Whose Knowledge Counts? Unpacking the Uneven Geographies and Politics of Knowledge Co-Production in IPBES

The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) plays a critical role in environmental governance by synthesizing knowledge for policy-makers. In this context, the co-production of knowledge among scientists, indigenous knowledge holders, and societal actors is increasingly important. Despite inclusive goals, the organization often overlooks how uneven geographies and power relations shape collaborative knowledge production. Drawing on qualitative interviews with IPBES experts, administrators, and government representatives, we apply Science and Technology Studies perspectives to analyze the co-production of knowledge among geographically diverse scientists in the IPBES global assessment. Our findings indicate that IPBES’s approach to co-production neglects the political and situated nature of knowledge production, inadvertently reinforcing contemporary colonial power dynamics within the organization. These dynamics influence the abilities of member states to participate in IPBES, perpetuate the North/South divide, and reproduce geographical biases within global academia. This has led to an overrepresentation of Western scientists and enhanced their epistemic authority during the global assessment. We highlight a disconnect between IPBES’s ambitions to transcend the traditional dominance of Western perspectives through inclusive approaches and its actual knowledge-making practices. We discuss the interrelations between knowledge, power, and social orders at the science-policy interface from a geographical perspective and propose six measures for a more reflexive and inclusive approach to knowledge co-production. These recommendations emphasize the importance of recognizing the contextual nature of knowledge, thereby strengthening IPBES’s transformative potential.