Report Cards promoted at the GEF International Waters Conference, Marrakech, Morocco

Graphic of a river flowing down from the mountains past a city and agricultural lands. The diagram also has a dotted line indicating a national boarder. Twelve icons of different people follow the perimeter of the diagram.

Heath Kelsey was invited to The Global Environment Facility (GEF) International Waters Conference (IWC9) to talk about how ecosystem health report cards could support transboundary water assessments. Together with Sarah Davidson (WWF), Maija Bertule (DHI), and Chris Cox (UNEP), we conducted a "clinic" on how report cards can support the GEF's Transboundary Diagnostic Assessments and Strategic Action Programmes, where water issues span national boundaries. We hosted a role-playing session, where the participants were diverse stakeholders in a fictitious river basin. Stakeholders then suggested indicators that relate to their interests. The game highlighted the benefits of a transdisciplinary process for these types of assessments, and the relationship between report cards and the GEF assessments.