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Proceedings of Quantifying Sustainability in Puerto Rico: A Scientific Discussion
Citation:
Hopton, M. AND Matt Heberling. Proceedings of Quantifying Sustainability in Puerto Rico: A Scientific Discussion. Quantifying Sustainability in Puerto Rico: A Scientific Discussion, San Juan, PUERTO RICO, June 05 - 07, 2012. U.S. EPA Office of Research and Development, Washington, DC, EPA/600/R/12/723, 2013.
Impact/Purpose:
Summary of "Quantifying Sustainability in Puerto Rico: A Scientific Discussion" symposium and workshop.
Description:
The purpose of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office of Research and Development’s (ORD) symposium/workshop entitled, “Quantifying Sustainability in Puerto Rico: A Scientific Discussion,” was to establish a dialogue between researchers and decision makers and facilitate research to be used in policy and decision making. The symposium was designed to discuss sustainability; present ongoing research/work related to the identified issues; discuss what researchers think policy makers could do to move Puerto Rico toward sustainability, relative to their research; and discuss what was necessary to implement their research island-wide (i.e., data description [spatial and temporal resolution], policy relevance, etc.). The subsequent workshop provided participants an opportunity to present what they learned from the talks, how they could use the information, and what was necessary to implement the research into decisions (i.e., what research is needed to fill gaps). Participants included representatives from Federal Agencies, Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, academic researchers, and non-governmental organizations, and provided expertise from several disciplines. The event provided a new perspective for sustainability researchers. Participants learned scientists have different visions of sustainability and a cohesive collaborative effort in the sustainability community is lacking. The symposium created a missing forum for scientific discussion and was a first step rather than the final answer. A number of recommendations were put forth; the primary recommendation was the establishment of a task force with broad representation and whose primary responsibility is sustainability of Puerto Rico. The suggested purpose of the task force is to establish a vision for Puerto Rico with a number of associated goals. The task force must determine the current state of sustainability in Puerto Rico and decide the future path. It is important that all stakeholders are represented on the task force and sustainability must be addressed with short-, medium-, and long-term goals. In addition, the research community must convert from discipline-based thinking to issue-based thinking. Everyone agreed that it was important there be an incentive for decision-makers and representatives from the business sector are present at future symposia. Moreover, there was an obvious need for this event and the effort to establish a sustainability vision for Puerto Rico. The symposium/workshop was a good first step, and the goal was to involve the appropriate individuals to further the effort, regardless of government support.