Network meeting of the BMBF on the future of the dialogue between science and politics – The Crisis Science Project (CRISP) and KrisenKomplex introduce themselves
At the conclusion of the two BMBF-funded projects Crisis Science Project (CRISP for short) and KrisenKomplex, a network meeting on the future of the dialogue between science and politics was held on 24.01.2022.
The meeting aimed at improving the collaboration between science and politics in the future through agile and co-creative work. The meeting focused on different forms of communication and cooperation between science and politics.
The approaches and prototypes developed in the projects provide an opportunity to initiate innovative ideas for scientific policy advice together with representatives of various universities and federal ministries, the Leibniz Association and the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (German Research Foundation). Also participating were partner projects from other European countries, such as the Science Advice Initiative of Finland, the Government Office for Science of the United Kingdom, GovLabAustria and the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission. The exchange of experiences made it possible to learn from each other and to make novel approaches to science-based policy advice visible and tangible across national and institutional boundaries.
The development work of the crisis science project – especially their framework of a mapping of international initiatives on scientific policy advice and related agile approaches – is documented in a short presentation available below. The more detailed German documentation of the development work is available here.
with KrisenKomplex
On Nov. 29, 2021, Prof. Dr. Marc Timme from the Dresden University of Technology and his team gave insights into his current research project “KrisenKomplex – rethinking crisis resilience using integrated concepts on complex systems”.
In an exchange with the CRISP development team and members of the Sounding Board and Steering Committee, Marc Timme discussed the opportunities of researching complex systems for understanding simultaneous crises such as climate change and pandemic.
Using the example of public mobility, the team at TU Dresden is researching how to decide on measures with seemingly contradictory consequences in simultaneous crises. The goal is to increase the resilience of systems. The experience gained in research on complex systems is also being used to develop a Rapid Responder Unit. This unit is intended to make it possible for scientific findings to be rapidly incorporated into the political decision-making process so that effective action can be taken, especially in situations of great uncertainty. Here, valuable links to the current work of the CRISP development team emerged.
with RESKIU
Under the title “Consulting under Stress: Good Advice under Exceptional Conditions”, Prof. Dr. Oliver Ibert, member of the Sounding Board and Director of the Leibniz Institute for Spatial Social Research (IRS), provided important impulses for the exchange between the CRISP development team, the Sounding Board and members of the Steering Committee. Central topics in the discussion round that took place on 29.10.2021 were the understanding of crises, the crisis diagnosis based on this understanding, and finally the identification of challenges and opportunities that arise for scientific advice in crises.
“Decision-making in crises is becoming increasingly dependent on the availability of the right expertise. Scientific consulting, conversely, is increasingly taking place under the auspices of crises,” Ibert said.
The backdrop to his remarks was the recently completed project at IRS, “Resilient Crisis Management: the Role of Advice in Creating and Exploiting “Opportunities” in Crisis Events” (RESKIU).