Evaluating the sustainability of complex socio-environmental systems. the MESMIS framework

Sustainable development has become a leading target of scientific research and policy agenda. In the context of natural resource management, understanding and evaluating the performance of complex socio-environmental systems has become a challenge, and the design of more sustainable alternatives is a driving need. In addition, there is a need to translate the general principles of sustainability into operational definitions and practices. aper examines key methodological issues in the selection, transformation and aggregation of economic, environmental and social indicators for sustainability analysis. Specific reference is given to the MESMIS approach, a systemic, participatory, interdisciplinary and flexible framework for sustainability evaluation. The MESMIS framework has been developed by a multi-institutional team in Mexico and validated through its application to more than 20 case studies in Mexico and Latin America. SMIS operative structure is a six step cycle. The first three steps are devoted to the characterisation of the systems, the identification of critical points and the selection of specific indicators for the environmental, social and economic dimensions of sustainability. In the last three steps, the information obtained by means of the indicators is integrated through mixed (qualitative and quantitative) techniques and multicriteria analysis, so as to obtain a value judgement about the resource management systems and to provide suggestions and insights aimed at improving their socio-environmental profile. attempts to generate a cyclic process which, by effectively integrating the evaluation into the decision making process, improves the likelihood of success in the design of alternatives and the implementation of development projects.