Dr Gillian Petrokofsky Research Associate
Projects
Soil carbon and farm productivity implications of Regenerative Agriculture
Evidence Based Forestry & Landuse
Previous Work
Gill focuses on action research to support evidence-based decision making in forestry and land-use. She works in multidisciplinary teams to engage communities of interest, who collectively contribute to exploring and solving contemporary problems facing the sector.
Current Research
Systematic Evidence Evaluation
Changes in carbon stocks in miombo woodlands: a systematic map
Gill conducts systematic reviews and systematic maps following good practice guidance from the Collaboration for Environmental Evidence, with whom she works on their Guidelines Editorial Group. OxLEL explores the use of rapid systematic evaluation to explore how these tools can be more widely used in research as well as for decision-making. Gill led a collaborative project co-ordinated by the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), with its international partners to establish the Evidence-Based Forestry (EBF) Initiative from 2012-2015 and continues to work on outputs from that initiative with scientists in Partner institutions – CATIE, CIRAD, ICRAF and IUFRO and universities across the world. The Initiative reflects the Partner institutions’ leading roles in generating evidence for policy processes about forests and forestry, defined broadly in the contexts of both landscapes and sustainable development. The EBF Initiative was established to facilitate and promote use of systematic methods for informing decisions and actions about forests and forestry. The EBF initiative was supported with resources contributed by UK DfID’s Know For Program Grant. To date, the EBF initiative work has established a mechanism for introducing evidence-informed frameworks to conduct systematic reviews and systematic maps that conform to standards of existing collaborations. Protocols and completed reviews are published in Open Access peer-reviewed journals, and summaries for policy makers and other stakeholders are published in a variety of accessible ways, including Policy Briefs, blogs and podcasts.
An international project – T20Q (Top Twenty Questions for Forestry & Landscapes) – to determine high priority research and policy questions ran during 2014 in collaboration with the Sylva Foundation, an established partner of the Oxford Long-term Ecology Laboratory and Biodiversity Institute. Outputs from that project are being used to inform future priorities for systematic reviews.
British Woodlands Surveys
Gill works with the Sylva Foundation to explore attitudes and behaviour of woodland owners in the UK with respect to managing for multiple objectives and resilience, This social research includes large-scale online surveys and stakeholder workshops involving woodland owners and managers. tree nurseries and professionals with an interest in research and practice in the field. To date we have conducted British Woodlands Surveys in 2012, funded by a consortium of The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, Forestry Commission, Woodland Trust, Natural England, and the Institute of Chartered Foresters, in 2014, funded by the Woodland Trust in partnership with the Heritage Lottery Fund, and 2015, with funding from the Forestry Commission and the Woodland Trust. The survey for 2017, funded by the Scottish Forestry Trust, Forestry Commission Scotland, and Woodland Trust, incorporated, for the first time, phases that engage stakeholders in the framing of the survey. in addition to online engagement there will be workshops in England, Scotland and Wales. This was repeated in 2020 for a survey exploring awareness, action and aspirations in the forestry sector in responding to environmental change, funded by Sylva Foundation, Forest Research and the Forestry Commission. BWS 2021 is ongoing, in collaboration with Bangor University on threats to oak in the UK. More information here.
NaturEtrade – a LIFE+ project funded by the EU
The aim of this project was to develop an innovative solution t
o the loss of ecologically-rich land in Europe. The project worked with land owners and managers, community groups, NGOs and businesses in four European countries (Estonia, Romania, Portugal, UK) to explore use of the tools and technologies developed in the Oxford Long-term Ecology lab and our partners the Sylva Foundation, an established partner of the Oxford Long-term Ecology Lab, and the Institute for New Economic Thinking at the Oxford Martin School, to trade in the commodity ‘ecosystem services’. The project developed a set of tools and technologies that bridge the gap between academic research and policy on ecosystem service provision, and its dissemination to private and public landowners. More information here.
Selected Publications
Petrokofsky G, Harvey WJ, Petrokofsky L, Ochieng CA. The Importance of Time-Saving as a Factor in Transitioning from Woodfuel to Modern Cooking Energy Services: A Systematic Map. Forests. 2021; 12(9):1149. https://doi.org/10.3390/f12091149
Petrokofsky G, Savilaakso S. The Value of Systematic Evidence Synthesis in Forestry, Land Use and Development to Improve Research, Decision-Making and Practice. Forests. 2021; 12(10):1355. https://doi.org/10.3390/f12101355
Jordon MW, Willis KJ, Harvey WJ, Petrokofsky L, Petrokofsky G. Implications of Temperate Agroforestry on Sheep and Cattle Productivity, Environmental Impacts and Enterprise Economics. A Systematic Evidence Map. Forests. 2020; 11(12):1321. https://doi.org/10.3390/f11121321
Kimanzu N, Schulte-Herbrüggen B, Clendenning J, Chiwona-Karltun L, Krogseng K, Petrokofsky G. What Is the Evidence Base Linking Gender with Access to Forests and Use of Forest Resources for Food Security in Low- and Middle-Income Countries? A Systematic Evidence Map. Forests. 2021; 12(8):1096. https://doi.org/10.3390/f12081096
Carr, J. A., Petrokofsky, G., Spracklen, D. V., Lewis, D. L., Roe, D., Trull, N., Vidal, A., Wicander, S., Worthington-Hill, J., Sallu, S. M. (2021) Anticipated impacts of achieving SDG targets on forests – a review. Forest Policy and Economics. 126. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.forpol.2021.102423.
Ojanen, M., Brockhaus, M., Korhonen-Kurki, K., & Petrokofsky, G. (2021) Navigating the science-policy interface: Forest researcher perspectives. Environmental Science & Policy. 118, 10-17. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envsci.2021.01.002
Jordon, M. W., Willis, K. J., Harvey, W. J, Petrokofsky, L., Petrokofsky, G. (2020) Implications of Temperate Agroforestry on Sheep and Cattle Productivity, Environmental Impacts and Enterprise Economics. A Systematic Evidence Map. Forests. 11(12):1321. https://doi.org/10.3390/f11121321
Petrokofsky, G., Hooper, O., Petrokofsky, L., Gant, A. E., Harvey, W. J., Willis, K. J. (2020). What are the impacts of the wood pellet industry on biodiversity in Southeastern USA? A systematic evidence synthesis. Forest Ecology and Management. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2020.118773
Hemery, G., Petrokofsky, G., Ambrose-Oji, B., Forster, J., Hemery, T., & O’Brien, L., (2020). Awareness, action, and aspirations in the forestry sector in responding to environmental change: Report of the British Woodlands Survey 2020. 33pp. www.sylva.org.uk/bws
Haddaway, N.R., Bethel, A., Dicks, L.V., Koricheva, J., Macura, B., Petrokofsky, G., Pullin, A.S., Savilaakso, S. & Stewart, G.B. Eight problems with literature reviews and how to fix them. Nat Ecol Evol (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-020-01295-x
Arton, A., Leiman, A., Petrokofsky, G., Toonen, H., & Longo, C. S. (2020). What do we know about the impacts of the Marine Stewardship Council seafood ecolabelling program? A systematic map. In Environmental Evidence (Vol. 9, Issue 1). environmentalevidencejournal https://doi.org/10.1186/s13750-020-0188-9
Ambrose-Oji, B., Atkinson, M., Petrokofsky, G., & Hemery, G. (2020). Do Environmental Worldviews and Distrust Influence Action for Adaptation to Environmental Change Among Small-Scale Woodland Managers? Small-Scale Forestry, 19(2), 159–185. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11842-020-09440-x
Stansell, N. D., Steinman, B. A., Lachniet, M. S., Feller, J., Harvey, W. J., Fernandez, A., Shea, C. J., Price, B., Coenen, J., Boes, M., & Perdziola, S. (2020). A lake sediment stable isotope record of late-middle to late Holocene hydroclimate variability in the western Guatemala highlands. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 542. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2020.116327
Hemery, G., Hurst, J., Petrokofsky, G., (2019). Bringing children closer to nature: report of a survey on Forest School and outdoor learning in England. 23pp. www.sylva.org.uk/forestschools
Colombaroli, D., Mistry, J., Milner, A., Vannière, B., Adolf, C., Bilbao, B., Carcaillet, C., Connor, S., Daniau, A., Hawthorne, D., Jeffers, E., Larson, E., Petrokofsky, G., Power, M., Sinnadurai, P., Berrio, J., Cassino, R., Gildeeva, O., Grosvenor, M., Walsh, A. (2019). Diverse knowledge informing fire policy and biodiversity conservation. DiverseK Policy Brief. In Royal Holloway University of London, UK. researchportal.port.ac.uk. https://researchportal.port.ac.uk/portal/en/publications/diverse-knowledge-informing-fire-policy-and-biodiversity-conservation(6072320b-5bc5-409b-b15d-3e080c738f4a)/export.html
Eales, J., Haddaway, N. R., Bernes, C., Cooke, S. J., Jonsson, B. G., Kouki, J., Petrokofsky, G., & Taylor, J. J. (2018). What is the effect of prescribed burning in temperate and boreal forest on biodiversity, beyond pyrophilous and saproxylic species? A systematic review. Environmental Evidence, 7(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13750-018-0131-5
Leiman A, Petrokofsky G, Toonen H, Neat F, Longo CS. 2018. What do we know about the impacts of the Marine Stewardship Council seafood ecolabelling program? A systematic map protocol. Environmental Evidence 7:29. DOI:10.1186/s13750-018-0143-1.
Eales J, Haddaway NR, Bernes C, Cooke SJ, Jonsson BG, Kouki J, Petrokofsky G, Taylor JJ, Eales J, Haddaway NR, Bernes C, Cooke SJ, Jonsson BG, Kouki J, Petrokofsky G, Taylor JJ, 2018. What is the effect of prescribed burning in temperate and boreal forest on biodiversity, beyond pyrophilous and saproxylic species? A systematic review. Environmental Evidence 7:19. DOI:10.1186/s13750-018-0131-5.
Petrokofsky G, Jennings S, 2018. The effectiveness of standards in driving adoption of sustainability practices: a State of Knowledge Review. ISEAL Alliance
O’Brien, L. Ambrose-Oji, B. Hemery, G. Petrokofsky, G. Raum, S. 2018. Payments for ecosystem services, land manager networks and social learning.(pdf). Forest Research, Farnham.
Gumbo D, Clendenning J, Martius C, Moombe K, Grundy I, Nasi R, Ribeiro N, Mumba KY, Kabwe G, Petrokofsky G. 2018. How have carbon stocks in central and southern Africa’s miombo woodlands changed over the last 50 years? A systematic map of the evidence. Environmental Evidence 7:16. DOI: 10.1186/s13750-018-0128-0
Collaboration for Environmental Evidence. 2018. Guidelines and Standards for Evidence synthesis in Environmental Management. Version 5.0 (AS Pullin, GK Frampton, B Livoreil & G Petrokofsky, Eds). Open Access
Field E, Petrokofsky G, Koricheva J. 2018. What are the impacts of mixed forest stands on forest pathogens? A systematic review protocol Open Access
Willis KJ, Petrokofsky G. 2017. The natural capital of city trees. Science 356 (6336): 374-376. DOI: 10.1126/science.aam9724
Martin A.C., Jeffers E.S., Petrokofsky, G., Myers-Smith, I, and Macias-Fauria, M. (2017), Shrub growth and expansion in the Arctic tundra: an assessment of controlling factors using an evidence-based approach. Environmental Research Letters. 12(8). DOI: 10.1088/1748-9326/aa7989
Frampton GK, Livoreil B, Petrokofsky G. 2017. Eligibility screening in evidence synthesis of environmental management topics. Environmental Evidence, 6:27 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s13750-017-0102-2
Livoreil B, Glanville J, Haddaway NR, Bayliss H, Bethel A, de Lachapelle, F, Robalino S, Savilaakso S, Zhou W, Petrokofsky G, Frampton G. 2017. Systematic searching for environmental evidence using multiple tools and sources. Environmental Evidence, 6:23, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s13750-017-0099-6
Ojanen M, Zhou W, Miller DC, Nieto SH, Mshale B, Petrokofsky G. 2017. What are the environmental impacts of property rights regimes in forests, fisheries and rangelands?: a systematic review. Environmental Evidence, 6:12. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s13750-017-0090-2
Phosiso S, Cerutti PO, Zhou W, Gautier D Iiyama M, Shure J, Chenevoy A Yila Y, Dufe , Nasi R, Shepherd G, Petrokofsky G. 2017. The environmental, socioeconomic, and health impacts of woodfuel value chains in Sub-Saharan Africa: a systematic map. Environmental Evidence 6:4 DOI: 10.1186/s13750-017-0082-2
Reed J , van Vianen J, Foli S, Clendenning J, Yang K, MacDonald M, Petrokofsky G, Padoch C, Sunderland T. 2017. Trees for life: the ecosystem service contribution of trees to food production and livelihoods in the tropics. Forest Policy and Economics 84: 62-71, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.forpol.2017.01.012
Chiwona-Karltun C, Kimanzu N, Clendenning J, Lodin JB, Ellingson C, Lidestav G, Mkwambisi D, Mwangi E, Nhantumbo I,Ochieng C, Sartas M, Petrokofsky G, 2017. What is the evidence that gender affects access to and use of forest assets for food security? A systematic map protocol. Environmental Evidence 6:2 DOI: 10.1186/s13750-016-0080-9
Eales J, Haddaway NR, Bernes C, Cooke SJ, Jonsson BG, Kouki J, Petrokofsky G, 2016. What is the effect of prescribed burning in temperate and boreal forest on biodiversity, beyond tree regeneration, pyrophilous and saproxylic species? A systematic review protocol. Environmental Evidence 5:24. DOI: 10.1186/s13750-016-0076-5
Nogué S, Long PR, Eycott AE, de Nascimento L, Fernández-Palacios JM, Petrokofsky G, Vandvik V, Willis KJ, 2016. Pollination service delivery for European crops: challenges and opportunities. Ecological Economics 128:1-7. DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2016.03.023
Hemery G, Petrokofsky G, Ambrose-Oji B, Atkinson G, Broadmeadow M, Edwards D, Harrison C, Lloyd S, Mumford J, O’Brien L, Reid C, Seville M, Townsend M, Weir J, Yeomans A. 2015. Awareness, action and aspiration among Britain’s forestry community relating to environmental change: Report of the British Woodlands Survey 2015. Available to download
Roe D, Booker F, Day M, Zhou W, Allebone-Webb S, Hill NAO, Kümpel N, Petrokofsky G, Redford K, Russell D, Shepherd, G, Wright J, Sunderland TCH. 2015. Are alternative livelihood projects effective at reducing local threats to specified elements of biodiversity and/or improving or maintaining the conservation status of those elements? Environmental Evidence 4 :2. (doi:10.1186/s13750-015-0048-1). Open Access.
Boshier D, Broadhurst L, Cornelius J, Gallo L, Koskela J, Loo J, Petrokofsky G, St Clair B. 2015. Is local best? Examining the evidence for local adaptation in trees and its scale. Environmental Evidence, 4:20 DOI: 10.1186/s13750-015-0046-3. Open Access.
Petrokofsky G, Kanowski P, Brown ND, McDermott C 2015. Biodiversity and the forestry sector. In: Biodiversity in the Green Economy (Eds Gasparatos A, Willis KJ), DOI: 10.4324/9781315857763 Routledge.
Cerutti P, Sola P, Chenevoy A, Iiyama M, Yila J, Zhou W, Djoudi H, Atyi R, Gautier D, Gumbo D, Kuehl Y, Levang P, Martius C, Matthews R, Nasi R, Neufeldt H, Njenga M, Petrokofsky G, Saunders M, Shepherd G, Sonwa D, Sundberg C, van Noordwijk M 2015. The socioeconomic and environmental impacts of wood energy value chains in Sub-Saharan Africa: a systematic map protocol. Environmental Evidence 2015, 4:12. doi:10.1186/s13750-015-0038-3. Open Access.
Thorn J, Snaddon J, Waldron A, Kok K, Zhou W, Bhagwat S, Willis K, Petrokofsky G 2015.How effective are on-farm conservation land management strategies for preserving ecosystem services in developing countries? A systematic map protocol. Environmental Evidence 2015, 4:11. doi:10.1186/s13750-015-0036-5. Open Access
Petrokofsky G, Sist P, Blanc L, Doucet JL, Finegan B, Gourlet-Fleury S, Healey J, Livoreil B, Nasi R, Peña-Claros M, Putz FE, Zhou W 2015. Can silvicultural interventions increase timber production and sustain conservation values in tropical forests? Environmental Evidence 2015, 4:8 doi:10.1186/s13750-015-0034-7. Open Access
Syampungani S, Clendenning J, Gumbo D, Nasi R, Moombe K, Chirwa P, Ribeiro N, Grundy I, Matakala N, Martius C, Kaliwile M, Kabwe G, Petrokofsky G 2014 The impact of land use and cover change on above and below-ground carbon stocks of the miombo woodlands since the 1950s: a systematic review protocol. Environmental Evidence, 3:25 doi:10.1186/2047-2382-3-25 Open Access
Ojanen M, Miller DC, Zhou W, Mshale B, Mwangi E, Petrokofsky G 2014. What are the environmental impacts of property rights regimes in forests, fisheries and rangelands?: a systematic review protocol. Environmental Evidence, 3:19. Open Access.
Savilaakso S, Petrokofsky G, Zrust M, Guariguata M 2014. “Palm oil and biodiversity”.CIFOR Infobrief no. 69. Open Access.
Foli S, Reed J, Clendenning J, Petrokofsky G, Padoch C, Sunderland T (2014) To what extent does the presence of forests and trees contribute to food production in humid and dry forest landscapes? A systematic review protocol. Environmental Evidence 3:15 (doi:10.1186/2047-2382-3-15) Open Access
Godfray HCJ, Blacquière T, Field LM, Hails RS, Petrokofsky G, Potts SG, Raine NE, Vanbergen AJ, McLean AR (2014) A restatement of the natural science evidence base concerning neonicotinoid insecticides and insect pollinators. Proc. R. Soc. B 281:20140558. (doi: 10.1098/rspb.2014.0558) Open Access.
Roe D, Day M, Booker F, Zhou W, Allebone-Webb S, Kümpel N, Hill NAO, Wright J, Rust N, Sunderland TCH, Redford K, Petrokofsky G. 2014. Are alternative livelihood projects effective at reducing local threats to specified elements of biodiversity and/or improving or maintaining the conservation status of those elements?: a systematic review protocol. Environmental Evidence 3 :6. (doi:10.1186/2047-2382-3-6) Open Access.
Randalls S, Petrokofsky G (2014) Saws, sonar and submersibles: expectations of/for underwater logging. Geoforum 52, 216–225.(doi: 10.1016/j.geoforum.2012.12.010).
Savilaakso, S, Garcia, C, Garcia-Ulloa, J, Ghazoul, J, Groom, M, Guariguata, MR, Laumonier, Y, Nasi, R, Petrokofsky, G, Snaddon, J, Zrust, M (2014) Systematic review of effects on biodiversity from oil palm production. Environmental Evidence, 3:4 (doi:10.1186/2047-2382-3-4). Open Access
Petrokofsky G, Hemery GE, Brown ND (2013). Matching a scientific knowledge base with stakeholders’ needs: the T10Q project as a case study for forestry. Forest Policy and Economics 37, 29-36. (doi:10.1016/j.forpol.2012.05.005)
Sayer J, Byron N, Petrokofsky G (Editors) (2013). Sustainable Forests. ISBN: 978-1-84407-852-3, Earthscan Reference Collections, Routledge
Nicholls D, Young M, Hemery GE, Petrokofsky G, Yeomans A. (2013) British Woodlands 2012: a National Survey of Woodland Owners. Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors, August 2013. Download here
Godfray HCJ, Donnelly CA, Kao RR, Macdonald DW, McDonald RA, Petrokofsky G, Wood JLN, Woodroffe R, Young, DB, McLean AR (2013). A restatement of the natural science evidence base relevant to the control of bovine tuberculosis in Great Britain. Proc R Soc B 280: 20131634. (doi: 10.1098/rspb.2013.1634) Open Access
Snaddon JL, Petrokofsky G, Jepson P, Willis K (2012) Biodiversity Technologies: Tools as change agents. Biology Letters vol. 9 no. 1 20121029, doi: 10.1098/rsbl.2012.1029
Petrokofsky G, Kanamaru H, Achard F, Goetz SJ, Joosten H, Holmgren P, Lehtonen A, Menton MCS, Pullin AS, Wattenbach M. (2012) Comparison of methods for measuring and assessing carbon stocks and carbon stock changes in terrestrial carbon pools. How do the accuracy and precision of current methods compare? A systematic review protocol. Environmental Evidence 1 (6) Open Access
Petrokofsky G, Holmgren P, Brown ND (2011). Reliable forest carbon monitoring – systematic reviews as a tool for validating the knowledge base. International Forestry Review 13 (1), 56-66 Open Access
Petrokofsky G, Brown ND, Hemery GE, et al. (2010). A participatory process for identifying and prioritizing policy-relevant research questions in natural resource management: a case study from the UK forestry sector. Forestry 83, 357-367. Open Access
Petrokofsky G, Mills R (2009). The role of librarians and information specialists in evidence-based forestry. Proceedings of CFM 2009, 13th World Forestry Congress, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Petrokofsky G, Hemery GE, Brown ND (2008). Knowledge feeds decision making. The people’s say in UK forestry. Quarterly Journal of Forestry 102, 221-225.