Rethinking the science–policy interface in South Africa : experiments in knowledge co-production
Date
2014
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Academy of Science of South Africa
Abstract
This article contributes to the increasingly significant discussion about the science–policy interface. The
challenge therein is that such a discussion tends to revolve around two seemingly mutually exclusive
approaches: the reflexive approach inspired by Maarten Hajer’s work that deconstructs the discourses of
participatory policymaking, and the more normative transdisciplinary approaches that legitimise researchers
as active change agents. With reference to a discussion of three South African case studies characterised by
practical involvement of researchers in change processes, it is concluded that both approaches have merit
and can improve the other: the reflexive approach could benefit from a better understanding of appropriate
research methods for facilitating authentic engagement and participation, and the transdisciplinary approach
could benefit from some reflexive caution about the change agent roles of researchers. The dynamics of the
case studies and conclusions are significant in light of the fact that the South African research community
is being influenced by re-alignments in the global scientific research community, resulting in an increasing
emphasis on the need to do transdisciplinary research. For example, the adoption by some of the most
significant global scientific associations in the natural and social sciences of the Future Earth platform at
the Rio+20 conference in 2012 reflects most clearly this re-alignment. Researchers would be well advised
to critically engage this agenda rather than presume it means little more than a rewording of traditional
interdisciplinary approaches.
Description
CITATION: Swilling, M. 2014. Rethinking the science–policy interface in South Africa : experiments in knowledge co-production. South African Journal of Science, 110(5-6): 1-7, doi: 10.1590/sajs.2014/20130265.
The original publication is available at http://www.sajs.co.za
The original publication is available at http://www.sajs.co.za
Keywords
Policy formulation, Reflexive approach, Transdisciplinary research, Sustainability, Change, Policy sciences
Citation
Swilling, M. 2014. Rethinking the science–policy interface in South Africa : experiments in knowledge co-production. South African Journal of Science, 110(5-6): 1-7, doi: 10.1590/sajs.2014/20130265