Our Process
The BES’s policy priorities reflect significant emerging issues in ecology and related policy.
Defining the BES’s policy priorities
The BES Policy Team works alongside the BES Public and Policy Committee (see below) to determine its policy priorites. The priority areas are selected for being either a significant issue emerging on the policy horizon, or an issue which is already developing rapidly in policy but into which there is insufficient scientific input.
Although these priority topics determine the main focus of the Policy Team’s work, all policy developments with potential ecological impacts are of relevance and interest to the BES.
The Public and Policy Committee
The Public and Policy Committee (PPC) directs the BES’s policy and public engagement activities. PPC is supported by the BES External Affairs Team.
PPC exists to bridge the gap between science and policy, and to inform the public about ecology and its importance.
Public and Policy Committee Members
| Position | Name | Organisation |
| Chair | Dr Juliet Vickery | RSPB |
| Council | Dr Julia Blanchard | University of Sheffield |
| Council | Emma Goldberg | Natural England |
| Council | Professor Rosie Hails | Centre for Ecology and Hydrology |
| Council | Dr Matt O’Callaghan | University of Birmingham |
| Council | Paul Raven | Freshwater Biological Association |
| Co-opted | Dr Rob Brooker | The James Hutton Institute |
| Co-opted | Dr Zoe Davies | University of Kent |
| Co-opted | Dr Darren Evans | University of Hull |
| Co-opted | Dr Julia Jones | Bangor University |
| Co-opted | Dr Emma Pilgrim | Independent Consultant |
| Co-opted | Dr Jonathan Wentworth | Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology |
Committee objectives
- To provide evidence and advice to policymakers in the UK
- To work with other organisations to respond to UK, European and international policy issues
- To publish pro-active reports that inform policy with the best science
- To support the development of an evidence-based approach to the use of ecological research by practitioners and policymakers
- To organise and participate in meetings that communicate ecological science to public and policy audiences
- To disseminate ecological science through media
- To support BES members in engaging with policymakers and the media
- To raise the profile of ecology and the BES with public and policy audiences