Work Package 1

No systematic analysis of KB institutions and processes in Austrian climate policy exists so far. Consequently, only little is known about how scientific knowledge is transferred and used in Austrian climate change mitigation and adaptation policies, which institutions and actors systematically deal with knowledge brokerage and how effective the linking between science and policy is.

ReSciPI will address this knowledge gap by mapping and structuring the Austrian knowledge brokerage landscape in climate policy. In doing so, WP1 will start from the observation that Austria faces particular challenges in scientific policy advice due to the traditionally strong role of political parties (‘Parteienstaat’) and interest groups (corporatism) in advisory processes. Over many decades, policy advice in Austria was less characterized by scientific advice than by an extensive advisory system through the social partners. The decline in Austrian corporatism since the 1990s and the emergence of new policy fields, such as climate policy, now open up possibilities for new forms and actors of policy advice. Against this historical-institutional background, ReSciPI will map and analyze the main institutions, actors and processes of knowledge brokerage in Austrian climate policy. This analysis will serve to identify the peculiarities of science-policy interaction in Austria, but also the related obstacles and potentials for increasing its effectiveness.

Building on that mapping exercise, WP1 will also initiate networking and communication among key actors at the science-policy nexus in Austrian climate policy. In a first workshop, ReSciPI will bring together climate change researchers (with various disciplinary backgrounds), political and administrative decision-makers, societal stakeholders as well as media representatives in order (i) to discuss and verify the results of the analysis of the Austrian KB landscape, (ii) to give guidance for the selection of cases for WP2 and to suggest criteria for the analysis of those cases, and (iii) to jointly identify and define needs for action and potentials for improvements for climate KB in Austria.

The work of WP1 will serve to further tailor the following research steps to the needs and characteristics of the Austrian situation. In addition, with the first workshop ReSciPI aims to promote an interactive and reflexive discourse between relevant actors at the science-policy nexus in Austrian climate policy. This interaction will be continued and strengthened with a second workshop at the end of the project (see WP4).