Seminar: So models have a social and political life. What does this mean for a modeller in practice?

Models validate and influence how people think about and interact with water, both in terms of the ideas behind them and the actual data and tools used. Many choices—whether obvious or hidden, and by modellers, funders, commissioners or users—affect how they are designed, what they can do, and who can engage with the process. In the past years, a small but growing community of scholars have further explored how water models have a social and political life and with what effects (Krueger et al., 2012; Krueger and Alba, 2022; Melsen et al., 2019, ter Horst et al., 2024). This research shows that models are always developed in particular contexts, and need to be adjusted to fit the places they are meant to represent. This influences what responsibility and agency modellers have, and it asks for a modelling philosophy that concerns both the model and society. 

In this session we create a space to exchange experiences around the following questions, with input from speakers and with smaller discussion groups: 

• How do you see your responsibility as modeller for the influence a model can have? 
• What were you proud of, what would you avoid in the future? 

• Tobias Krueger, Director of IRI THESys and Professor of Hydrology and Society, Humboldt-Universität´s Geography Department
• Claire Michailovsky, Senior Lecturer in Remote Sensing for Water Management, IHE Delft 
• Bich Tran, PhD candidate on uncertainty assessment of Remote Sensing based water modelling, IHE Delft
• Jonatan Godinez-Madrigal, Researcher Water Allocation and Institutions, IHE Delft

Rozemarijn ter Horst, Lecturer and PhD researcher on the influence of water modelling, Wageningen University 

After the event, participants are invited to network over drinks. 

The event targets researchers who use models, aspire to use models, or work with modellers.