Project Description

The Centre for Mountain Studies at Perth College UHI and the Cairngorms National Park Authority have joined in a Knowledge Transfer Partnership to create a sustainable network for knowledge exchange within the Park. This network will serve anyone interested in issues related to sustainable development in the Cairngorms, will support the Park Authority in preparing their new National Park Plan, and will improve awareness and understanding of the use and value of research in the Park.

The project aims to identify recent and ongoing research in Cairngorms National Park: who has been doing it; finding out which practitioners, communities, landowners and other stakeholders may be interested in this research or possible future research; and engaging them in a knowledge exchange process to apply research findings in the planning activities of the Park Authority and the day-to-day activities of the stakeholders.

Part of this project is organising a networking and public engagement event, in November 2010. We are planning a 2-day event, on the first day we will provide the opportunity for researchers to congregate and share knowledge about recently completed or current applied research projects within the Park.  The second day will be a more ‘hands on’, public event that will be open to interested land managers, local communities and businesses, community groups and local authorities.

Project Objectives:

• enable knowledge transfer, supporting the CNPA in achieving its strategic priorities
• support the CNPA in its objective of building up awareness and understanding of the Park;
•  be of strategic use in preparing the Issues Report, addressing gaps in knowledge and identifying needs for new activities, contributing to the development and implementation of the National Park Plan;
• provide a website to enable knowledge exchange
• organise a networking meeting to link research and practice

Expected results:

• obtain a greater in-depth understanding of knowledge generation within the Park leading to long-term relationships with those generating and communicating scientific knowledge;
• create a network for ongoing knowledge transfer between all stakeholders and maintain it through involvement in using the web-site, and a networking meeting;
• the targeted meeting will facilitate knowledge transfer between scientists and beneficiaries and will help to identify critical research topics;
• the CNPA will receive the required support in identifying and addressing new topics/issues that research has not yet addressed and will receive support in preparing the new National Park Plan;
• the use of scientific knowledge for sustainable development through improved involvement of practitioners and other stakeholders will increase through the use of the website, direct contacts and organisation of future workshops.

For more information on this project and how you can participate please contact our Knowledge Exchange Associate, Catalina Munteanu.