Putting Insects on the Agenda: An Analysis of Actors in Multiple Streams for Biodiversity Conservation Policy in Germany

ABSTRACT The loss of biodiversity presents one of the most pressing societal challenges of our time. Insects play a crucial role for biodiversity in terms of ecosystem services and food provision. Although insects receive increasing public and academic attention, the development of policy mixes for insect conservation remains challenging. In Germany, insects crawled onto the political agenda in 2019 with the release of the national action programme for insect conservation. We use this empirical case to analyse the agenda‐setting process of the emerging policy mix for insect conservation. We combine an actor‐centred understanding of the policy process along the Multiple Streams Framework (MSF) with the policy mix concept for transitions, focusing on policy mix elements. Our contribution is twofold: First, we apply the policy mix concept for transitions to a new (low‐tech) empirical case (insect conservation policy in Germany), thereby further concretising the concept for empirical analysis. Second, we use insights from policy process theories, the MSF in particular, to unpack the policy process focusing on two key actor concepts (the policy entrepreneur and the problem broker). We find that streams do not unfold arbitrarily, but that the three streams are interdependent, with different actor roles playing a crucial role in shaping the coupling of streams.