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There is a need to increase regional and community level action towards adaptation to climate change. Natural resource managers and planners have to make challenging decisions within the complex and uncertain arena of climate change. Environmental decision support systems (EDSS) have been developed to assist stakeholders in effective decision making for the management of complex natural resource problems. EDSS which combine community engagement in developing future scenarios with computer based land use planning and modelling tools are used internationally and reported to be effective. Yet, they are often not used after the research and development phase. To gain an understanding of the effectiveness of these tools we interviewed the end users of an EDSS used in a climate change adaptation project in Canada and another in Australia. The end users of the tool are key informants, yet their perspective is lacking in the sustainability science literature. The findings show that neither EDSS was used after the projects ended. However, the majority of the end users in both projects valued the EDSS, confirming that the tools resulted in direct adaptation activities and influenced the thinking and work habits of the end users of the EDSS. We report on lessons learned from the two case studies and make recommendations regarding the processes and structures required to increase the effectiveness of the EDSS, its long term use, and the legacy of learning that is embodied within it.

Environmental decision support systems (EDSS) are used to assist natural resource managers make decisions regarding complex environmental issues, however, EDSS are often not used after the development stage. Sustainability science literature has explored this issue from the researcher perspective, and this thesis presents the perspective of end users of EDSS from Canada and Australia. A main conclusion of the study is that institutional commitment to commit EDSS into policy and practice would support ongoing EDSS use. Findings from this thesis will inform the development of future EDSS that meets the needs of end users and will be adopted into use.

Do global education programs really affect their participants' attitudes and actions regarding social action? These programs are designed to make a difference in individuals' lives, to lead to social change by providing participants with an experiential educational experience that educates and inspires them to action. These programs strive to work towards the creation of lasting social change, but how effective are they? This paper examined the question: What do participants in global education experiences report as effects of their experience on their social change attitudes or efforts? The study was based on the Victoria International Development Education Association's (VIDEA) Harnessing the Wave project's experiential education component in Zambia. Data collection included a qualitative questionnaire and content analysis of self- reflection papers and image maps. Each instrument was given prior to their departure to Zambia and again upon their return, in order to ascertain the amount of, if any, change in their attitudes and actions regarding social change. Do such experiences lead to action? The study concluded that this experiential educational program in Zambia through VIDEA did have a positive impact on participants' attitudes and efforts towards social action. The extent of the impact varies, but it was clear through this research that this global education program really did affect their participants' attitudes and actions regarding social action. These findings can be used in the promotion and design of further international experiential education programs, as they conclude that such programs have a positive impact on our society through their positive impact on participants' attitudes and actions regarding social action.