Modeling Ecological Impacts: Stakeholder Perspectives in the Bay-Delta Ecosystem

In this lesson, students work in stakeholder teams to analyze and annotate a shared ecological model of the Bay-Delta food web, focusing on key species such as Chinook salmon and plankton. Using both environmental and economic lenses, students begin constructing scientific arguments that explain how proposed changes to Delta water flow may affect energy cycling, ecosystem stability, and community livelihoods—based on what their stakeholder prioritizes in preparation of creating their first draft for the “town hall” where all stakeholder groups will share out their arguments to convince the panel to vote in their favor.