Title:                            Stakeholder involvement in designing, use and evaluation of integrated assessment models

Session organisers:   Sylvia Herrmann (Leibniz University, Hannover, Germany),  Johanna Alkan Olsson (Lund Univ., Sweden), Elske van de Fliert (The University of Queensland, Australia)

Scope of session:       Integrated assessment of sustainable agricultural development requires attention to biophysical and economic aspects, as well as to human and social capital impacts. Collaborative involvement of all stakeholders at critical moments in the development, use and evaluation of assessment models is believed to be of importance to achieve adaptable and effective methodologies and tools that will contribute to sustainable development. Meaningful stakeholder involvement requires methods and models that are suitable and relevant, and attention to capacity building at all levels. This session explores experiences from a range of projects that have used assessment models as a communication tool between experts and stakeholders. It will discuss theories and frameworks for stakeholder participation in the development design and use of models and integrated assessment tools, and review needs and opportunities for capacity building to improve the use of collaborative assessment models.