Stakeholder engagement and knowledge exchange in environmental research

It is commonly put forward that effective uptake of research in policy or practice must be built upon a foundation of active knowledge exchange and stakeholder engagement during the research. However, what is often lacking is a systematic appreciation of the specific practices of knowledge exchange and their relative merits. The paper reports on a 2009 survey of 21 research projects within the UK Research Councils' Rural Economy and Land Use Programme regarding the involvement and perceived impact of over a thousand stakeholders in the research. The survey reveals that most stakeholders were involved as research subjects or as event participants. Large numbers were also engaged in the research process itself, including involvement in shaping the direction of research. Stakeholder engagement is perceived as bringing significant benefits to the process of knowledge production. A close relationship is found between mechanisms and approaches to knowledge exchange and the spread of benefits for researchers and stakeholders. Mutual benefits are gained from exchange of staff or where stakeholders are members of research advisory groups. Different stakeholder sectors are also associated with different patterns of engagement, which lead to contrasting impact patterns. Any efforts to alter knowledge exchange processes and outcomes must overcome these differing engagement tendencies. Overall, much greater attention should be given to early processes of knowledge exchange and stakeholder engagement within the lifetime of research projects.     

Optimal Selection of Priority Development Areas Considering Tradeoffs Between Hydrology and Development Configuration

Mixed-integer linear programs are proposed for siting development and conservation areas in watersheds, addressing economic objectives (development perimeter and proximity) and ecological objectives. Links between watershed hydrology and ecology need not be well defined. Parameters for the linear programs are obtained from linearization of the SWAT hydrologic model.     

Defending the scientific integrity of conservation‐policy processes

Government agencies faced with politically controversial decisions often discount or ignore scientific information, whether from agency staff or nongovernmental scientists. Recent developments in scientific integrity (the ability to perform, use, communicate, and publish science free from censorship or political interference) in Canada, Australia, and the United States demonstrate a similar trajectory. A perceived increase in scientific‐integrity abuses provokes concerted pressure by the scientific community, leading to efforts to improve scientific‐integrity protections under a new administration. However, protections are often inconsistently applied and are at risk of reversal under administrations publicly hostile to evidence‐based policy. We compared recent challenges to scientific integrity to determine what aspects of scientific input into conservation policy are most at risk of political distortion and what can be done to strengthen safeguards against such abuses. To ensure the integrity of outbound communications from government scientists to the public, we suggest governments strengthen scientific integrity policies, include scientists’ right to speak freely in collective‐bargaining agreements, guarantee public access to scientific information, and strengthen agency culture supporting scientific integrity. To ensure the transparency and integrity with which information from nongovernmental scientists (e.g., submitted comments or formal policy reviews) informs the policy process, we suggest governments broaden the scope of independent reviews, ensure greater diversity of expert input and transparency regarding conflicts of interest, require a substantive response to input from agencies, and engage proactively with scientific societies. For their part, scientists and scientific societies have a responsibility to engage with the public to affirm that science is a crucial resource for developing evidence‐based policy and regulations in the public interest.     

An investigation into pay valence and performance in a pay-for-performance field setting

Inconsistent findings have been reported in the few studies investigating the relationship between the perceived value of pay and incentive performance. One hundred and seventy-eight female incentive employees with a nine-week, non-judgmental performance measure responded to a developed valence of pay scale. This measure used items assessing the perceived ability of pay to address employee needs. Three factor-scales were found within these items. Support for the hypothesized positive relationship between pay valence and incentive performance was found, dependent on which of the three scales was used. These findings provide initial insight into the means by which pay, with its ability to address different needs, might provide differential employee motivation and performance levels. This study and future research issues are discussed.     

Book reviews

URBANIZATION AND COMMUNITY BUILDING IN MODERN NORWAY

J. S. Tortenson, M. F. Metcalfe, T. F. Rasmussen

Urbana Press, Oslo 1985. 312 pp., figs and tables.

REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT POLICY

R. Riddell

Gower, 1985. £18.50

REVIEW OF SERVICE INDUSTRIES: A GEOGRAPHICAL APPRAISAL

P. W. Daniels

Methuen, 1985. £27.50.

ARABIC‐ISLAMIC CITIES: BUILDING AND PLANNING PRINCIPLES

Besim Selim Hakim

KPI Ltd., London, 1986. pp. 192. £46 (h/b)

FIFTY YEARS OF LANDSCAPE DESIGN

Sheila Harvey and Stephen Rettig

The Landscape Press, 1985. £12.50

CAPABILITY BROWN AND THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY ENGLISH LANDSCAPE

Roger Turner

Weidenfeld & Nicholson. £16.95.     

A critical examination of ozone mapping from a spatial-scale perspective

Following the establishment of point measurements of ground-level ozone concentrations have been attempts by many researchers to develop ozone surfaces. This paper offers a critique of ozone-mapping endeavors, while also empirically exploring the operational scale of ground-level ozone. The following issues are discussed: aspects of spatial scale; the spatial complexity of ground-level ozone concentrations; and the problems of previous attempts at ozone mapping. Most ozone-mapping studies are beset with at least one of the following core problems: spatial-scale violations; an improper evaluation of surfaces; inaccurate surfaces; and the inappropriate use of surfaces in certain analyses. The major recommendations to researchers are to acknowledge spatial scale (especially operational scale), understand the prerequisites of surface-generating techniques, and to evaluate the resultant ozone surface properly.     

Survival of Theriosuchus (Mesoeucrocodylia: Atoposauridae) in a Late Cretaceous archipelago: a new species from the Maastrichtian of Romania

Small terrestrial non-eusuchian mesoeucrocodylians are common components of Cretaceous assemblages of Gondwanan provinces with notosuchians and araripesuchids as flagship taxa in South America, Africa and Madagascar, well into the Late Cretaceous. On the other hand, these are exceedingly rare in Laurasian landmasses during the Late Cretaceous. Small terrestrial mesoeucrocodylians from Europe were often referred to the genus Theriosuchus, a taxon with stratigraphic range extending from the Late Jurassic to the late Early Cretaceous. Theriosuchus is abundantly reported from various European localities, although Asiatic and possibly North American members are also known. It has often been closely associated with the first modern crocodilians, members of the Eusuchia, because of the presence of procoelous vertebrae, a widespread key character diagnosing the Eusuchia. Nevertheless, the relationships of Theriosuchus have not been explored in detail although one species, Theriosuchus pusillus, has been extensively described and referred in numerous works. Here, we describe a new basal mesoeucrocodylian, Theriosuchus sympiestodon sp. nov. from the Maastrichtian of the Haţeg Basin, Romania, suggesting a large temporal gap (about 58 myr) in the fossil record of the genus. Inclusion of the new taxon, along with Theriosuchus guimarotae, in a phylogenetic analysis confirms its referral to the genus Theriosuchus, within a monophyletic atoposaurid clade. Although phylogenetic resolution within this clade is still poor, the new taxon appears, on morphological grounds, to be most closely related to T. pusillus. The relationships of Atoposauridae within Mesoeucrocodylia and especially to Neosuchia are discussed in light of the results of the present contribution as well as from recent work. Our results raise the possibility that Atoposauridae might not be regarded as a derived neosuchian clade anymore, although further investigation of the neosuchian interrelationships is needed. Reports of isolated teeth referable to a closely related taxon from the Upper Cretaceous of Romania and France, together with the presence of Doratodon and Ischyrochampsa, indicate a previously unsuspected diverse assemblage of non-eusuchian mesoeucrocodylians in the Late Cretaceous European archipelago.     

The influence of use,environmental and managerial factors on the width of recreational trails

This paper evaluates the relative influences of use, managerial and environmental factors on trail width, from a survey of all formal trails in Acadia National Park, Maine, USA. A Trimble GPS was used to navigate to and collect data at sample points spaced at a 152.4 m (500 ft) interval across all National Park Service trails on Mount Desert Island. Regression analyses focus on increasing understanding of factors that influence the width of formal hiking trails. ANOVA analyses demonstrate differences in trail width based on trail surface type (class), and the presence or absence of trail borders. A novel approach of comparing intended widths to actual widths enabled us to look specifically at the avoidable and undesirable impacts associated with having a trail that is wider than intended.     

Molecular evidence of facultative intraguild predation by Monochamus titillator larvae (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) on members of the southern pine beetle guild

The southern pine bark beetle guild (SPBG) is arguably the most destructive group of forest insects in the southeastern USA. This guild contains five species of bark beetles (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae): Dendroctonus frontalis, Dendroctonus terebrans, Ips avulsus, Ips calligraphus, and Ips grandicollis. A diverse community of illicit receivers is attracted to pheromones emitted by the SPBG, including the woodborers Monochamus carolinensis and Monochamus titillator (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae). These woodborers have been traditionally classified as resource competitors; however, laboratory assays suggest that larval M. carolinensis may be facultative intraguild predators of SPBG larvae. This study used polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based molecular gut content analyses to characterize subcortical interactions between M. titillator and members of the SPBG. The half-lives of SPBG DNA were estimated in the laboratory prior to examining these interactions in the field. A total of 271 field-collected M. titillator larvae were analyzed and 26 (9.6?%) tested positive for DNA of members of the SPBG. Of these larvae, 25 (96.2?%) tested positive for I. grandicollis and one (3.8?%) for I. calligraphus. Failure to detect D. terebrans and D. frontalis was likely due to their absence in the field. I. avulsus was present, but primers developed using adult tissues failed to amplify larval tissue. Results from this study support the hypothesis that larval Monochamus spp. are facultative intraguild predators of bark beetle larvae. Additionally, this study demonstrates the capabilities of PCR in elucidating the interactions of cryptic forest insects and provides a tool to better understand mechanisms driving southern pine beetle guild population fluctuations.