Adaptive Management

Many environmental problems change with:

time (because of natural and/or human processes)

increased knowledge (because we learn new things)

change in values (because as people understand a system they change their values)

The method for addressing these needs to be adaptable

incorporate changes with time, knowledge and values

 

Scientific Adaptive Management does this

characteristics as defined by Norton 2005

pg 92 - adaptive management has three tenets

"

1.Experimentalism. Adaptive managers emphasize experimentalism, taking actions capable of reducing uncertainty in the future.

2. Multiscalar analysis. Adpative managers understand, model, and monitor natural systems on multiple scales of space and time.

3. Place sensitivity. Adaptive managers adopt local places, understood as humanly occupied geographic palaces, as the perspective from which multiscalar management orients."

"

Example: my work at UKL

new stress on the system (droughts)

decreased water amount

decreased water quality

new information about alternatives

potential role for wetlands in maintaining water quality - reducing algae blooms

people in the region are discussing how to better manage the resource

what information can we provide that helps manage the system

help decide what steps can be taken that will both:

lead to the solution or at least be on a path that leads to the solution

 

Norton, B. G. (2005). Sustainability: A philosophy of adaptive ecosystem management. Chicago, University of Chicago Press. notes