What is a Policy Scholar for?

20 April 2023, 11.00 AM - 20 April 2023, 12.00 PM

Claire Dunlop, Professor of Politics and Public Policy, University of Exeter

Victoria Rooms Room G12 88 Queens Road Clifton BS8 1SA

Centre for Urban and Public Policy presents a lecture by Claire Dunlop

Policy research has generated profound insights on the policy process. However, the granularity of the policy sciences makes it difficult to integrate policy analysis into the ‘big questions’ facing the vision of the open society, such as democratic backsliding, corruption, the polarization of electorates, the de-legitimization of expertise, and the fault-lines between governments and citizens. By integrating different dimensions, from public health to the economy and human rights, the COVID-19 pandemic has urged our discipline to identify novel responses and new approaches to tackle the big questions.

The future of the policy sciences must find an anchor in a reflection on our roles as researchers, questioning our vision, tasks, and role in society: what is a policy scholar for?

This is for us, reflective scholars, the truly big question behind all the other ‘big questions’ that open societies face today. We outline the coordinates of a possible answer by looking closely at five key verbs that define the role of the policy scholar: learning, analysing, advising, empowering and reflecting. In the conclusions, we discuss the ways in which enabling these actions can expand our public policy imagination and professional relevance.

Drawing on: Dunlop, C.A. and Radaelli, C.M. (2021) ‘What is a Policy Scholar is For?’ in Brik, A.B. and Pal, L.A. (eds) The Future of the Policy Sciences Cheltenham: Edward Elgar

Speaker:

Claire Dunlop is Professor of Politics and Public Policy at the University of Exeter.

Professor Dunlop is a political scientist and, specifically, a public policy and administration scholar. Her main research interests are the politics of expertise and knowledge utilization; epistemic communities and advisory politics; risk governance; policy learning and analysis; impact assessment; and policy narratives.She explores these conceptual interests at the UK and EU levels principally, and most frequently in relation to agricultural, food and environmental issues. Most recently, she has started to research LGBT legislation in the UK.

Register for the event:

This is a free event but places must be booked through eventbrite. We will be hosting an optional lunch following the lecture, from 12:00-13:00. If you intend to stay for the lunch, please indicate this in the registration form when prompted. 

20 April 2023

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