Policy Models  “A model should clarify the issues in the debate; it must be able to enforce a discipline of analysis and discourse among stakeholders; and it must provide an interesting form of “advice,” primarily in the form of what not to do…”

Model Evaluation Criteria

Model Scale  Spatial - Resolution - Extent  Temporal - Time Step - Duration  Human - Agent - Domain (also time horizons)  Spatial - Resolution - Extent  Temporal - Time Step - Duration  Human - Agent - Domain (also time horizons) *fine vs. broad scale

Temporal Complexity  More time steps, longer duration  Overlapping steps or scales for different processes  Lags and feedbacks  More time steps, longer duration  Overlapping steps or scales for different processes  Lags and feedbacks “…at least one level of actor needs to have an awareness of both short and long time horizons and be able to communicate with other actors operating at shorter time horizons.“

Spatial Complexity  Spatially Representative - incorporate or represent data in two or more spatial dimensions  Spatially Interactive - explicitly defines spatial relationships  Spatially Representative - incorporate or represent data in two or more spatial dimensions  Spatially Interactive - explicitly defines spatial relationships

Human Complexity

Discussion - Complexity  Figures 5, 6, & 7  comparison of scale and complexity  raster vs. vector  human decision complexity  Figures 5, 6, & 7  comparison of scale and complexity  raster vs. vector  human decision complexity

Discussion - theory  Synchrony, Asynchrony & Scale Mismatch

Discussion - Methods

 Systems approach Multidisciplinary balance Feedbacks  Remote Sensing Data  GIS data integration / prep  Scale - multiscale ???  Systems approach Multidisciplinary balance Feedbacks  Remote Sensing Data  GIS data integration / prep  Scale - multiscale ???

Authors’ Proposition  Need for accepted framework  Modular, open-source approach  Need for accepted framework  Modular, open-source approach

Discussion Q’s

 When is the modularity of a model a hindrance, and when does a modular design excel?

 given advanced enough image processing and geocoding services, could the model application process be simplified (in some cases) by creating a “state snapshot”?

 Is the authors’ discussion of scale and multi-scale approaches really pertinent? Couldn’t processes take place at ‘different scales’ in the same continuous Cartesian model space