Science and Values for Environmental Governance
Co-ordinators: Prof. Arthur Petersen, Asst. Professor Eleftheria Vasileiadou
Core Faculty: Prof. Frank Biermann, Prof. Joyeeta Gupta, Prof. Jan Boersema, Matthijs Hisschemöller, Joop de Boer
Researchers: Mieke van Hemert; Stefania Munaretto
PhD Researchers: Eva Kunseler, Hanna Schösler, Annick Hedlund-de Witt; Gabriella Doci; Ayşem Mert;
The focus of this research programme is on the role of scientific and technological knowledge for environmental governance, and the importance of values for addressing environmental issues.
Several academic approaches to governance beyond certainty are combined here, ranging from science and technology studies (STS), psychology, sociology, and political science to philosophy.
Alongside broader topics, we specialise in three key areas:
Communicating scientific uncertainty: Both natural and social sciences abound with uncertainties. Communicating these uncertainties, including ‘deep’ uncertainties, to the different publics of science is increasingly being recognised as a scientific domain in itself. An example of such project is the ‘Bridging the Gap’, funded by NWO/KvK, where we study how we can address uncertainties related to extreme weather events, by bridging the gap between stakeholder perceptions of extreme weather events and climate modelling of such events. Integrating local knowledge with expert scientific knowledge can help identify robust adaptation strategies, which are context dependent (for different sectors and regions).
Values and sustainability transitions: In another strand of research, we explore the role of values, as individual constructs which help us deal, among other things, with uncertainty in our everyday life. The interaction between behaviour and values can be understood as a process of framing. Framing is not only taking place at the individual level of analysis; it can be linked to institutions as well. At a higher level, worldviews can be understood as overarching themes which include social behaviour and values. In a project funded by Transforum, we study food consumption behaviour in different countries and assess the opportunities for transition towards sustainable consumption while taking into account people’s values and worldviews.
Producing sustainability science: Here we delve into how we conduct research for the environment, how this research is organised, and what this means for our understanding of environmental problems. In one project we are investigating perceptions of climate scientists on geo-engineering, with respect to how geo-engineering experiments are organised. Under which circumstances can scientists be allowed to conduct small- or larger-scale experiments on Cloud Albedo Enhancement schemes? More on the theme Science and Values.
