Paper short abstract:

Joint knowledge production (JKP) has gained popularity as a tool for the management of risk in marine environments. But what is actually meant by knowledge? Using early boundary work, this paper examines how an understanding of knowledge can lead to an improved understanding of JKP

Paper long abstract:

Joint knowledge production (JKP) has gained popularity as a means to understand and identify mitigating measures for management of risk in marine environments. While there is general agreement on the value of JKP as seen through its adoption in numerous joint stakeholder collaborations, there is still much to learn about how joint knowledge production occurs and what factors contribute to its success. The early boundary work of Star and Griesemer's (1989) laid the foundation for examining the relations between stakeholders and the exchange of knowledge sets. However, the subsequent literature has yet to speak to what is meant by the knowledge that is being jointly produced. We propose an action oriented definition of knowledge that includes: theorizing relationships, agreeing on key concepts, specifying and interpreting required data, identifying principles and making evaluations. This paper relies on a case study of a joint scientist-fishermen developed research protocol for examining the impact of the Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar) aquaculture industry on the in-shore American Lobster (Homarus americanus) fishery of South West New Brunswick. The paper examines how the actions of knowledge approach highlights important boundary objects that are crucial to JPK. This approach can improve our understanding of JKP and can lead to more informed risk assessment.