Barriers to the application of forestry research results

Over the past decade investment in forestry and agroforestry research has substantially increased, bringing with it a steady flow of research results. But these results have rarely been translated into perceptible changes in the management of forests and trees. From 24 to 28 October 1994, 47 international participants attended a workshop (organized by IUFRO/FORSPA/CIFOR and FAO/RAPA) in Bangkok, Thailand, entitled Barriers to the Application of Forestry Research Results.

Presentations and discussions dealt with a wide range of issues such as the motivation for undertaking research, the research process itself, the communication mechanisms between researchers and potential users and the problems encountered by different user groups in applying research findings. Even though perceptions of the magnitude and importance of individual barriers varied, a consensus on problems in the research design stages emerged.

Research is initiated and primarily driven by the interests of researchers and funding agencies rather than by the needs of prospective clients and users of research results. The supply-driven mode is particularly prominent in public sector research. In the client-driven private sector, barriers to the application of research results are significantly lower. During the workshop, supply-driven research, often attributable to a paternalistic approach to problem selection and definition which neglects the demands and needs of users, received considerable criticism. It was agreed that new strategies should be developed to identify researchable issues, set research agendas, allocate financial resources and, particularly, enable potential clients to make their voices and concerns heard.

The workshop report, by C.T.S. Nair (FORSPA), T. Enters (CIFOR) and B. Payne (IUFRO), is available as CIFOR Occasional Paper No. 5 (see Nair, Enters and Payne, 1995).