Sustainable Delta Game

The serious game about water management under uncertainty!  

What - given the uncertainties about the future - is a sustainable water management plan?  Water management is increasingly challenged by pressures from population growth, sea level rise and potential climate change. Exploring adaptation pathways into the future provides indispensable decision making support in achieving sustainable water management in a changing environment.

Sustainable Delta helps participants learn about the issues surrounding preparing for an uncertain future. In this game a group of participants has the assignment to develop a sustainable water management plan for riverine or coastal areas. Once the future unfolds, the participants experience what happens in the area and its surrounding environment. Has a flood or a drought event occurred? What is the opinion of the inhabitants? Has anything happened in other countries? Do the water policies need to be adapted?

With simulations based on an environmental model, participants get direct feedback on their selected implemented policy actions. In addition to managing the potential negative impacts from floods and droughts, the support of the inhabitants, economic growth, and nature impacts all need to be taken into account when formulating the water management plan.

The game not only supports learning about the water system, but also about the decision making process and how to deal with a changing environment full of uncertainty. After the completion of all simulation rounds, the participants and facilitators reflect on the developed storyline and adaptation pathway, and discuss what triggered this pathway and how it can be improved.

The game can be used for:

• Learning about water system impacts

• Learning about adaptive policy making and adaptation pathways

• As a starting point for discussion about scenarios and sustainable water management

• As part of a stakeholder process

• To discuss and develop innovative solutions

About

The original Sustainable Delta Game is developed by a team of employees from Deltares, University Utrecht, Maastricht University-ICIS, Carthago Consultancy, Pantopicon, KNMI, and University of Twente. The game has been further developed by Deltares and Carthago Consultancy. The NZ River and NZ Coast versions of the game have been developed in close cooperation with the Climate Change Research Institute, Victoria University of Wellington.

Contact

For any suggestions or questions regarding the Sustainable Delta Game, please feel free to contact either of the below individuals: