Is Science on a Path to Irrelevance in Policy and Management?

Dr. Robert T. Lackey, Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Sciences, Oregon State University, presents a Plenary Lecture at the National Convention, Society of American Foresters, October 4, 2018, Portland, Oregon.  People typically expect that scientific information provided by interest and advocacy groups is infused with policy preferences, and for many people, the same skepticism exists for media-provided science.  Increasingly, however, public skepticism has extended to scientists themselves (i.e., the prevalence of “advocacy masquerading as science”).  Even some experienced managers and policy makers (i.e., knowledgeable “consumers of science”) fail to recognize policy bias when presented under the guise of scientific information.