Staying the Course: Collaborative Modeling to Support Adaptive and Resilient Water Resource Governance in the Inland Northwest
School of the Environment, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-2812, USA
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Academic Editors: Sharon B. Megdal, Susanna Eden and Eylon Shamir
Water 2016, 8(6), 232; https://doi.org/10.3390/w8060232
Received: 22 February 2016 / Revised: 18 May 2016 / Accepted: 18 May 2016 / Published: 31 May 2016
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Water Governance, Stakeholder Engagement, and Sustainable Water Resources Management)
Water resource governance, much like the systems it endeavors to manage, must be resilient and adaptive. Effective, resilient and adaptive water resource governance requires continuing stakeholder engagement to address the complex nature of human and natural systems. Engagement is an adaptive and iterative process of education and empowerment, building relationships and trust, and facilitating collaboration. Collaborative modeling is a methodology that integrates diverse stakeholder perspectives, fosters discussions, and creates space for problem identification and consensus-based strategies and solutions to current water resource challenges. We define collaborative modeling broadly, such that it includes a wide range of systems thinking exercises, as well as dynamic models. By focusing on the relationships and interconnections in the system, collaborative modeling facilitates clarification of mental models and the communication of science. We will describe our work in two interstate basins and how it has evolved over time as these basins strive to develop collaborative governance, and find solutions for their water resource challenges.
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Keywords:
collaborative modeling; integrated water resource management; systems thinking; stakeholder engagement; public participation
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MDPI and ACS Style
Beall King, A.; Thornton, M. Staying the Course: Collaborative Modeling to Support Adaptive and Resilient Water Resource Governance in the Inland Northwest. Water 2016, 8, 232.
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