STEPS co-director Andy Stirling has written a series of three blog posts to introduce the STEPS Centre’s theme for 2019: Uncertainty. In the series, he explores how uncertainty is framed and closed down, how this framing is shaped by policy makers and those who advise them, and the implications for science and innovation. Although there…
Uncertainty, politics and science
How do pastoralists handle uncertainty? Insights from Asia, Europe and Africa
Pastoralists are experts in uncertainty. In a series of 3 blog posts, STEPS director Ian Scoones reports back from visits to the Mediterranean island of Sardinia, Isiolo (Northern Kenya) and the Tibetan plateau. The visits were carried out under the PASTRES (Pastoralism, Uncertainty and Resilience) project, which explores what can be learned from the ways…
A Food Brexit: Time to get real
The UK is unprepared for the most complex ever change to its food system, which will be required before Brexit, according to a new briefing paper published by SPRU, titled ‘A Food Brexit: time to get real’ (PDF). The report is written by three leading food policy specialists. They are Professor Tim Lang (City, University…
Small grants call announced for ‘nexus governance’ research in Southern Africa
The ‘Governing the Nexus in Southern Africa’ project has announced a call for small grants (up to £2,500 GBP) to cover field work expenses on research into nexus governance in southern Africa. Candidates for fieldwork fellowships should be MA students, PhD students or recent post-PhD researchers. Candidates who have not received substantial fieldwork funding, who…
Debating Open Data and Land Governance – 6-20 September
From 6-20 September, 2016, the Land Portal Foundation and the Cadasta Foundation will be jointly holding a debate on Open Data and Land Governance: Increased accountability and transparency as a means to overcoming poverty
STEPS at the Royal Geographical Society conference
STEPS co-director Andy Stirling is the keynote speaker at the Royal Geographical Society annual conference this week. This year’s conference focuses on ‘nexus thinking’. His talk, Meeting Nexus Challenges: from policy connections to political transformations, is on Tuesday 30 August at 18.30. Here’s the abstract: The advent of ‘nexus thinking’ in current global change research…