Evaluating Knowledge Management Parallel to Nature-Based Solutions-Project MarkerWadden

Marker Wadden follows the Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) concept to tackle multiple challenges in freshwater lake Markermeer (The Netherlands). NBS presents opportunities for knowledge management practices in the fields of engineering, ecology, and governance, which is a specific goal of the project. Therefore, Knowledge and Innovation program Marker Wadden (KIMA) was established. KIMA enabled knowledge management practices, such as monitoring, fundamental and applied research, parallel to the construction phase. Transferring knowledge back to the construction project and to other NBS-projects and -programs is regarded as a necessity to ensure scale-up. We argue that internal and external alignment can remove or bridge barriers between knowledge management, and application in ongoing construction activities and other NBS- applications. In this research we evaluate the internal alignment of KIMA with the construction project Marker Wadden, and its external alignment with other applications of NBS. Our data indicates that KIMA was only partially capable of realizing internal and external alignment. Absence of the consortium leader in the research program, a suboptimal financial construction, the belated start of research activities, a lack of incentive in the construction contract to engage in knowledge management, unstructured connection to system-level projects and major research programs were restraining factors.