Decision-making and Policymaking require a deep systems analysis to understand the dynamics of the relationship between identified influencing factors. Computer models could help this process by predicting the future results, at the very least. White box models, such as system dynamics, have a graphical representation of connections between variables supporting the group discussions. System dynamics also force the participant to think in longer time dimensions, understand the impact of changing the context, and think in systems, rather than thinking just the components of the problems. In short, policy-making processes based on the design, development, and use of a computer model or Model-Based Policy Making (MBPM) offer different added value.

The idea of MBPM is not focused on the model development process, and this is not a computer modeling workshop. It focuses on using models to gain insight, test the policies and develop a better policy narrative. This is also the focus of the 2-days workshop conducted by SEMS for World Resource Institute Indonesia (WRI Indonesia) on August 15-16.