The role of stakeholder dialogues in forest related integrated assessments

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POLDOC-WORKSHOP, Gdansk, 26 October 2006
The importance of stakeholder dialogues in
climate change adaptation
Prof. Dr. Martin Welp University of Applied
Sciences Eberswalde
Photo Hannah Förster
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Prof. Dr. Martin Welp Socioeconomics
Communication
New International Masters Programme Global
Change Management URL www.fh-eberswalde.de/gcm
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Outline

• Coastal management and climate change
• Management, policy and scientific stakeholder
  dialogues
• Analytical and communication tools
• Conclusions

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Source http//www.ikzm-.de
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Europes coasts

• High diversity of coastal areas (from urban
  centres to coastal wetlands with protected areas
  for birds)
• Many of Europe's coastal zones face problems of
  deterioration of their environmental,
  socioeconomic and cultural resources

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Key coastal concerns

• Quality of coastal waters
• Nature conservation
• Construction activities on the coast
• Coastal erosion
• Tourism development
• Climate change

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Emerging issue climate change

• Rising sea levels
• Storm surges
• Winterstorms
• Coastal flooding
• Air humudity

Photos National Trust, UK, Sten Suuroja
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Four coastal management styles
Integrated approach
Social engineering
Management as mutual learning
Excludingapproach
Participatory approach
Sector-based participatorymanagement
Routine management
Sectoral approach
Welp 2000
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Stakeholder dialogues

• Planning for adaptation as a process of mutual
  learning
• Stakeholders include planners, decision-makers,
  politicians, scientists, and the interested
  public
• Finding ways to adapt to climate change
• Raising awareness of climate change and coastal
  issues

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Three types of dialogues
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Management dialogues

• Coastal zone management on local and regional
  level
• Carried out by municipalities, sectoral agencies,
  etc.
• Stakeholders include land owners, businesses,
  local interest groups etc.

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EU Demonstration Programme on

• From 1996-1999, Information about factors that
  encourage or discourage ICZM
• Stimulating a broad debate and exchange of
  information among the various actors involved in
  the planning, management or use of European
  coastal zones
• Stakeholder consultations (seminars, written
  responses)

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Evaluation

• Evaluation of Integrated Coastal Zone Management
  (ICZM) in Europe
• The results of this evaluation shall assist the
  European Commission
• http//www.rupprecht-consult.eu/iczm/

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Science-based dialogues

• A science-based stakeholder dialogue is a
  structured communicative process of linking
  scientists with selected actors who are relevant
  for the research problem at hand.
• These actors may be representatives of
  companies, NGOs, local and regional planners,
  government agencies, etc.

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Objectives of science-based dialogues

• Bringing together different knowledge bases
• Identifying socially relevant research questions
• Identifying key data and parameters
• Reality check
• - confronting mental models with reality
• - confronting computer models with reality
• Preferences, expectations and decision-making
  rules

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Participatory methods
Newsletters, Direct mail Public
hearings Articles, Radio TV
Informing
Surveys, Questionnaires Interviews Telefon
hotlines Field trips
Exchanging information
Focus Groups Group model building Joint planning
groups Scenario planning
Dialogues
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Tools for Dialogues
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Communication tools

• Creating settings in which stakeholders with
  different backgrounds can team up and learn
• Examples Focus Groups (ULYSSES), Games and role
  plays (ECF family of Climate Games),
  Visualisation

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Analytical tools

• Structuring the problem
• Identifying areas of agreement and disagreement
  among stakeholders
• Examples Group model building, Bayesian belief
  networks, Multi-criteria Analysis

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Challenges

• Limited resources (stakeholder dialogues need to
  be effective)
• Stereotyping
• Trust building takes time
• Language barriers
• Different working cultures
• Difficulties in systems thinking

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Conclusions

• We need to create safe places where the exchange
  of arguments is possible
• A combination of communication and analytical
  tools is needed
• We need to link scientific, policy and management
  dialogues
• Mainstreaming

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Forthcoming book

• Stoll-Kleemann, S. Welp, M. (eds.) Stakeholder
  Dialogues in Natural Resources
  Management. Springer Environmental
  Sciences(November 15, 2006)

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Learning for adaptationDutch cow ready for sea
level rise
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Thank you!
Email martin.welp_at_fh-eberswalde.deURL www.
fh-eberswalde.de/welp