David W. Cash Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs Harvard University

Linking Global Change and Local Realities: Distributed Research, Assessment, and Decision Making Systems David W. Cash Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs Harvard University October 7, 2001 2001 Open Meetings of the Human Dimensions of Global Environmental Change Research Community

Research and Assessment Systems for Sustainability Project • International collaboration of scholars, practitioners and program managers addressing issues of sustainability. • Research, practice, and outreach • Administered at Harvard University, USA

The Challenges • Global environmental change is increasingly understood to… have causes, consequences and responses which span multiple social or organizational levels; • Demand to upscale and downscale • Demand for place-based information linked to large-scale change be perceived differently at different levels.

The Challenges, cont’d • Institutions for assessment and management are generally insensitive to multi-level dynamics and alternative “realities” at different levels

The Challenges, cont’d • There often exists tensions/tradeoffs between: • scientific credibility; • political legitimacy; and • practical relevance.

Distributed Research, Assessment and Decision Support Systems What characterizes effective systems? • Integrated networks of research, assessment, and management • which bridge numerous levels, • and include sustained, long-term, iterative interactions between science and decision making

Elements of systems • Multiple, coordinated (franchised) research and assessment nodes at different levels (redundancy, innovation), linked to decision makers. • Specialized roles (scale-dependent comparative advantages) at different levels. • Mediated through boundary organizations. • Adaptive institutions.

Dimensions of Distributed Research, Observation, Assessment and Decision Support Systems 1. Integration of research, observation, assessment, and decision support 2. Integration of different knowledges 3. Network structure 4. Adaptiveness 5. Participation 6. Funding 7. Human Capacity 8. Political context

Integration of research, observation, assessment, and decision support Integrating multiple functions can generate tensions between the relevance, credibility and legitimacy of information (e.g., sometimes there is tension between producing credible (non-politicized) science and politically salient outputs.) • What kind of institutional mechanisms effectively integrate research, observation, assessment and decision making functions and balance the relevance, credibility and legitimacy of information? • How can this integration be structured to balance different needs, expertises, and perspectives at different levels?

Integration of different knowledges • What kind of institutional mechanisms effectively integrate different knowledges (e.g., disciplines, indigenous knowledge, scientific knowledge)? What mechanisms can integrate large-scale (systemic) analyses with place-based realities?

Network structure Institutionalized networks can have many advantages and are increasingly used, but also have inherent costs. • How can a network of scientists, stakeholders, and decision makers be structured such that it balances tradeoffs between efficiency and autonomy, and between system-wide coherence and local specificity? • How can a network addresses asymmetries (e.g., well-funded well-staffed institutions that interact with relatively poorly funded and poorly staffed institutions)?

Adaptiveness A research, observation, and assessment system has to balance tradeoffs between flexibility and stability, and between long-term and short-term needs. • What kind of institutional mechanisms can support adaptiveness without losing political legitimacy?

Participation Participation can serve multiple functions in research, observation, and assessment system. • What kind of institutional mechanisms can facilitate effective participation by scientists, stakeholders and decision makers? • Who should participate, when in the process, and for what purpose? • How do decisions about participation influence the saliency, credibility, or legitimacy of a research, observation, assessment and decision support system?

Funding • What are effective mechanisms for funding that can balance the advantages of RFP models (screening through competition) versus endowed program (long-term commitments, adaptability and maintaining institutional memory)

Human Capacity • What are effective mechanisms for building human capacity? • How can these mechanisms mitigate the divide between developed and developing countries while maintaining legitimacy and credibility? • How can the development of human capacity be linked to institutional capacity?

Political context • What elements of the political context in which an issue is embedded provide challenges and opportunities for a research, observation, assessment and decision support systems?

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Schematic Research, Assessment and Decision Support System System for Sustainability (Nebraska, USA) State University SOIL WATER AGRONOMY Area Research Center SOIL WATER AGRONOMY SOIL WATER AGRONOMY Local decision makers FARMER RESOURCE MANAGER FARMER RESOURCE MANAGER

Schematic Research, Assessment and Decision Support System for a Sustainability Transition Global research loci FOOD (CGIAR) ECOSYSTEM (IGBP) CLIMATE (WMO) Regional (integrative) Centers FOOD ECOSYSTEM CLIMATE FOOD ECOSYSTEM CLIMATE Local (place-based) decision makers INDIVIDUAL FIRM OFFICIAL INDIVIDUAL FIRM OFFICIAL

Global Change System for Analysis Research and Training (START)

Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR)

David W. Cash Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs Harvard University