
Andrew PullinBangor University · College of Natural Sciences
Andrew Pullin
PhD
Chief Executive of the Collaboration for Environmental Evidence (www.environmentalevidence.org).
About
241
Publications
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Introduction
I am interested in developing the methodology of evidence synthesis in environmental management using systematic review and creating a global network and platform (with guidelines and standards) to facilitate the conduct of evidence synthesis to provide a global evidence service. The overall goal is to increase effectiveness of environmental management policies and practice.
Additional affiliations
January 2018 - present
Collaboration for Environmental Evidence
Position
- CEO
Description
- www.environmentalevidence.org
October 1989 - March 1995
September 1982 - October 1986
Publications
Publications (241)
To inform environmental policy and practice, researchers estimate effects of interventions/exposures by conducting primary research (e.g., impact evaluations) or secondary research (e.g., evidence reviews). If these estimates are derived from poorly conducted/reported research, then they could misinform policy and practice by providing biased estim...
In civil society we expect that policy and management decisions will be made using the best available evidence. Yet, it is widely known that there are many barriers that limit the extent to which that occurs. One way to overcome these barriers is via robust, comprehensive, transparent and repeatable evidence syntheses (such as systematic reviews) t...
Accurate, unbiased and concise synthesis of available evidence following clear methodology and transparent reporting is necessary to support effective environmental policy and management decisions. Without this, less reliable and/or less objective reviews of evidence could inform decision making, leading to ineffective, resource wasteful interventi...
In late 2018, Iain Chalmers, Andy Oxman and others from the Informed Health Choices
team convened a cross-field forum to develop a generic framework of key concepts for
thinking critically about claims, research and choices about interventions, with the
aim of supporting ‘informed choices’. We define an informed choice as one that is
based on criti...
This paper is the initial Position Statement of Evidence Synthesis International, a new partnership of organizations that produce, support and use evidence synthesis around the world. The paper (i) argues for the importance of synthesis as a research exercise to clarify what is known from research evidence to inform policy, practice and personal de...
An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper.
Traditional approaches to reviewing literature may be susceptible to bias and result in incorrect decisions. This is of particular concern when reviews address policy- and practice-relevant questions. Systematic reviews have been introduced as a more rigorous approach to synthesizing evidence across studies; they rely on a suite of evidence-based m...
Results of meta‐analyses are potentially valuable for informing environmental policy and practice decisions. However, selective sampling of primary studies through searches exclusively using widely used bibliographic platform(s) could bias estimates of effect sizes. Such search strategies are common in environmental evidence reviews, and if risk of...
Evidence-informed decision-making aims to deliver effective actions informed by the best available evidence. Given the large quantity of primary literature, and time constraints faced by policy-makers and practitioners, well-conducted evidence reviews can provide a valuable resource to support decision-making. However, previous research suggests th...
Cambridge Core - Ecology and Conservation - Conservation Research, Policy and Practice - edited by William J. Sutherland
Background
Understanding how the conservation of nature can lead to improvement in human conditions is a research area with significant growth and attention. Progress towards effective conservation requires understanding mechanisms for achieving impact within complex social-ecological systems. Causal models are useful tools for defining plausible p...
Conservation Research, Policy and Practice - edited by William J. Sutherland April 2020
Teach people to think critically about claims and comparisons using these concepts, urge Andrew D. Oxman and an alliance of 24 researchers — they will make better decisions. Teach people to think critically about claims and comparisons — they will make better decisions. A child holds a sign during a demonstration against genetically modified organi...
There is growing interest in evidence-based conservation, yet there are no widely accepted standard definitions of evidence, let alone guidance on how to use it in the context of conservation and natural resource management practice. In this paper, we first draw on insights of evidence-based practice from different disciplines to define evidence as...
Recent evaluations have begun to use qualitative data in a manner that helps improve the quality and relevance of studies through the inferences that are drawn from them, and their applicability to policy makers and programme implementers. This paper reviews this work and identifies good practices to integrate qualitative methods into quantitative...
Sharp et al. [1] raise a number of concerns about the development and communication of ROSES (RepOrting standards for Systematic Evidence Syntheses), and we welcome the opportunity to explain some of the underlying thinking behind development of the reporting standards for environmental evidence syntheses.
Research synthesis is the integration of existing knowledge and research findings pertinent to an issue. The aim of synthesis is to increase the generality and applicability of those findings and to develop new knowledge through the process of integration. Synthesis is promoted as an approach that deals with the challenge of 'information overload’,...
Reliable synthesis of the various rapidly expanding bodies of evidence is vital for the process of evidence-informed decision-making in environmental policy, practice and research. With the rise of evidence-base medicine and increasing numbers of published systematic reviews, criteria for assessing the quality of reporting have been developed. Firs...
Evidence reviews are a key mechanism for incorporating extensive, complex and specialised evidence into policy and practice, and in guiding future research. However, evidence reviews vary in scope and methodological rigour, creating several risks for decision-makers: decisions may be informed by less reliable reviews; apparently conflicting interpr...
The practice of conservation occurs within complex socioecological systems fraught with challenges that require transparent, defensible, and often socially engaged project planning and management. Planning and decision support frameworks are designed to help conservation practitioners increase planning rigor, project accountability, stakeholder par...
The first international Collaboration for Environmental Evidence (CEE) conference took place in August 2016 at the Swedish Museum of Natural History in Stockholm with nearly 100 participants from 14 countries. This conference reflected and contributed to the growth of a global network of people interested in the production and use of evidence synth...
Given the limited resources available to address conservation problems, decision-makers are increasingly seeking management solutions that provide value for money. Despite an increasing number of studies that generate estimates of the return-on-investment from conservation management interventions, the ways in which costs are reported are highly va...
Forest co-management programmes aim to conserve forest resources. However, there is little evidence of its effectiveness. We assess the impact of co-management approaches on forest conditions in Zomba-Malosa and Ntchisi forest reserves in Malawi using a multiple-site, plot-based, control-intervention design. We used tree density and species richnes...
Criteria for assessing success or failure of forest co-management programmes may vary among different participating actors. Local people are important actors in co-management, thus understanding their perceived criteria is important in evaluating forest co-management programmes. We interviewed 134 ordinary community members and 21 committee members...
Marine protected areas (MPAs) are a key strategy for mitigating the impacts of fisheries, but their designation can be controversial, and there is uncertainty surrounding when and where MPAs are most effective. Evidence synthesis that collates primary research on MPA effectiveness can provide a crucial bridge between research, policy and practice....
Given the proliferation of primary research articles, the importance of reliable environmental evidence reviews for informing policy and management decisions is increasing. Although conducting reviews is an efficient method of synthesising the fragmented primary evidence base, reviews that are of poor methodological reliability have the potential t...
Researchers and policymakers emphasize that
people’s involvement in forest management can secure
their support of conservation initiatives. However, the
evidence on the effectiveness of top-down participation is
weak. This study uses cross-sectional household data from
16 villages in the buffer zone of Pench Tiger Reserve
(Madhya Pradesh) in India...
Background
Alien species are severely impacting the environment, public health and socioeconomy at a global scale. Their management is thus of crucial importance and the subject of intensive research efforts. Common ragweed Ambrosia artemisiifolia L. is an alien species with negative impacts on agriculture, human health and biodiversity. It is a hi...
Responding to different questions generated by biodiversity and ecosystem services policy or management requires different forms of knowledge (e.g. scientific, experiential) and knowledge synthesis. Additionally, synthesis methods need to be appropriate to policy context (e.g. question types, budget, timeframe, output type, required scientific rigo...
In order to develop BiodiversityKnowledge, a Network of Knowledge working at the European science–policy interface for biodiversity and ecosystem services, we conducted three trial assessments. Their purpose was to test structure and processes of the knowledge synthesis function and to produce knowledge syntheses. The trial assessments covered cons...
To respond to the need for a strengthened biodiversity science-policy-society interface at the European level, this paper presents the relevant actors and steps of a knowledge synthesis process relying on a Network of Knowledge. This process aims to maximize active involvement and contribution (including holders of traditional and local knowledge),...
Globally important U.K. fens are in poor condition, principally due to abandonment, following cessation of traditional mowing and grazing in recent decades. In the absence of management, rich fen flora are displaced as a result of succession. This leads to an increase in competitive species and subsequent biomass accumulation. In order to reverse t...
Comanagement programmes are gaining popularity among governments as one way of improving rural livelihoods. However, evidence of their effects on the livelihoods and welfare remains unclear. We used the sustainable livelihoods framework and stated preference techniques to assess the livelihoods and welfare impacts of forest comanagement on 213 hous...
Background
Invasive alien species are of global concern due to their impacts on biodiversity, related ecosystem services and on economy. A number of invasive alien species are also responsible for human health impacts, either as carriers (vectors) of pathogens, as causal agents of toxic or allergic reactions (e.g. to pollen or insect stings) or inj...
Threatened species often have small and isolated populations where mating among relatives can result in inbreeding depression increasing extinction risk. Effective management is hampered by a lack of syntheses summarising the magnitude of, and variation in inbreeding depression. Here we describe the nature and scope of the literature examining phen...
Within global efforts to improve human wellbeing and conserve biodiversity there is increasing interest in resolving conflicts between these goals and achieving win–win outcomes. In fact, these win–win outcomes are viewed as fundamental to achieving sustainability goals of the Convention on Biological Diversity. Consequently a variety of actors, in...
Background
Governance processes and structures that steer social-ecological systems and in situ forest conservation strategies such as protected areas (PAs) can be crucial for effective management and improvement of the conservation outcomes. Nevertheless, knowledge synthesis on how types of local governance and decision-making modes may influence...
Community-based approaches to natural resource management, including forest co-management, form part of a wider trend of decentralization of governance. In terms of process change and the level of power and responsibility transferred, decentralization takes many forms including deconcentration, delegation and devolution. It is expected that forest...
Abstract Food and feed safety risk assessment uses multi-parameter models to evaluate the likelihood of adverse events associated with exposure to hazards in human health, plant health, animal health, animal welfare and the environment. Systematic review and meta-analysis are established methods for answering questions in health care, and can be im...
The establishment of marine protected areas (MPAs), particularly of no-take areas,
is often viewed as a conflict between conservation and fishing. Partially protected
areas (PPAs) that restrict some extractive uses are often regarded as a balance
between biodiversity conservation and socio-economic viability. Few attempts have
been made to generali...
Responsible care and management of Earth’s resources requires scientific support, but the pool of underused
research is growing rapidly. Environmental science research studies describe associations between
variables (e.g. statistical relationships between stressors and responses). We propose open-access and
online sharing of such associations. This...
Decisions in policy and practice should always
be based on the best available evidence, but synthesising
the evidence is often considered an insurmountable task.
Reviews aim to summarise (synthesise) the evidence in a
form that is readily digestible by decision makers. Systematic
reviews (SRs) are emerging as an important tool
and industry standard...
In tropical human-dominated forest landscapes, top-down exclusive approaches to forest and biodiversity conservation frequently create local conflicts due to unequal distribution of power, rights and benefits. In India, the failure of restrictive policies has led governments to think of more inclusive approaches and to involve local people in conse...
Given the rapid growth of the conservation and forest governance literature and a variety of research approaches, there is potential value in mapping (and synthesis) of the existing information across-cases and scales. Systematic mapping of the evidence is the method to collate and categorize the existing evidence base on a specific topic....
Background
Many ecosystems have developed in the presence of agriculture and cessation of management resulting from land abandonment can have significant ecological impacts. Around 56 percent of the utilised agricultural area of the European Union is classified as ‘less-favourable areas’ and much of this is mountainous. The small-scale and extensiv...
Fens are minerotrophic peatlands that provide ecosystem services such as water purification and climate regulation. In order for fens to perform optimally, the presence of peat forming primary producers that maintain nutrient cycling and sequester carbon are vital. However, in recent decades, UK fens have degraded largely due to cessation of tradit...
Background
Peatlands cover 2 to 5 percent of the global land area, while storing 30 and 50 percent of all
global soil carbon (C). Peatlands constitute a substantial sink of atmospheric carbon dioxide
(CO2) via photosynthesis and organic matter accumulation, but also release methane (CH4),nitrous oxide (N2O), and CO2 through respiration, all of whic...
Background
Establishing Protected Areas (PAs) is among the most common conservation interventions. Protecting areas from the threats posed by human activity will by definition inhibit some human actions. However, adverse impacts could be balanced by maintaining ecosystem services or introducing new livelihood options. Consequently there is an ongoi...
Background
Environmental impacts of farm land abandonment can be viewed as either an opportunity for ecological restoration to a state prior to agricultural establishment, or as the loss of an on-going process of land management and an associated threat to biodiversity. Whether land abandonment poses an ecological opportunity or threat depends upon...
Background
In context of protected areas (PAs), governance can be defined as a set of processes, procedures, resources, institutions and actors that determine how decisions are made and implemented. Current governance modes of forest PAs are multilevel and complex, with a variety of actors, different levels of power sharing, various formal and info...
Background
The translocation of plants or animals between populations has been used in conservation to reinforce populations of threatened species, and may be used in the future to buffer species’ ranges from the anticipated effects of environmental change. This population admixture can result in outbreeding, and the resulting “hybrid” offspring c...
The addition of calcium carbonate to catchments or watercourses - liming - has been used widely to mitigate freshwater acidification but the abatement of acidifying emissions has led to questions about its effectiveness and necessity. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of the impact of liming streams and rivers on two key groups of...
Background
Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) encompass a range of protection levels, from fully protected no-take areas to restriction of only particular activities, gear types, user groups, target species or extraction periods. We synthesized the results of empirical studies that compared partially protected areas (PPA) to (i) no-take marine reserves...
Conserving biodiversity requires identifying and addressing the myriad of problems generated when humans exploit natural resources. This chapter first explores ways in which priorities for both conservation action and research emerge and are evaluated. Effective conservation depends on identifying priorities for specific research and/or action. The...
Systematic reviews (SR) are an evidence synthesis approach that provides robust and transparent answers to clearly formulated questions. Originally developed for use in clinical practice, SRs have wider applicability, including food and feed safety risk assessment. EFSA has implemented the use of SRs, and this document contributes to the further de...
Environmental scientists regularly receive encouragement to engage with both their policy counterparts and wider society, to increase the effectiveness with which they communicate their science and to demonstrate its beneficial impact on wider society [1-3]. A significant body of literature now exists on ways in which environ-mental scientists migh...
Many biodiversity conservation strategies aim to increase species movement by changing the landscape between suitable areas of habitat. We applied systematic review and meta-analytical methods to robustly assess evidence on the impact of matrix structure on movement rates, with the hypothesis that movement will be greater through matrix of a more s...
Background
Climate change and high rates of global carbon emissions have focussed attention on the need for high-quality monitoring systems to assess how much carbon is present in terrestrial systems and how these change over time. The choice of system to adopt should be guided by good science. There is a growing body of scientific and technical in...
Background: Predicted increases in stream temperature due to climate change will have a number of direct and indirect impacts on stream biota. A potential intervention for mitigating stream temperature rise is the use of wooded riparian zones to increase shade and reduce direct warming through solar radiation. To assess the effectiveness of this in...
Environmental scientists are prolific data generators. Rates of data capture and reporting are increasing almost exponentially. The publication of primary research papers in environmental journals rises every year at a rate that challenges even the most avid reader. And yes, of course, the number of journals is increasing. The accumulation of envir...
The need for policy makers to understand science and for scientists to understand policy processes is widely recognised. However, the science-policy relationship is sometimes difficult and occasionally dysfunctional; it is also increasingly visible, because it must deal with contentious issues, or itself becomes a matter of public controversy, or b...
The questions submitted to this exercise.
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