Interdisciplinary Projects Require an Adaptive and Agile Management Approach: South Florida Water, Sustainability, and Climate Project Experience

The South Florida Water, Sustainability, and Climate Project is a $5M interdisciplinary research project funded by the National Science Foundation to explore development of a decision-making framework for South Florida water management decision-makers. The project is in year four of a five-year duration, with a geographicallydistributed team representing 10 universities across the U.S. and collaborators including the South Florida Water Management District. The team is developing a hydro-economic optimization model and basic science and economic inputs to evaluate management scenarios and decision-making for South Florida water and environmental resources. Management of this complex interdisciplinary project requires strategies, approaches, and tools beyond conventional approaches, and specifically those that support high levels of communication, collaboration, and transparency. Team science skills in facilitation, dialogue, and conflict resolution are required, as relationships and interactions are as important to success as technical competency. Adaptive management approaches ensure iterative and adaptive development, frequent communication, and collaborative planning, and along with team science skills, build critical trust. The SFWSC adaptive management strategy, using a ‘people over process’ philosophy, incorporates agile management frameworks, team science understanding, and collaborative communication and planning tools. The effectiveness on integration and productivity is continuously analyzed through in-depth interviews, retrospectives, and surveys of team members and stakeholders. Team members rate effectiveness on integration favorably, and have received praise from external advisors on the level of integration thus far achieved compared to similar interdisciplinary research projects.