Collaborative Decision Support for Spatial Planning Applications

For complex spatial decision problems a combination of software tools for group decision support, individual decision support and geographic analysis is required. The paper describes a respective approach and the integration of tools that were originally developed independently in two teams of Fraunhofer AIS. The first software system, Zeno, is a Java application for the World Wide Web designed to facilitate on-line structured discourses. It allows individuals to classify their contribution into meaningful categories, according to their topic, objectives and group. Groups must be able to evolve their discourse structure as a collaborative undertaking, and be able to modify it as an integral part of the discussion process. The second software system, CommonGIS, provides Java-based web-enabled services for interactive, explorative generation and analysis of thematic maps, particularly including innovative tools for multicriteria decision making. It will be utilized and extended within the new EC-funded project GIMMI (Geographic Information and Mathematical Models Inter-operability), which will provide a web portal for the analysis of pesticide applications regarding implications to water and soil. Through the integrated application of Zeno and CommonGIS, the entire decision process can be supported: In the early phases qualitative goals, options and constraints are discussed; they are then elaborated into alternative, more formal models. Different variants can be computed and visualized interactively in order to investigate different assumptions or to test the stability and quality of a solution. The entire process with all important alternatives and decisions is explicitly documented in a design rationale so that it can be reconstructed or resumed under modified constraints at any time.