Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Impact
assessment
Procedure
Stakeholders
Articulation between procedures
SEAMLESS-IF
Graphical
Use
r
interface
Problem description
Indicator selection
Pre-modelling
Typologies - tools chain
selection and run
Modelling
Results presentation
and analysis
Post-modelling
SEAMLESS-IF
scenarios
Other user
criteria
Fig. 10.2
The SEAMLESS-IF procedure in relation to the integrated assessment procedures of
end-users and the SEAMLESS-IF GUI
For organizational reasons, evaluation of the procedure in conceptual, technical
and system terms was done during one session in order to facilitate the interactions
with end-users. In these sessions working situations, using graphical representations
of the framework, were simulated (the framework was still under development) to
facilitate further design (Béguin and Cerf
2004
; Pastre
2005)
. Evaluation was done
both through in-situ observations of problem formulation and through users'
opinions, highlighting problems met at each step. Given that the framework was not
yet operational, the evaluation focussed on the first steps (pre-modelling - problem
definition) of defining the policy question in a form suitable for further analysis
with SEAMLESS-IF.
The conceptual evaluation of the SEAMLESS-IF procedures was based on a
role-game simulating the joint problem definition by policy experts (end-users)
and modellers (involved in SEAMLESS-IF). The modellers were provided with
several guidelines for defining the problem in a SEAMLESS-IF compatible from
which they could choose the most appropriate one. This allowed to test different
versions of the procedure. During the problem formulation exercise somebody
observed the discussion between policy experts and modellers. At the end of
the meeting, policy experts were questioned about points that did not emerged
spontaneously but were identified beforehand as being relevant. Each of the
modellers filled a questionnaire on these same aspects to ensure that all pre-defined
evaluation criteria have been covered.
