Abstract

Deliberation on Science, Technology, and Innovation (STI) for global grand challenges
takes place within International Organisations, where complexity, uncertainty, and
value divergence complicate traditional notions of the science-policy interface. This
thesis argues that the Knowledge-Governance Interface (KGI) better captures the
reciprocal and power-laden relations between knowledge and decision making. It
develops an analytical framework for studying KGIs within International Boundary
Organisations (IBOs), institutions that mediate between communities through the co
production of knowledge and social order. The framework is applied, through mixed
methods, to negotiations under the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) on
benefit-sharing for Digital Sequence Information (DSI), to examine how divergences
emerge, are mediated and negotiated within an IBO. The empirical chapters
conceptualise DSI as a boundary object whose interpretive flexibility enables
coordination across divergent communities, and trace its emergence and dynamics via
documentary and bibliometric analysis. Subsequent chapters use participant
observation and 35 interviews to show that divergences in knowledge and values
surface through the provision of a deliberative forum, and are shaped by uneven
knowledge politics. Mediation occurs not through deliberative consensus, but through
layered accessibility, the use of DSI as a strategic boundary object, and broader
organisational dynamics, producing anticipatory responses in the wider knowledge
control regime. Findings identify dilemmas that IBOs must navigate, including
balancing broad participation with focused consensus building, and leveraging
strategic ambiguity while anticipating the need for an eventual definition of DSI, each
shaped by formal and informal institutional processes. Despite these tensions, IBOs
remain imperfect yet essential venues for deliberation on STI, enabling stakeholders to
articulate concerns, negotiate conflicts, and shape governance regimes. Accordingly,
the thesis recommends reflexive and anticipatory workshops focused on the identified
dynamics and dilemmas, together with capacity building for policy-relevant knowledge
production on DSI. It makes three contributions. It proposes the KGI analytical
framework, demonstrates its empirical utility, and offers practical insights for
international STI governance.

For FULL-TEXT: International Boundary Organisations and the Knowledge-Governance Interface

Author(s): Adam R. McCarthy

Organization(s): The University of Manchester

Source: A thesis submitted to The University of Manchester for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy

Year: 2025