Co-creating evidence-based business roadmaps and policy solutions for enhancing coastal-rural collaboration and synergies

Updates on MAL6 (Mar Menor Coastal Lagoon)

Over the last months, we have been working hard to convert the qualitative causal loop diagrams that were developed jointly with stakeholders during sectorial and multi-sector workshop in 2018 and 2019, into quantitative models based on System Dynamics (SD).

In the recent second multi-actor workshop, we presented and discussed the SD model structure and interactions with stakeholders from all sectors involved, and we continued discussions on the development of business roadmaps and policy solutions for sustainable development based on rural-coastal collaboration and synergies.

Current and next steps in project development include:

(a) to extend and enhance model structure after the discussions with stakeholders during our second multi-actor workshop;

(b) organization of sectoral expert interviews to check and complete current model equations and input data;

(c) testing the impacts of different possible solutions on each of the sectors involved;

(d) further develop the business roadmaps and policy solutions including a timeline for the implementation of different solutions leading to optimal model results based on stakeholder input;

(e) testing model results under future socio-economic scenarios; and

(f) discussing preliminary model outputs in 2021 together with stakeholders in order to look for consensus solutions.

Author: Joris de Vente, Javier Martinez (CSIC)