Download all Technical Policy Briefing Notes in a single ... - Mediation

Key Messages• There is increasing interest in the appraisal ofoptions, as adaptation moves from theory topractice. In response, a number of existingand new decision support tools are beingconsidered, including approaches thataddress uncertainty.• The FP7 MEDIATION project has undertaken adetailed review of these tools, and has testedthem in a series of case studies. It hasassessed their applicability for adaptation andanalysed how they consider uncertainty. Thefindings have been used to provideinformation and guidance for the MEDIATIONAdaptation Platform and are summarised in aset of policy briefing notes.• The review has covered a range of traditionaland new decision support methods. It hasconsidered the existing tools used in policyappraisal, including cost-benefit analysis,cost-effectiveness analysis and multi-criteriaanalysis, as well as new techniques that morefully address uncertainty, including realoptions analysis, robust decision making,portfolio analysis, iterative adaptivemanagement / adaptation turning points, andthe analytic hierarchy process, as wellcomplementary tools that assist in adaptivecapacity and socio-institutional analysis, suchas social network analysis.• The review has analysed the strengths andweakness of these approaches. This providesimportant insights into the relevance of thetools and their potential use for different typesof adaptation problem.• It has also considered previous applications ofthe methods to the adaptation context havebeen reviewed, as well as the findings of theMEDIATION case studies.• The review work and case studies provideuseful information on the types of adaptationproblem types where these approaches mightbe appropriate, as well as data needs,resource requirements and good practicelessons.• Further guidance is given on each of thesetechniques in a briefing note, available on theMEDIATION Adaptation Platform.