Adaptive delta management: Roots and branches

Deltas are generally recognized as vulnerable to climate change and therefore a salient topic in adaptation science. Deltas are also highly dynamic systems viewed from physical (erosion, sedimentation, subsidence), social (demographic), economic (trade), infrastructures (transport, energy, metropolization) and cultural (multiethnic) perspectives...

Considerations in designing an evaluation system for adaptive delta management

New planning approaches put new requirements on evaluation. A recent innovation in the water domain is adaptive delta management (ADM). ADM supports long-term planning in the face of uncertainty. This paper discusses the main considerations for the design of an evaluation system for ADM, departing from literature on evaluation systems, adaptive...

Bringing real-world problems into the classroom

Real world problems are a challenge and a motivator for students to learn understanding and using the concepts of systems and actors. But using real world problems in the classroom is not without challenges and dilemmas. In the paper we explicitly address the issue of the need for quite intense support for the students when tackling real life...

Drawing lines in the sand: The evolution of Dutch coastal policy

Stakeholder management: Think berfore you act

To understand the actors, we need to understand their rules. Actors are organised in networks which are affected by rules. The rules also differ according what they think / value / can do.

Perspectives on water governance: Synthesis and conclusions

The papers in this volume address water governance issues and phenomena from different perspectives, and at different levels. These collected papers, however, set out to address similar questions. The first is: ‘How is water governance evolving at different levels of government?’ In this question government refers to public (democratic)...

The governance of large dams: A new research area

Our current familiarity with large infrastructures, the place they hold in the landscape and the roles they play in modern living combine to make us lose sight of their long-term, system-wide effects. In this paper, the action of the large infrastructures of dams in structuring both the biophysical and the societal environment in which they...

An Approach to Support Learning from International Experience with Water Policy

International experiences with water policy and governance arrangements are shared through various international meetings and reports. The underlying assumption is that these experiences provide useful information to policy makers who are looking for ways to improve water resources management in their home country or region. However, little has...

Exploring the Promise of Actor Analysis for Environmental Policy Analysis: Lessons from Four Cases in Water Resources Management

A persistent challenge for the development of well-informed and sound environmental policies is to improve the connection between environmental experts, decision makers, and other involved actors. Answers are sought in processes for social learning and adaptive co-management that engage experts, decision makers, and local actors in an...

Actor analysis for water resources management: Putting the promise into practice

Water related problems such as floods, droughts, declining groundwater tables or polluted rivers have a major impact on numerous societies throughout the world. Despite these serious problems, policy makers seem to make scant use of the knowledge that is available with water experts. Conversely, water experts face the task of finding out how...

Design of Phosphorus Management Strategies for the Vannonsville Basin.