595
3. Defining the interconnectivity of few nexus systems through a set of comparative
local- and regional-scale pilot projects that test data and implement solutions in
multiple locations (regional, national, and international);
4. Developing a common accounting framework that supports holistic, regional and
national resource management approaches;
5. Promoting the development of innovative, high tech solutions to effectively
relieve the stresses and address the challenges posed by the stressors; and
6. Establishing a set of “governance indicators” for monitoring the role and effectiveness of governance in management practices in both developed and developing countries.
These activities flow into the opportunities for future nexus work described
below. Since FEW research is fundamentally applied (and also Use-Inspired), communities of science and practice can, therefore, be viewed as a foundational structure to support and sustain nexus projects. The opportunities for local, regional, and
global communities of science and practice exist.
21.3.2 Defining Questions
In Chap. 12, we explored many aspects of the key to effective use-inspired FEW
Nexus science is defining questions that integrate research (especially basic
research) with valuable applications (see Pasteur’s Quadrant in Sect. 12.2.1).
Communities of science and practice provide significant help in defining nexus
questions that most effectively align scientific research with the needs of stakeholders and decision-makers. Thus, in Chap. 4, we described the importance of considering the role of human behavior and adaptation in FEW systems.
However, it is crucial to remember the conversation between those that conduct
research and those that apply it is a two-way conversation. While science that misses
the mark of decision-maker needs is not useful (and probably not sufficiently useinspired), a decision-maker’s demand that science answer value and purpose questions lying beyond the scope of empirical science is also not useful. The FEW nexus
exists in the context of both the biophysical environment and the socio-economicpolitical environment (see Sect. 12.2.2).
Decision science, the interdisciplinary study of human decision-making at the
individual, collective, and institutional levels, can be extremely useful in connecting science to applications (see Sects. 4.3, 12.2.3, and 17.2). Decision science
incorporates theories and techniques from psychology, behavioral economics, and
statistics, among others, to investigate how people make decisions. This understanding can help define biophysical reach questions that will address decisionmaker needs. Because the FEW Nexus is fundamentally an interdisciplinary and
systems concept (and not a basic disciplinary science), researchers at the Nexus
should aspire to both outcomes.
21 Opportunities at the Nexus
3. Defining the interconnectivity of few nexus systems through a set of comparative
local- and regional-scale pilot projects that test data and implement solutions in
multiple locations (regional, national, and international);
4. Developing a common accounting framework that supports holistic, regional and
national resource management approaches;
5. Promoting the development of innovative, high tech solutions to effectively
relieve the stresses and address the challenges posed by the stressors; and
6. Establishing a set of “governance indicators” for monitoring the role and effectiveness of governance in management practices in both developed and developing countries.
These activities flow into the opportunities for future nexus work described
below. Since FEW research is fundamentally applied (and also Use-Inspired), communities of science and practice can, therefore, be viewed as a foundational structure to support and sustain nexus projects. The opportunities for local, regional, and
global communities of science and practice exist.
21.3.2 Defining Questions
In Chap. 12, we explored many aspects of the key to effective use-inspired FEW
Nexus science is defining questions that integrate research (especially basic
research) with valuable applications (see Pasteur’s Quadrant in Sect. 12.2.1).
Communities of science and practice provide significant help in defining nexus
questions that most effectively align scientific research with the needs of stakeholders and decision-makers. Thus, in Chap. 4, we described the importance of considering the role of human behavior and adaptation in FEW systems.
However, it is crucial to remember the conversation between those that conduct
research and those that apply it is a two-way conversation. While science that misses
the mark of decision-maker needs is not useful (and probably not sufficiently useinspired), a decision-maker’s demand that science answer value and purpose questions lying beyond the scope of empirical science is also not useful. The FEW nexus
exists in the context of both the biophysical environment and the socio-economicpolitical environment (see Sect. 12.2.2).
Decision science, the interdisciplinary study of human decision-making at the
individual, collective, and institutional levels, can be extremely useful in connecting science to applications (see Sects. 4.3, 12.2.3, and 17.2). Decision science
incorporates theories and techniques from psychology, behavioral economics, and
statistics, among others, to investigate how people make decisions. This understanding can help define biophysical reach questions that will address decisionmaker needs. Because the FEW Nexus is fundamentally an interdisciplinary and
systems concept (and not a basic disciplinary science), researchers at the Nexus
should aspire to both outcomes.
21 Opportunities at the Nexus