Convergent and Transdisciplinary Integration: On the Future of Integrated Modeling of Human‐Water Systems

Abstract The notion of convergent and transdisciplinary integration, which is about braiding together different knowledge systems, is becoming the mantra of numerous initiatives aimed at tackling pressing water challenges. Yet, the transition from rhetoric to actual implementation is impeded by incongruence in semantics, methodologies, and discourse among disciplinary scientists and societal actors. Here, we embrace “integrated modeling”—both quantitatively and qualitatively—as a vital exploratory instrument to advance such integration, providing a means to navigate complexity and manage the uncertainty associated with understanding, diagnosing, predicting, and governing human‐water systems. From this standpoint, we confront disciplinary barriers by offering seven focused reviews and syntheses of existing and missing links across the frontiers distinguishing surface and groundwater hydrology, engineering, social sciences, economics, Indigenous and place‐based knowledge, and studies of other interconnected natural systems such as the atmosphere, cryosphere, and ecosphere. While there are, arguably, no bounds to the pursuit of inclusivity in representing the spectrum of natural and human processes around water resources, we advocate that integrated modeling can provide a focused approach to delineating the scope of integration, through the lens of three fundamental questions: (a) What is the modeling “purpose”? (b) What constitutes a sound “boundary judgment”? and (c) What are the “critical uncertainties” and their compounding effects? More broadly, we call for investigating what constitutes warranted “systems complexity,” as opposed to unjustified “computational complexity” when representing complex natural and human‐natural systems, with careful attention to interdependencies and feedbacks, scaling issues, nonlinear dynamics and thresholds, hysteresis, time lags, and legacy effects.

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Publication Details

Journal
Water Resources Research
Published
2025-02-01
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1029/2024wr038088
Citations
28
Primary Topic
Water-Energy-Food Nexus Studies
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
22.88

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article

Convergent and Transdisciplinary Integration: On the Future of Integrated Modeling of Human‐Water Systems

David M. Hannah, Leila Eamen, Mahdi Sedighkia, Holger R. Maier et al.
28 citations
Water Resources Research
Water-Energy-Food Nexus Studies
22.88
article

Convergent and Transdisciplinary Integration: On the Future of Integrated Modeling of Human‐Water Systems

David M. Hannah, Leila Eamen, Mahdi Sedighkia, Holger R. Maier, Mohammad Ghoreishi, Graham Strickert, Grant Ferguson, Masoud Asadzadeh, Randall J. Hunt, Julie A. Terry, Amin Elshorbagy, Maureen G. Reed, Karl‐Erich Lindenschmidt, Hamid Moradkhani, Ashleigh Duffy, Fuad Yassin, Andrea Saltelli, Timothy D. Jardine, Ehsan Nabavi, Anthony J. Jakeman, John W. Pomeroy, Patricia Gober, Volker Grimm, Saman Razavi, Mohamed S. Abdelhamed, Juliane Mai, H. S. Wheater, Ximing Cai, Julie M. Thériault, Enayat A. Moallemi, Martyn Clark, Wenyan Wu, Petra Döll, Yanping Li, Kailong Li, Natasha Harvey, Hoshin Gupta
article en
28 citations

Abstract

Abstract The notion of convergent and transdisciplinary integration, which is about braiding together different knowledge systems, is becoming the mantra of numerous initiatives aimed at tackling pressing water challenges. Yet, the transition from rhetoric to actual implementation is impeded by incongruence in semantics, methodologies, and discourse among disciplinary scientists and societal actors. Here, we embrace “integrated modeling”—both quantitatively and qualitatively—as a vital exploratory instrument to advance such integration, providing a means to navigate complexity and manage the uncertainty associated with understanding, diagnosing, predicting, and governing human‐water systems. From this standpoint, we confront disciplinary barriers by offering seven focused reviews and syntheses of existing and missing links across the frontiers distinguishing surface and groundwater hydrology, engineering, social sciences, economics, Indigenous and place‐based knowledge, and studies of other interconnected natural systems such as the atmosphere, cryosphere, and ecosphere. While there are, arguably, no bounds to the pursuit of inclusivity in representing the spectrum of natural and human processes around water resources, we advocate that integrated modeling can provide a focused approach to delineating the scope of integration, through the lens of three fundamental questions: (a) What is the modeling “purpose”? (b) What constitutes a sound “boundary judgment”? and (c) What are the “critical uncertainties” and their compounding effects? More broadly, we call for investigating what constitutes warranted “systems complexity,” as opposed to unjustified “computational complexity” when representing complex natural and human‐natural systems, with careful attention to interdependencies and feedbacks, scaling issues, nonlinear dynamics and thresholds, hysteresis, time lags, and legacy effects.

Water Resources ResearchVol. 61(2)
Goethe University Frankfurt (DE), Australian National University (AU), Western University (CA), United States Geological Survey (US), Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (AU), Environment and Climate Change Canada (CA), Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (DE), University of Arizona (US), University of Waterloo (CA), University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (US), Université du Québec à Montréal (CA), The University of Melbourne (AU), University of Calgary (CA), University of Alabama (US), Water Security Agency (CA), University of Saskatchewan (CA), Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (DE), Institute for Sustainability (GB), Global Institute for Water Security (CA), Barcelona School of Economics (ES), UPF Barcelona School of Management (ES), Upper Midwest Water Science Center, University of Manitoba (CA), Imperial College London (GB), Arizona State University (US), The University of Adelaide (AU), Desert Research Institute (US), University of Birmingham (GB)
Canada First Research Excellence Fund
Openalex Percentile: Top 0%
Water-Energy-Food Nexus Studies
22.88
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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