SFS 2025 Additional Workshop Facilitators: Mandy Kuhn, Rebecca Snyder, Carly Steckling & Nancy Grimm
Freshwater ecosystems, such as rivers, wetlands, lakes, and streams, are experiencing frequent and intensifying disturbances due to urbanization, water consumption, pollution, and other human activities. Understanding the implications of these changes is critical for both human well-being and ecological outcomes, including water security, climate hazard mitigation, disaster risk reduction, biodiversity conservation, and ecological resilience. These challenges increasingly reflect the dynamics of complex systems.
The social-ecological-technological systems (SETS) framework offers innovative perspectives for addressing changes in complex systems to foster a more resilient environment. Applying the SETS framework to freshwater ecosystems provides a transdisciplinary lens and practical tools for navigating research in these interconnected systems. It is especially useful for analyzing ecosystem service provision and conducting vulnerability assessments related to water insecurity, flood risk, and other critical challenges.
In this workshop, we will explore how key concepts from the SETS framework can be applied to diverse research objectives to enhance our understanding of freshwater ecosystems. Participants will examine several case studies demonstrating the practical application of these concepts.
Through these case studies, we will foster dialogue between workshop leaders and participants while introducing practical skills, such as vulnerability assessments, to support the real-world application of the SETS framework to freshwater systems.