Journal
JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES AND SCIENCES
Volume 8, Issue 1, Pages 13-21Publisher
SPRINGER
DOI: 10.1007/s13412-017-0443-8
Keywords
Transdisciplinary research; Outreach; Sea level rise; Stakeholder communication; Focus groups
Categories
Funding
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Center for Sponsored Coastal Ocean Research [NA10NOS4780146]
Ask authors/readers for more resources
As part of a larger transdisciplinary sea level rise (SLR) research project, six face-to-face, repeated focus groups with stakeholders (coastal resource managers and environmental communications professionals) were conducted in three states (Alabama, Florida, Mississippi) in the northern Gulf of Mexico. The purpose was to collect input on development of the project's scientific research and models and gather future project outreach recommendations. This paper reports on the outreach-related results, which synergistically grew to encompass not only project-specific outreach but also broader concerns of stakeholders pertaining to risk communication. Participants believed outreach on SLR preparation was urgently needed and could be facilitated with a multifaceted targeted approach despite various challenges. Analysis revealed five target audience recommendations, six message content and format recommendations, and eight message delivery recommendations. Overall, the study provides empirical support for the perceived value and added benefits of social science, particularly qualitative methods, to foment transdisciplinary projects and for effective SLR communication. The paper concludes with a discussion of connections to the transdisciplinary research and risk communication literature followed by practical and future research implications.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available