12 April 2017

A Hub research project has created new resources to guide decision-makers through the process of choosing the best decision support tool for their land and water use planning and development decisions in northern Australia.

Project Leader Professor Natalie Stoeckl, from James Cook University, says that these resources will help decision-makers navigate through the many decision support tools to find the one that’s right for them.

“Deciding how to balance the development of northern Australia with protecting the north’s unique landscapes can be a challenge,” Professor Stoeckl says. “There are many modelling tools available to help with these decisions, but the problem is choosing the right one.”

“There are nine major types of models, and each one can be useful depending on the management and planning questions being asked, and how much time and money is available to set up and maintain these models.”

“We created a decision tree to help people through this process, and ultimately this will be available as an online tool for people to use to find the tool that’s right for them.”

The wrap-up factsheet is available here, along with the full report and the stand-alone summary. For more information, contact Professor Natalie Stoeckl at natalie.stoeckl@jcu.edu.au.