Empowering landscape ecology-connecting science to governance through design values

The relationship between science, design, local governance and values is explored using a Christchurch New Zealand case study. Arguments for greater use of design in science are reviewed, and design revealed as fundamentally different from science, being based upon values rather than logic. The role of local governance is examined, and also shown to be value based. This creates tensions with conventional logic based approaches to landscape science. A recently proposed model of design in science is compared with an alternative model that emerges from the recent experience of preparing a wetlands and waterways strategy, in which science is instead engaged with a values based design process.