ABSTRACT
This chapter is a summary and discussion of the results of a survey of Australian farmers, as a sample of potential drought science and policy end users, conducted in May 2012. There were four main areas of investigation developed from the discussions and contentions in other chapters of this volume:
• End users’ perceptions of drought as a hazard, as discussed in Chapter 2, and how they see climate change affecting drought (Chapters 1, 2, 3, and 4)
• Access to and use of scientific and policy information relating to drought, which was introduced in Chapters 1 and 2 and more extensively considered by some of the scientists engaged in knowledge brokering (Chapters 7, 10, and 11)
• Drought preparation strategies and the roles of science associated with that, which were discussed in Chapters 7, 10, and 11
• Perceptions of what factors influenced governments in developing drought policy and what sorts of policies survey participants saw as useful
The latter two areas relate to an overarching theme developed across several chapters (1, 2, 4, 5, and 6), which is that, in Australia and the United States, governments have wanted to move end users and government poli-
CONTENTS
Survey Development, Method, and Sample ................................................... 186 Results ................................................................................................................... 187 Discussion and Conclusions .............................................................................. 191 References ............................................................................................................. 194
cies from being predominantly reactive to a greater focus on preparation for ‘natural’ events.
