Lisamarie Windham-Myers

Primary Convener:
Lisamarie Windham-Myers, U.S. Geological Survey

There is wind in the sails of collaborative science, allowing us to go further AND faster than one could alone. Oral and poster sessions on collaboratory science at AGU24 highlighted several case studies across U.S. watersheds, with respect to WHAT can be gained by collaborations and HOW to work most effectively across disciplines. As seen in the AGU25 program as well, the benefits of interweaving disciplines, approaches, and partners has enhanced productivity in social and environmental research and communication, and promises to aid in best practices for future decision making. Collaboratories are growing, breaking down barriers, broadening the direction of research, leading to new and novel insights, and accelerating the pace of discovery and implementation. While some recent changes in the science enterprise are enhancing the impact of collaboration (e.g. public/private partnerships, community science, Open Data workshops, digital twin modeling), others are inhibiting mutually beneficial coordination (e.g. changing leadership and priorities, legal challenges, capacity and funding constraints). We seek to learn from diverse collaborative efforts – at early, middle or late stages of development – what tools and governance structures can optimize collaborative success. Lessons learned are especially useful for strategizing effective pathways for generating, communicating, and implementing actionable science.

Index Terms
1637 Regional climate change
4815 Ecosystems, structure, dynamics, and modeling
6309 Decision making under uncertainty

Cross-Listed:
SY - Science and Society
B - Biogeosciences
H - Hydrology
GC - Global Environmental Change