NEGOWAT Project INCO-DEV : International Cooperation with Developing Countries (1998-2002) : Annual report 2005, covering period from 01/01/05 to 31/12/05. Facilitating negotiations over land and water conflicts in Latin American peri-urban upstream catchment: Combining agent-based modelling with role playing game

The NEGOWAT project aims to elaborate structure and test a methodology combining an agent-based modelling approach and role game playing as a discussion and mediating tool for facilitating negotiations/discussion over land and water management issues, in the specific context of the urban fringe of metropolitan upstream catchments in Latin America. The research aims thus to provide (i) a conceptual tool that will allow to analyse land and water management in this context (ii) a methodology (including computing tools) and its guidelines for its implementation to explore, test and discuss scenarios while reinforcing the participation of marginalised stakeholders of the city fringe in all stages of the processes. 2005 was devoted to the development of the simulation tools following a method proposed by the French companion modeling group and using the generic conceptual framework developed during 2003 and 2004. Collective working sessions gathering experts of the projects permitted the characterization of (i) the dynamic of resource(s) (ii) the actors (iii) the interaction between actors and resources or between actors (iv) the spatial and time scale of each elements. A modeller helps to integrate the discussion in a common base that was then developed into the game. Tests combine validation of the principles of the game (framework and rules) by experts and actors and feasibility test by students. First results on the development of the tools indicated that gime and game session development is time consuming, whether to develop the agreed underlying framework, to develop the game supports and materials, to balance simplification and complexity of the representation, or to develop the computerized base when necessary. Computerized simulation is interesting to represent complex resource dynamic that may requires a lot of time to be represented differently but may be perceive as a black box. Various Brazilian experiences of use of role playing game for capacity building and training have also been identified and are being compared with the Negowat games and interventions. The experience gathered in periurban context, tools development and methodological aspect of intervention approach is being synthesized and organized in training material in the form of PowerPoint presentations and related texts, that will be tested in training course modules under preparation. (Résumé d'auteur)