Environmental Research Organizations and Climate Change Policy Analytical Capacity: An Assessment of the Canadian Case

The term 'policy analytical capacity' is used within the policy analysis literature to describe the ability of organizations to produce valuable research and analysis on topics of their choosing. As the scientific evidence becomes clearer, and various actors in society continue to point out that governments around the world will need to play a lead role in climate change mitigation and adaptation, there is good reason to believe that environmental policy makers and civil society stakeholders require a high level of policy analytical capacity in order to create effective policies. Assessing this capability, however, is difficult. Surveying the literature, this articles sets out a seven criteria model of policy analytical capacity and applies it to three prominent Canadian environmental policy research organizations - two governmental organizations and one NGO. Using interview data, it provides information on the status of each organizations' current research capacity and the effect this has on overall government policy-making capability in the face of climate change challenges.