Applications of Interactive Integrated Assessment and Modeling to Design Sustainable Development Strategies for Arctic Watersheds

• Main Authors: Ecological Economic Management, Planning In Regional, Urban Systems, A. Voinov, T. Moiseenko, E. Kirk, V. Selin, Z. Makarova, S. Sandimirov
• Other Authors: The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: 2001
• Subjects: Arctic; Imandra; Kola Peninsula; Applications of Interactive Integrated Assessment and Modeling to Design Sustainable Development Strategies for Arctic Watersheds.; Global warming; kola peninsula
• Online Access: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.516.4750; http://www.ulb.ac.be/ceese/STAFF/safonov/ISEERC2001/Paper/Voinov_et_at_paper.pdf

A US-Russian research effort has been started in the Kola Peninsula to increase understanding of the role of human dynamics on ecosystem functions and explore development strategies to enhance ecosystem health, ecological sustainability and economic diversity. The project focuses on the Imandra Lake watershed. More specifically, four research questions are examined: 1. What effects has decreased industrial and human activity had on the ecological health or resilience of the watershed? 2. What future models of economic and social development in the region can increase economic productivity while not degrading the health of the watershed? 3. How can integrated modeling be used as a consensus-building tool for making decisions about further economic and social development of the region? 4. What are the possible scenarios for future development of the region under changing global conditions, such as global warming? We are developing site-specific databases and watershed system models on the Imandra Lake, and