California relies on the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta as a hub for water, biodiversity, agriculture, recreation, and more. How can we make sure that management actions are working as intended?

A returning guest to the Resilient Futures Podcast, Stephen Elser is a Senior Environmental Scientist with the Delta Stewardship Council, which works to advance California’s coequal goals: a more reliable water supply and a resilient Delta ecosystem. Broadly, Stephen’s team is tasked with supporting the use of adaptive management to enhance conservation and sustainable use of the Delta.

Adaptive management is a flexible approach to managing natural resources that allows for continuous learning, resulting in management decisions based on what was learned, scientific feedback and monitoring. Management actions can be viewed as hypotheses to be tested, with the goal of continuous improvement while reducing uncertainty.

Stephen explains the process of adaptive management, and why it’s so important in complex ecosystems like the Delta. Check out this episode wherever you listen to podcasts!

Stephen’s Haiku:
Uncertain futures
But we know a lot, let’s act
Learning as we go

Read more about the Delta Stewardship Council at their website.

Learn more about the Council’s adaptive management work, and to find resources on developing adaptive management plans.

The 2025 Adaptive Management Forum will be held on October 14-15! Learn more about this free event and register to attend either in-person or online.