Co-Design
Step 2: Understand the system
By the end of this step, you will understand the key drivers and root causes of socio-ecological challenges, laying the groundwork for sustainability transformations.
You will map system drivers, pressures, interactions, and key actors who influence or are influenced by transformative actions.
This system’s understanding, enriched by diverse expertise, is essential for your living lab process. You should choose approaches that match the time and resources you have available. To support this, suggested methods are presented at three levels where appropriate (basic, intermediate, and advanced). Click on each method to read more about how it can be used and find additional resources.
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Map the main drivers, pressures and interactions in the system
Main drivers of change
Understanding what drives change helps you see root causes rather than only symptoms, making it easier to design effective solutions.
Make sure you …
Support yourself by using a structured, verified approach. Some suggested methods are provided below.
BASIC:
Scoping (workshop). Choose this when you need a quick, accessible way to identify potential drivers with limited time or resources. Works well at an early stage or when you only need an initial overview. You can use the provided worksheet below to support yourself.
Downloads
INTERMEDIATE:
PESTLE analysis. Select this when you need a more systematic and structured understanding of drivers across political, economic, social, technological, legal, and environmental dimensions. Useful when your living lab operates in a complex policy or governance landscape.
ADVANCED:
Mutual mobilisation and learning. Use this when you want richer discussions and collective interpretation of drivers. A strong option if you need wide actor input or want to build shared understanding early on. Requires more time and resources to facilitate.
Knowing the scale of drivers and the ecosystem services helps determine which actors, policies, or governance levels are relevant for addressing them.
Make sure you …
Define the scale at which each of your drivers operates.
TIPS Start with the driver of your issue and think about where does it come from? Is it from a nearby area (local), is it from a nearby country or municipality (potentially regional or national), or is it from far overseas and affects everybody (global)?
Pressures affecting the system
Understanding pressures helps reveal how drivers translate into concrete impacts on nature and society.
Make sure you …
Know the difference between a pressure and a driver. Support yourself by using a structured, verified approach. Some suggested methods are provided below.
BASIC:
Causal loop diagram or Cognitive mapping. Choose this when you need a simple visual overview of cause-and-effect relationships, or when actors are new to systems thinking and need an intuitive way to engage.
INTERMEDIATE:
Fuzzy cognitive mapping. Choose this when you need to understand how different people or groups perceive relationships between pressures and impacts in the system. This method is useful when you expect diverse or conflicting perspectives and want a structured way to capture and compare them.
ADVANCED:
DPSIR / DAPSIR. Select these frameworks when you need to link drivers, pressures, system changes, impacts, and responses in a comprehensive and policy-aligned way. This is particularly suitable when working with authorities, reporting needs, or when you want a clear structure to communicate complex system relationships.
Understanding how pressures interact and reinforce each other helps identify leverage points where small solutions can create meaningful change, and helps avoid unintended consequences in the system. The interactions should include activities that are impacted by degraded ecosystems, or people benefiting from ecosystem services that the system provides.
Make sure you …
Support yourself by using a structured, verified approach. Some suggested methods are provided below.
BASIC:
Causal Loop Diagram or Cognitive Mapping. Choose this when you want to explore interactions between pressures quickly and simply, especially when working with actors who are new to systems thinking. Make sure you align with your choice for the previous action.
INTERMEDIATE:
Fuzzy Cognitive Mapping (FCM). Choose this when you want to visualise and quantify how pressures influence each other, or when comparing perspectives across different act groups is important.
ADVANCED:
System Modelling Tools. Use this when you need a rigorous, data-supported analysis of complex interactions and feedback loops. Best suited for work supported by research partners.
Spatial information to support decision-making
Clear objectives prevent unnecessary data collection and ensure that spatial information supports informed decision-making.
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Discuss with actors which spatial questions are most relevant for understanding the system, and identify what decisions spatial information could and should support (e.g. identifying pressure hotspots, conservation and restoration areas, or monitoring zones).
Knowing what data are available helps focus effort, reduce costs, and ensures analyses are grounded in realistic data availability.
Make sure you …
Explore available datasets and identify what additional information is needed. Some suggested approaches are provided below.
BASIC:
Explore existing data. Choose this when you want an accessible way to understand what spatial data already exists and to reveal knowledge gaps through actors’ insights. Useful early in the process. This can be done through Participatory mapping.
INTERMEDIATE:
Explain spatial patterns. Select this when you want to understand why patterns occur, for example differences rooted in values, land-use, threats, co-existence or conflict between user groups, or other contextual factors. This is useful when combining actor insights with analytical tools to interpret how different drivers shape spatial variation. This can be done through Regression analysis.
ADVANCED:
Predict spatial patterns. Use this when forward-looking analyses are needed, such as exploring how pressures or restoration potential may change across landscape. Best when technical capacity or research partners are available to support modelling. This can be done through Bayesian Additive Regression Tree (BART).
F
Map the actors in the system
Understanding who is involved in, affected by, or influential within the system or by the ecosystem services the system provides is essential for building meaningful co-creation. Mapping actors helps clarify roles, interests, and connections, ensuring that engagement is intentional and well-aligned. You should also be aware of and understand processes that are already taking place independently within the system and are relevant to your living lab. Where possible, identify how your work can align with or contribute to these processes, rather than creating parallel ones. Ensure that you understand who is involved, how these processes function, and how your activities can connect to or build on existing efforts. You should also consider actors that are located outside the geographic boundaries you have defined earlier, but which might still be relevant.
Make sure you …
Support yourself by using a structured, verified approach. Some suggested methods are provided below. You can use the provided template below throughout the mapping of actors.
Downloads
BASIC:
Brainstorming. Choose this when you need a fast, simple way to generate an initial list of actors, especially early in the process.
INTERMEDIATE:
Snowballing. Select this when existing actors can help identify additional relevant actors, particularly in complex or unfamiliar systems.
Know how to engage with each actor based on their role and priorities
A clear understanding of each actor’s motivations, roles, and concerns helps tailor engagement approaches, reduce misunderstandings, and create the conditions for constructive and effective collaboration.
Make sure you …
Support yourself by using a structured, verified approach. Some suggested methods are provided below.
BASIC:
Expert knowledge. Choose this when you or your team already have substantial familiarity with the context and can identify roles and priorities without extensive data collection.
INTERMEDIATE:
Interview. Choose this when you need more detailed, nuanced insights into actors’ roles, interests, expectations, or concerns. Interviews are useful when perspectives differ, when trust needs to be built through direct conversation, or when you want to understand motivations that may not appear in group settings.
ADVANCED:
Participant observation. Select this when you need a deeper understanding of how actors interact, make decisions, or carry out activities in real settings. This method is most appropriate when long-term engagement is possible and when subtle dynamics, behaviours, or power relations are important to capture.
Matching engagement levels to actors’ needs supports meaningful participation and prevents engagement fatigue or misalignment.
Make sure you …
Clarify how each actor should be involved (e.g., inform, consult, involve, collaborate) and determine which engagement methods fit their interests and capacities. Use the BiodivERsA Stakeholder Engagement Handbook as a supporting resource.
Plan how to monitor and evaluate the engagement process of actors
Clear evaluation criteria make it possible and easier to understand whether engagement is working as intended and where improvements are needed.
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Define how you will assess engagement quality, inclusiveness, and participant experience.
Adaptive engagement strengthens trust, supports long-term participation, and ensures the process remains responsive to actors’ needs.
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Plan for how you will record and distribute actionable insights from those consulted. Identify how feedback will be incorporated into the process and determine who is responsible for making adjustments.