Communicating climate change risk: A content analysis of ipcc\u27s summary for policymakers

This study investigated the effectiveness of climate change risk communication in terms of its theoretical potential to stimulate recipients\u27 awareness and behavioral change. We selected the summary for policy makers (SPM) of the most recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report in order to conduct a content analysis; the extended parallel process model and construal level theory served as conceptual lenses to perform the analysis. Specifically, we evaluated to what extent the SPM included informational elements of threat, efficacy and psychological distance related to climate change. The results showed that threat information was prominently present, but efficacy information was less frequently included, and when it was, more often in the latter parts of the SPM. With respect to construal level it was found that in the IPCC report concrete representations were used only sparingly. Theoretical relevance and implications for climate change risk communication with key audiences are discussed

Europees onderzoek vertalen naar het Nederlandse beheer van de rijkswateren : Test en geleerde lessen

Dutch policymakers are looking for easy and efficient ways to improve the access to European research results that are of interest for the Netherlands. This report has described a translation approach that consist out of 4 steps, to ease access to European research results. This approach is applied to the topic of climate adaptation, in particular sustainable management of the big rivers, which is one of the themes of the Dutch Knowledge and Innovationprogramme Water and Climate (NKWK). The conclusion is that the translation approach works well but depends on factors like the complexity of the question, the researcher’s understanding of the policy context as well as the researcher’s professional relation with EU researchers and the easy to translate policy questions into research questions

Evaluation of Socio-Economic Factors that Determine Adoption of Climate Compatible Freshwater Supply Measures at Farm Level : a Case Study in the Southwest Netherlands

The availability of freshwater resources in soil and groundwater bodies in the southwestern part of The Netherlands is expected to decrease during the agricultural growing season because of an expected increase of freshwater demands and a changing climate. This expected shortage of fresh water might negatively affect agricultural production. To cope with this problem, three pilots were initiated aimed at increasing freshwater supply at farm-level. The objective of this paper is to evaluate the socio-economic factors that determine the wider use of the measures investigated in these pilots. Therefore, the results of a feasibility study and a survey about drought risks were compared. The survey indicates that respondents do not make distinction between a dry and extremely dry year in their estimation of the return period. The results of a feasibility study illustrate that confidence and the level of common understanding regarding the reliability of these innovative measures has increased amongst project participants since 2012. The survey respondents were less optimistic about the wider implementation of the investigated technologies. A reliable freshwater supply and supportive legislation are the most decisive socio-economic factors for a future investment in additional freshwater supply for farmers in this region. Both studies illustrate that the impact of additional freshwater supply on farm economics strongly depends on farm type and crop cultivation plan. These insights may support the wider use of these innovations and may help to improve agro-hydrological models.</p

Combining offshore wind farms, nature conservation and seafood : Lessons from a Dutch community of practice

Large-scale development of offshore wind farms implies an increase in marine resource use conflicts. Managing potential impacts on marine ecosystems and on resource access for traditional and prospective users is key. Multi-use scenarios are a solution but are often approached as a 'design question' that can be settled through Marine Spatial Planning. In practice, regulatory, technical and socio-economic factors often hinder multi-use. Overcoming such barriers requires active collaboration between all stakeholders, yet meaningful participation in MSP processes often is a challenge. This paper explores the role of Communities of Practice as a participatory tool for developing multi-use. The Netherlands set up a ‘Community of Practice North Sea’ to stimulate the development of multi-use pilots by bringing interested parties together, sharing experiences and learning from each other in a context of existing and developing spatial and social claims. This development is part of the government's strategy aimed at finding a balance between offshore wind energy development, nature conservation and seafood production. The paper shows that by (partly) decoupling policy from practice and creating a positive learning environment, Communities of Practice have potential as a participatory tool for encouraging cooperation between stakeholders in an informal setting and facilitating a transition towards multi-use of marine resources. The paper proposes ten guidelines for using Communities of Practices as an action-oriented tool for salient multi-use practices.</p

Communicating climate change risk : A content analysis of ipcc's summary for policymakers

This study investigated the effectiveness of climate change risk communication in terms of its theoretical potential to stimulate recipients' awareness and behavioral change. We selected the summary for policy makers (SPM) of the most recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report in order to conduct a content analysis; the extended parallel process model and construal level theory served as conceptual lenses to perform the analysis. Specifically, we evaluated to what extent the SPM included informational elements of threat, efficacy and psychological distance related to climate change. The results showed that threat information was prominently present, but efficacy information was less frequently included, and when it was, more often in the latter parts of the SPM. With respect to construal level it was found that in the IPCC report concrete representations were used only sparingly. Theoretical relevance and implications for climate change risk communication with key audiences are discussed.</p

Predicting microbial nitrogen pathways from basic principles

van de Leemput IA, Veraart AJ, Dakos V, de Klein JJM, Strous M, Scheffer M. Predicting microbial nitrogen pathways from basic principles. Environmental Microbiology. 2011;13(6):1477-1487.Nitrogen compounds are transformed by a complicated network of competing geochemical processes or microbial pathways, each performed by a different ecological guild of microorganisms. Complete experimental unravelling of this network requires a prohibitive experimental effort. Here we present a simple model that predicts relative rates of hypothetical nitrogen pathways, based only on the stoichiometry and energy yield of the performed redox reaction, assuming competition for resources between alternative pathways. Simulating competing pathways in hypothetical freshwater and marine sediment situations, we surprisingly found that much of the variation observed in nature can simply be predicted from these basic principles. Investigating discrepancies between observations and predictions led to two important biochemical factors that may create barriers for the viability of pathways: enzymatic costs for long pathways and high ammonium activation energy. We hypothesize that some discrepancies can be explained by non-equilibrium dynamics. The model predicted a pathway that has not been discovered in nature yet: the dismutation of nitrite to the level of nitrate and dinitrogen gas