Applying a public policy lens to environmental decision making

www.ceed.edu.auwww.ceed.edu.au

Applying a public policy lens to environmental decision making

Megan C EvansPhD Candidate

Australian National University

megan.evans@anu.edu.au @megcevans

www.ceed.edu.au

Environmental decisions and public policy

• Decisions for whom, and by whom?

• Public policy:“The interaction of values, interests and resources, guided through institutions and mediated through politics” (Davis et al 1993)

www.ceed.edu.au

Policy goal

Policy delivery

Policy “rules”

Formal aim and policy intent

How policy is interpreted &

received

How people respond

Are we getting the outcomes we

expect?

“No net loss of biodiversity”

On-ground delivery

www.ceed.edu.au

Biodiversity offset policy• Substantial work on developing offset metrics

(Gibbons et al. 2015; Miller et al. 2015)

– EPBC Act Environmental Offsets Policy

• How does this translate to policy implementation?

• How do we know if the policy “works”?

www.ceed.edu.au

CEED-CSIRO workshop: January 2015, ANU

Economist

Policymaker/NGO

Economist

Broker

Lawyer

NGO

Industry

Conservation scientist

Lawyer

Me

Lawyer

Political scientist Ecologist

Editorial in Decision Point, August 2015: “Offsetting in the context of policy”

Policymaker

www.ceed.edu.au

Using a policy lens to get better environmental outcomes

• Understand the policy system – the “players” and the “rules”

• Identify leverage points for policy improvement (Dovers & Hussey 2013)

www.ceed.edu.au

Thank-you

E: megan.evans@anu.edu.au T: @megcevans

W: mcevansresearch.wordpress.com