gillian petrokofsky university of oxford, dept. plant sciences
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Evidence-Based Forestry: Networks of Practice, Research and Information SLA-DERM Forestry Section, SLA Monday, June 13 , 2011 . Gillian Petrokofsky University of Oxford, Dept. Plant Sciences. The knowledge-use challenge. Towards evidence-based forestry. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Evidence-Based Forestry: Networks of Practice, Research and Information
SLA-DERM Forestry Section, SLA Monday, June 13 , 2011
Gillian PetrokofskyUniversity of Oxford, Dept. Plant Sciences
The knowledge-use challenge
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Towards evidence-based forestry
Total body of research
Research used
Evidence Based Forestry
Current ‘haphazard’ situation
Total body of research
Research used
No clear methods for accessing, including or analysing research used by decision-makers
The context for using science to inform decision-making
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50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
cumulative number of papers number of papers
data extracted from Scopus®
Everybody wants ‘evidence-based’ decisions
•We talk about it•We publish papers about it•What is it?
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Just a trendy phrase?
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Problem 1: huge growth in literature on the subject
of relevance to forest carbon
Consider these statements
• Evidence is not only in peer-reviewed journals• Science is not only in English-language publications• the Web does not and never will hold all documents• Not all information is free• No one institution holds everything• No one institution can access everything• There are too many publications for an individual to
assess
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Evidence exercise – role play
• Get into 6 groups.• Read your story and come to a decision• Present your decision briefly to the group• Rules:
– No time travel allowed – your characters are NOT you as you are now, with your current knowledge
– Be realistic, be logical, be irrational – whatever!– Don’t react AT ALL to other presentations till the end, but
listen carefully
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Contested science for policy
Evidence base supporting position A Evidence base supporting position B
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?Weighing scientific
evidence
“your teachers have tried to give you a good opportunity to learn and to offer you information which the evidence indicated to be accurate. Nevertheless, probably half of what you know is no longer true. This troubles me, but what troubles me more is that I don't know which half it is.” (Pickering, 1956)
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Problem 2: how reliable and free-from-bias is the literature base?
A hierarchy of evidence –
Systematic review and
evaluation of evidence
Active dissemination
of results
Explicit question
Set by decision-makers
Involving stakeholders
Define what is to be examined and how
Rigorous methodology
Peer-reviewed process
Transparent
Repeatable
To all stakeholders
To decision-makers Appropriate formats for different end users
Commitment to update
An evidence-based framework
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Collaborating to share resources and expertise
An evidence-based process entails:
• An explicit question•
• A systematic review and evaluation of the available evidence
• • Active dissemination of results
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Enter the Librarian
• Skilled in complex searching• Skilled in manual searching• Ingenious• Inquisitive• Persistent• Your partner in crime
Collaborating to share resources and expertise
question framing
literature searching
dissemination
critical appraisal
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Systematic review for REDDHow do current methods compare in their ability to measure and assess terrestrial carbon stocks and changes in carbon stocks with accuracy, precision and repeatability?
How accurate, precise and repeatable are: 1. methods used for the conversion of in
situ measurements into carbon stock estimates at the site level?
2. methods for generating carbon stock estimates for larger geographical areas (landscape level) from site-level data?
3. direct remote sensing methodologies for estimating carbon stocks?
This review is flawed but it is less flawed than any others we have found because we are trying to systematize a body of literature
which has proven to be less than systematic!
Making sense of information overload
50,841 30,821 4464,344
6,279 671
From subscription bibliographic databases
After removing duplicates
After title assessment
After abstractAssessment
From free databases and
organization web sites
After title assessment
Accessing & analysingthe evidence base
Stakeholder Participation in: Systematic reviewsDefining research agenda
Towards evidence-based forestry
Total body of research
Research used
Evidence Based Forestry
Current ‘haphazard’ situation
Total body of research
Research usedResearch systematically accessed analyseddisseminated
No clear methods for accessing, including or analysing research used by decision-makers
Clear, repeatable methods for accessing and analysing research used by decision-makers
The context for using science to inform decision-making
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Evidence-Based Forestry – it means something, we need it and
we can do it
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“Old Research – the New Source of Evidence”
More information at:• G. Petrokofsky, P. Holmgren, N.D. Brown, 2011. Reliable forest carbon monitoring
– systematic reviews as a tool for validating the knowledge base. International Forestry Review 13 (1), 56-66
• http://www.environmentalevidence.org/ SR77.html
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Discussion points: Building a forestry collaboration
• Who might collaborate?• What resources do we need? How do we find
them?• Which subject areas would benefit most?