date: 2016
DOI: 10.1080/14486563.2015.1028111
Handle Link: https://hdl.handle.net/1959.11/19619
Abstract: Successfully navigating the complex challenges posed by wicked environmental problems requires that inter- and intra-organisational policy networks share information, integrate knowledge and collaborate in decision-making processes. However, within government, the hierarchical and mechanistic design of bureaucratic agencies is often not well suited to this task. As a result, governments have increasingly implemented mechanisms encouraging interagency collaboration to better address complex environmental governance challenges, an example being climate change adaptation. In this article, we take an 'inside look' at how civil servants, working in the government agencies responsible for progressing climate change adaptation strategies, view collaboration and draw on science-based knowledge to inform decision-making. Focusing on civil servants in agencies from the states of Victoria, Australia, and New York, the USA, and the province of British Columbia, Canada, the results show variation across jurisdictions in terms of the collaborative mechanisms used. However, respondents in all three jurisdictions reported remarkably consistent views on the importance of collaboration and scientific knowledge to their role. Overall, our results suggest a gap exists between the motivation of civil servants to collaborate and draw on scientific information and their capacity/ability to do so, pointing to potential institutional and systemic barriers that require further research.
Publication Type: Journal Article
Source of Publication: Australasian Journal of Environmental Management, 23(1), p. 5-20
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Place of Publication: United Kingdom
ISSN: 2159-5356
1448-6563
1322-1698
Fields of Research (FoR) 2008: 160507 Environment Policy
150310 Organisation and Management Theory
040104 Climate Change Processes
Fields of Research (FoR) 2020: 440704 Environment policy
350709 Organisation and management theory
370201 Climate change processes
Socio-Economic Objective (SEO) 2008: 960799 Environmental Policy, Legislation and Standards not elsewhere classified
960301 Climate Change Adaptation Measures
940204 Public Services Policy Advice and Analysis
Socio-Economic Objective (SEO) 2020: 190101 Climate change adaptation measures (excl. ecosystem)
230204 Public services policy advice and analysis
Peer Reviewed: Yes
HERDC Category Description: C1 Refereed Article in a Scholarly Journal
Appears in Collections:Journal Article

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