What is engagement and knowledge coproduction?

User engagement is based on the science of participatory research and related branches, which have been growing in scholarly attention for the last 40 years. In Earth sciences, this practice has received increasing attention due to a recognised  ‘usability gap’, which means that despite having better quality Earth system data, this data is rarely incorporated in policy and planning. In other words, the progress in Earth sciences does not directly translate into better-informed decisions. Knowledge coproduction processes, for which user engagement is a key activity, intervene to narrow this gap by creating a science-stakeholders interface that involves users in the design of Earth system services and their later incorporation in decision-making.

How do we do this?

We developed an iterative and pluralistic coproduction framework. Our process of knowledge coproduction starts with a careful selection of stakeholders, problem co-exploration and preparation of different participatory and engagement activities. Through awareness-raising campaigns, stakeholders are first engaged through a more passive information sharing. These activities are always based on communication science and can use websites, blogs, videos, newsletters, user interface platforms and other communication materials and channels. Some of these stakeholders are then more actively involved through knowledge exchange in surveys or interviews, workshops or learning labs to inform on the needs of users and usability of the services, which are further modified and improved based on learnings from these interactions. Finally, some users more closely participate in the co-development of Earth system services from early to final stages, ensuring the services usability, evaluation and uptake in their own policy and planning processes.