ENGAGING WITH DECISION MAKERS
New course from the Walker Academy
Decision makers such as politicians, practitioners and other stakeholders are required to make evidence-informed policy decisions. Scientists and young researchers are in a position to influence this process by effective engagement and vital knowledge sharing.
Starting in 2024, we are introducing a new course ‘Engaging with Decision Makers’ which will be drawing on the Walker Institute’s work in the UK and international policy arena, focusing on natural hazards and applied ecology.
EwDM is a 4-day programme of facilitated in-person training at the end of which students are equipped with a series of practical tools that support research design, maximising policy impact, communication across disciplines and stakeholder groups, and media work.
The course is designed around the theme ‘Achieving policy impact through your PhD’ and involves work on the following topics:
- Co-production and communication
- Synthesising evidence from across disciplines
- Stakeholder mapping
- Power dynamics and policy influence
For each of these headline topics, students can take away at least 1 practical tool, so they complete the course with an ‘Engaging with Decision Makers ‘SOP’ toolkit and a mini guide they can use as a refresher.
When?
Our first ‘Engaging with Decision Makers’ training took place on 13, 15, 20 and 22 May 2024.
How to enrol?
If you would like to participate in this training course, you can inquire about dates for 2024-2025 by sending us an email in academy@walker.ac.uk .
Guest speaker for May 2024 session
We were delighted to welcome a guest speaker, Dr Pete Falloon, who provided direct, real-world insight into this topic, through the lens of climate science in the UK government policy process. Dr Pete Falloon leads the Met Office Hadley Centre ‘Climate Service for Defra on Food, Farming and Natural Environment’.
Panel Discussion
We also convened an impressive panel of external speakers who provided their insights and experience relating to the policy making process. Panel members represented the UK climate-policy advocacy sector, Climate action in the UN through the UNHCR, climate adaptation work in the consultancy sector and international humanitarian work.
