Definitions
● Evidence = relevant data, information, knowledge and wisdom used to assess an assumption (Salafsky et al. , 2019). ● Evidence-based practice = the consideration of evidence in the decision-making process. ● Evidence-based guidance = a trusted source of information and recommendations based on the best available, up-to-date evidence to help decision-making (Downey et al. , 2022).
The aim of this section is to outline how evidence can aid decision-making. It comprises three elements. Firstly, describing the importance of guidance being evidence-based and the principles for creating evidence-based guidance. Secondly, listing a range of possible sources of evidence and finally briefly outlining the principles for evidence-based decision-making.
Creation of evidence-based guidance
To ensure guidance is trustworthy, Downey et al. (2022) provided a set of “Principles for the production of evidence- based guidance” (see Box 1 below). Key elements are that guidance is based on up-to-date, relevant evidence and integrates the knowledge and experience of experts and practitioners. An important consideration is that guidance is transparent about its sources with a comprehensive effort to include evidence to support the claims and assumptions made. This creates transparency by allowing the reader to locate the original source (if needed) that formed the basis for each claim. Using evidence to write guidance in this way can ensure that effective decisions are made based on the information that is currently available. Besides informing us about the effectiveness (or ineffectiveness) of actions, evidence use also helps identify knowledge gaps. These knowledge gaps are revealed when there is no (or very little) documented information, for example for a certain species group, country or action. Consulting practitioners can help to fill these gaps, but practitioner knowledge should also be referenced. Understanding where gaps in our knowledge lie enables the prioritisation of future research (Christie et al. , 2021). Much existing guidance relating to conservation is not evidence-based: few guidance documents include a reference list and even fewer provide sources to justify recommended actions (Downey et al. , 2022). This creates a problem when guidance influences decision- making, particularly if those decisions lead to heavy investment of time, money and labour into actions for which there is no evidence of their effectiveness.
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