On January 15, 2025, the DRRN hosted a thought-provoking event titled "Presenting Disaster Research in Government Reports." The session brought together experts and researchers to explore the challenges and opportunities of integrating disaster research into impactful government reports. Key speakers included Jocelyn Stacey, Kees Lokman, Sara Shneiderman, and other DRRN members who shared insights drawn from their work with local governments, First Nations, and other communities.
Key Themes and Discussions
Accountability and the Rule of Law
Jocelyn Stacey highlighted a fundamental purpose of government reports: to ensure public accountability and uphold the rule of law. She emphasized the need to move beyond viewing reports as the final product. Instead, reports should be designed to encourage actionable steps. A critical question posed was, "How do we transition from writing reports to fostering meaningful change based on their findings?"
Principles of Writing for Government
Writing effective government reports requires clarity and precision. Dr. Stacey outlined best practices for report writing, emphasizing the importance of being point-first, jargon-free, and concise. Reports must cater to a diverse audience, from technical experts to policy and political actors. Additionally, she stressed the need for a comprehensive communication strategy, including media packages and clear distribution channels, to amplify the impact of these reports.
Government-Researcher Relationships
A recurring theme was the critical role of building strong, collaborative relationships between researchers and government bodies. Participants discussed the importance of aligning research objectives at the outset to ensure reports address practical needs while maintaining academic integrity. Jocelyn highlighted that these relationships often require substantial investment, particularly when working with First Nations, where trust-building and reciprocal learning are essential.
Indigenous Knowledge and Inclusive Solutions
Kees Lokman shared insights from the "Living with Water" project, which focuses on integrated flood management planning. He stressed the value of incorporating Indigenous knowledge and participatory decision-making to create adaptive, place-based solutions. The project’s guidance emphasizes systemic planning that aligns with reconciliation, equity, and ecosystem health.
Challenges in Report Preparation
Prof. Lokman also discussed the complexities of balancing detail and accessibility in government reports. While distilling technical findings into actionable recommendations, researchers often face trade-offs between comprehensiveness and usability. He emphasized the need for non-prescriptive frameworks that allow communities to tailor strategies to their unique contexts.
Positionality and Power Dynamics
Speaking as discussant, Sara Shneiderman bridged both prior presentations by highlighting the need for researchers to consider their positionality and the tensions that might arise among their various roles as academics, residents, project partners, external advisors and/or expert consultants. She also foregrounded the issue of power dynamics in government collaborations. Power relationships that may affect the outcome of the work may exist in relation to government partners, community members, and even amongst different levels of government.
Prof. Shneiderman also noted that researchers who are writing government reports must strike a balance between being critical (as academics are trained to do) and supportive of the project partners and the improvement of their work.