Concerned scientists, pragmatic politics and Australia's green drought

摘要

The Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists formed in Australia in 2002 in response to calls to `drought-proof' the continent. Their model of engagement between science and public policy involves: clear simple science communication, which keeps scientific uncertainty and debate out of public view; pragmatic politics, which works within rather than challenges the dominant political agenda; and a focus on providing solu-tions rather than describing problems. This model has been successful in achieving policy reform at the expense of more participatory and critical approaches to ecological science and politics.