Context matters. Effective decision making depends on knowing when we’ve moved beyond the comfort of small worlds and into the uncertainty of larger ones.

Empathy is the first E in the FINESSE Fishbone Diagram®. It is the starting point for every effective communication effort involving complexity and uncertainty.

The FINESSE framework emphasizes clarity, transparency, and trust. Applied to environmental risk, it pushes us to do a handful of things exceptionally well.

Developing useful predictions requires facilitators and participants to understand a handful of key concepts related to predictions, probability, and risks.

The seven rules of SPC provide a structured approach to monitoring and controlling processes, ensuring deviations are correctly identified.

There are many environmental lessons learned from East Palestine. The events that occurred there are the greatest environmental...

Surf fishing on the South Carolina coast is a much different experience in 2023 than in 2022. The difference provides some valuable...

PFAS is an issue filled with complexity, difficulty, and uncertainty. The good news is that the USEPA does a good job with technical...

Probability Distributions The probability density function (PDF) is applied to continuous random variables, whereas the probability...

The stakes are high. The problem is difficult. We search for the facilitation approach that rises to the level of the problem. Not so...

Monte Carlo simulations are the best approach for assessing uncertainty for future infrastructure and facilities funding requirements....

If you are not using Monte Carlo simulations to inform your asset management decision making, then it is nearly certain that you are leaving value on the table. Understanding the total cost of ownership is a fundamental principle of asset management of facilities and infrastructure. However, all of our knowledge is about the past. All of our decisions are about the future. Monte Carlo analysis is our best tool for bridging our knowledge of the past with future uncertainties.

Hurricane tracking is very good these days, especially in forecasting storm intensity and location two to seven days in advance....

On June 15, 2022, US EPA reduced the current Health Advisory Levels (HALs) of 70 parts per trillion for PFOA and PFOS (combined) to 0.004...

This article discusses five ways to effectively facilitate tree diagrams by conducting pre-session exchanges, asking powerful questions,...

The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) is now in full swing as states start to divide the monies to their units of local government. Two...

JD Solomon will be facilitating the Lightning Talk on "Understanding Changes in North Carolina’s Bay Lakes Over Time: Lake Waccamaw...

The critical issue is a technical professional's inability to communicate to decision makers in the face of complexity and uncertainty. ...

The important thing is to formally incorporate rare events into your project planning because we handle the normal stuff well. Rare events make or break major projects.

Drinking treated wastewater is still a few years away because there is not enough demand for it. The technology exists that makes it...