TY - JOUR T1 - The Multiscale Integrated Model of Ecosystem Services (MIMES): Simulating the interactions of coupled human and natural systems JF - Ecosystem Services Y1 - 2015 A1 - Boumans, Roelof A1 - Roman, Joe A1 - Altman, Irit A1 - Kaufman, Les AB - In coupled human and natural systems ecosystem services form the link between ecosystem function and what humans want and need from their surroundings. Interactions between natural and human components are bidirectional and define the dynamics of the total system. Here we describe the MIMES, an analytical framework designed to assess the dynamics associated with ecosystem service function and human activities. MIMES integrate diverse types of knowledge and elucidate how benefits from ecosystem services are gained and lost. In MIMES, users formalize how materials are transformed between natural, human, built, and social capitals. This information is synthesized within a systems model to forecast ecosystem services and human-use dynamics under alternative scenarios. The MIMES requires that multiple ecological and human dynamics be specified, and that outputs may be understood through different temporal and spatial lenses to assess the effects of different actions in the short and long term and at different spatial scales. Here we describe how MIMES methodologies were developed in association with three case studies: a global application, a watershed model, and a marine application. We discuss the advantages and disadvantage of the MIMES approach and compare it to other broadly used ecosystem service assessment tools. VL - 12 JO - Ecosystem Services ER - TY - CHAP T1 - Chapter Seven Integrated Modelling Frameworks for Environmental Assessment and Decision Support T2 - Developments in Integrated Environmental Assessment Y1 - 2008 A1 - A. E. Rizzoli A1 - G. Leavesley A1 - J. C. Ascough II A1 - R. M. Argent A1 - I. N. Athanasiadis A1 - V. Brilhante A1 - F. H. A. Claeys A1 - O. David A1 - M. Donatelli A1 - P. Gijsbers A1 - D. Havlik A1 - A. Kassahun A1 - P. Krause A1 - N. W. T. Quinn A1 - H. Scholten A1 - R. S. Sojda A1 - F. Villa ED - A. J. Jakeman ED - A. A. Voinov ED - A. E. Rizzoli ED - S. H. Chen KW - environmental integrated modelling frameworks KW - knowledge representation KW - model engineering KW - model management KW - modelling frameworks AB -

In this chapter we investigate the motivation behind the development of modelling frameworks that explicitly target the environmental domain. Despite many commercial and industrial-strength frameworks being available, we claim that there is a definite niche for environmental-specific frameworks. We first introduce a general definition of what is an environmental integrated modelling framework, leading to an outline of the requirements for a generic software architecture for such frameworks. This identifies the need for a knowledge layer to support the modelling layer and an experimentation layer to support the execution of models.

The chapter then focuses on the themes of knowledge representation, model management and model execution. We advocate that appropriate knowledge representation and management tools can facilitate model integration and linking. We stress that a model development process adhering to industry standards and good practices, called “model engineering,” is to be pursued. We focus on the requirements of the experimental frame, which can ensure transparency and traceability in the execution of simulation scenarios and optimisation problems associated with complex integrated assessment studies.

A promising trend for knowledge representation is the use of ontologies that have the capacity to elicit the meaning of knowledge in a manner that is logical, consistent and understandable by computers and the knowledge worker community. This new path in knowledge-based computing will support retention of institutional knowledge, while putting modelling back in the hands of modellers. Environmental modelling will then become a conceptual activity, focusing on model design rather than model implementation, with code generation being delegated to some degree to ontology-aware tools. In this respect, we envision the whole model lifecycle to change drastically, becoming more of a theoretical activity and less of a coding-intensive, highly engineering-oriented task.

JF - Developments in Integrated Environmental Assessment PB - Elsevier VL - 3 SN - 9780080568867 ER - TY - JOUR T1 - Semantic links in integrated modelling frameworks JF - Mathematics and Computers in Simulation Y1 - 2008 A1 - Andrea E. Rizzoli A1 - Marcello Donatelli A1 - Ioannis N. Athanasiadis A1 - Ferdinando Villa A1 - David Huber KW - Integrated modelling frameworks KW - Model linking KW - Model reuse KW - Ontologies AB -

It is commonly accepted that modelling frameworks offer a powerful tool for modellers, researchers and decision makers, since they allow the management, re-use and integration of mathematical models from various disciplines and at different spatial and temporal scales. However, the actual re-usability of models depends on a number of factors such as the accessibility of the source code, the compatibility of different binary platforms, and often it is left to the modellers own discipline and responsibility to structure a complex model in such a way that it is decomposed in smaller re-usable sub-components. What reusable and interchangeable means is also somewhat vague; although several approaches to build modelling frameworks have been developed, little attention has been dedicated to the intrinsic re-usability of components, in particular between different modelling frameworks. In this paper, we focus on how models can be linked together to build complex integrated models. We stress that even if a model component interface is clear and reusable from a software standpoint, this is not a sufficient condition for reusing a component across different integrated modelling frameworks. This reveals the need for adding rich semantics in model interfaces.

VL - 78 IS - 2-3 ER -