A participatory geospatial toolkit for science integration and knowledge transfer informing sdgs based governance and decision making

Abstract

While the specialisation of science is important for understanding specific systems, the isolation of scientific schools in their disciplinary silos makes it harder to understand the interactions within and between systems and limits the wisdom about the whole systems’ sustainability. Science integration and its practical implementation is a key factor of success for sustainable development. The aim of this paper is to present a participatory geospatial toolkit developed during the BONUS MARES project that enables science integration and knowledge transfer informing SDGs based governance and decision making. This was realized through the Eco-GAME (Governance Assessment Matrix Exercise) framework, trans-disciplinary social learning for the meta-evaluation of existing knowledge about human-nature systems interaction—manifested through ecosystem services. The Eco-GAME was applied to a participatory geospatial toolkit that translates complex ecological knowledge on ecosystems, ecosystem functions, and services produced into more usable forms to inform evidence-based decision-making in pursuit of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This is the first attempt, in the context of geospatial applications, to support dynamic interaction, trans-disciplinary social-learning, and multi-dimensional appreciation of ecosystem services for integrating ecological, non-economic and economic knowledge and methods. The toolkit is being implemented in the MAREA project.