Theory: The Relationship Between Science and Policy in Global Environmental Governance

This chapter aims to reconstruct relevant theoretical debates on the relationship between science and policy in global environmental governance, based on insights derived from two different social science fields: science and technology studies (STS) and international relations (IR). By documenting the existence—and advocating the possibility of coexistence—of diverse approaches to the study of SPI(s), I hope to show that it is this richness in perspectives that can help appreciate the advantages and disadvantages of each theoretical angle. Throughout the chapter, I will introduce several theoretical lenses which can be used to unpack the “SPI” concept and to interrogate the overarching rationale for SPIs. Moreover, I will present conceptual tools that turned out to be fruitful for the study of the science–policy relationship in practice. After acknowledging the increasing amount of scholarly contributions on the SPI topic across the social science spectrum, the treatment of “SPI theory” will begin with a focus on the key ontological and epistemological debates pertaining to the understanding of SPI(s). This will be followed by an overview of normative divergencies on SPI(s), with a specific focus on the rationale for studying SPI(s), the idea of SPI effectiveness, and the power relations embedded in SPI processes. The chapter will conclude with a constructive reflection on the fragmentated and multifaced scholarly landscape that surrounds the study of SPI(s).