DOI
DOI: 10.1007/s11625-020-00846-2

Summary
New applied approaches are needed to address urgent, global environmental issues. Practitioners, scholars, and policy makers
alike call for increased integration of natural and social sciences to develop new frameworks for better addressing the
range of contemporary environmental issues. From a theoretical perspective, social–ecological systems (SES) offers a novel
approach for enhancing sustainability science and for improving the practice of environmental management. To translate
SES theory into action, education and training programs are needed that focus on the application of SES approaches across
the education and professional spectrum, from K-12 to graduate training to agency management. We developed a training
framework that serves sustainability practitioners by building their capacity to apply SES approaches to real world problems
and decision-making. The framework uses a SES-based environmental management approach based on a systemic
worldview, transdisciplinary thinking, co-development of knowledge, stakeholder engagement, and adaptive governance.
The social–ecological systems training and education program (SESTEP or “see-step”) framework was designed to provide
SES training opportunities as a response to the need expressed by senior directors of US federal land management agencies.
The core of the framework is a 12-step SES heuristic that provides a diagnostic tool for practitioners as they work through
a SES case-study issue or problem. The curriculum provides adaptable and tailored professional development training for
sustainability professionals to enhance sustainability science in practice. The evaluation of the inaugural course indicates
achievement of positive course learning outcomes consistent with advancing sustainability science in practice.

Relevance for Complex Systems Knowledge
Practitioners in sustainability science must balance the
protection of natural resources and ecosystems (ecological
systems) with the needs for and uses of them by people
(social systems) and this requires making decisions under
uncertainty, flexible management, collaborative interactions,
and understanding interdisciplinary concepts . The skills, habits of mind,
and perspectives necessary for monitoring social–ecological
systems, integrating disciplines, and developing collaborative
relationships for sustainability science are essential in
graduate education or through job-training. The article presents the SESTEP approach to train sustainability professionals. The point of departure for the approach is to identify an issue in a geographical area that can be examined using a socio-ecological systems approach. It continues by identifying drivers, gaps of knowledge and collaborators/stakeholders. The continuing steps are to make a representationt of the issues and elements in the system to discuss and refine in various steps with the stakeholders to get the most appropriate data collection. Evaluations of the uses of the model in learning showed good results in understanding complexity.

Point of Strength
This model could be adapted both for use with students at undergraduate and graduate level as well as for employees in continous training.