Nature conservation of the Dutch Wadden Sea: the role of science-policy interactions

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• Judith Floor
• Tuesday 31 March 2015, 13:00-14:00
• Seminar Room, Department of Geography.

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Judith Floor will present her PhD project on science-policy interactions in the protection of nature around the Dutch Wadden Sea. Her research concentrates on conflict situations between conservation and economic activities in the context of the European Natura 2000 regulations and collaborations in the context of nature restoration.

In her presentation she will give an overview of the Dutch context of nature conservation in the Wadden Sea, and her research on the science-policy interactions. Up to now, she has studied the role of scientists in the cockle fisheries and gas mining controversies, which became politically connected in 2004 when the mechanical cockle fishery was banned and permission was given for gas mining. Furthermore, she analysed the role of uncertainties in legal debates over the assessment of ‘significant effect’ under the European Bird and Habitat directives. For this, she perceived the legal term ‘significant effect’ as a boundary object between scientists, nature organisations and the government in the controversies of mussel seed fishery and a planned powerboat race. Her research showed that value differences became absorbed in debates over ecological knowledge. Currently, she analyses the case of sea grass (Zostera marina) restoration in the Dutch Wadden Sea. After a period of small research projects the restoration effort increased in 2011 when a nature organisation aimed to restore sea grass to create a climate change buffer. To show the dynamic process in which meaning is given to the nature restoration, she focuses on the perceptions of sea grass re-introduction by nature organisations, governmental organisations and researchers. The last research project of her PhD will be analysing the use of the adaptive management concept in three cases around mussels in the Wadden Sea.

Judith is a visiting PhD in the Department of Geography in Cambridge until June 5th, coming from the Environmental Policy group of Wageningen University in the Netherlands.

This talk is part of the Department of Geography - other talks series.

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