WWF5 Istanbul, March 2009 Managing change towards integrated and adaptive water management: The NeWater experience Claudia Pahl-Wostl Coordinator NeWater Project Professor for Resource Management University of Osnabrück, Germany

WWF5 Istanbul, March 2009 NeWater New approaches to adaptive water management under uncertainty Transdisciplinary Research Project: FP6 EU January 2005 – February 2009 Funded with 12 Mio Euro from the EU 35 project partners

WWF5 Istanbul, March 2009 NeWater Case Studies Murray Darling Yangtse

WWF5 Istanbul, March 2009 Adaptive Management – NeWater Approach Adaptive Management - is a structured process for improving management policies and practices by systemic learning from outcomes of implemented strategies and by taking into account changes in external factors. - explicitly recognizes uncertainty and complexity. - requires integrated system design to build and sustain enabling structural conditions.

WWF5 Istanbul, March 2009 …..Integrated, Adaptive Regimes Governance style Polycentric, broad stakeholder participation Sectoral Integration Cross-sectoral analysis identifies emergent problems and integrates policy implementation Scale of Analysis and Operation Transboundary issues addressed by multiple scales of analysis and management Information Management Open, shared information sources that fill gaps and facilitate integration Infrastructure Appropriate scale, decentralized, diverse sources of design Finances and Risk Financial resources diversified using broad set of private and public financial instruments Characteristics of ….. Characteristics of …..

WWF5 Istanbul, March 2009 Addressing Uncertainties Addressing Uncertainties  Take different perspectives into account  Scenario analyses - find robust strategies  Include experimentation and learning  Evaluate decisions by costs of reversing them  Include transparent institutional settings to assess performance of strategies and implement change

WWF5 Istanbul, March 2009 ContextFramesActionsOutcomes Single-Loop Learning Incremental improvement of established routines Double-Loop Learning Reframing Triple-Loop Learning Transforming Multi-Level & Multi-Loop Learning

WWF5 Istanbul, March 2009 …. a balance between decentralization and coordination …. explicit integration of learning cycles …. no panaceas but a “diagnostic approach” …. a paradigm shift in science, policy and management in what „management“ means …. integrated system design to build and sustain enabling structural conditions …. “adaptive management” of change process Implementing AM requires …

WWF5 Istanbul, March 2009 Learn to deal with uncertainty  Integrated, systemic risk management and robust policies  New attitude towards uncertainty : “Learning to live with uncertainty and being comfortable with it”.  Transition from “command and control” to “adaptive and integrated” management styles

WWF5 Istanbul, March 2009 NeWater Synthesis Products  Management and transition framework and data base  Uncertainty – concept and guidance  Comparisons of CC adaptation strategies across regions  Training material – online curriculum  ….  COME AND SEE OUR POSTER!

WWF5 Istanbul, March 2009 Future Challenges - Initiatives  Communicate lessons learned and shape science-policy interface - Twin2Go  Global data base and network of action research projects – GWSP  Education and Training

WWF5 Istanbul, March 2009 More information available  NeWater Project  Global Water System Project  Journal Ecology and Society – three special features on social learning, adaptive water management, stakeholder participation