Research
RIKS operates at the forefront of land use modeling, model integration, and bridging the gap between scientific models and the actual policy making. To ensure this position we are actively researching land use change processes as well as methods to model them. These research activities take place under the umbrella of research projects, for example within the EC framework program, or as part of dedicated projects and in developing tailor made systems. Many results of research projects find their way in our products as new developments. Our research concentrates on:
Land-use modeling
- Activity based modeling as an approach to simulate land-use change more realistically
- Calibration and validation methods for spatial explicit land-use models, among which a number of map comparison algorithms
- Agent-based approaches and individual-based approaches to simulate spatial dynamics in land-use and related actors
Model integration
- Software design and architecture for integrated and spatial modeling
- The technical integration of model components in spatial decision support systems
- Linking different model paradigms in a conceptual sound way
Bridging the science-policy gap
- The use of spatial decision support systems in practice and key factors for their usability and usefulness
- Participatory scenario studies and policy analysis
- SDSS development and implementation as an interactive process between planners, scientists and software developers
For our research we actively collaborate with institutes and universities in the Netherlands as well as abroad, such as Wageningen University and Research Centre, Landcare Research, or the EC-JRC Institute for Environment and Sustainability. Please take a look at our publications section to get more elaborate overview of the results of our research activities.