ABSTRACT
In the field of public policy, there has been a long tradition of literature on policy transfer and learning with a recent renewed scholarly interest in learning from comparisons, after identifying where to look for lessons to be learnt. Lesson drawing within, and between, policy fields is a useful way of highlighting issues, and even if lessons may seem desirable and pressures on events create demands for action, this does not always guarantee that the lessons can be applied in another policy domain or jurisdiction. Much has been written in academic literature over the past 25 years on learning, lesson drawing and policy transfer, and the impacts may have been political, social or instrumental. Moreover, the importance of evidence-based policy making has waxed and waned from a policy and practical perspective, with varying degrees of success. The rise in Vulnerability can be costly due to drain on already strained public finances, and on time front-line professionals devote to the issue.
