ABSTRACT
The Vital Issues process (VIp) provides an explicit and accountable method for identifying and prioritizing relevant issues, programmatic areas, or responses to a specified problem. It affords a high level of key stakeholder involvement and provides an explicit and accountable method for incorporating stakeholder input into management decision making, thus predisposing the stakeholder community to acceptance of the decision support systems (DSS), policy portfolios, and investment portfolios. The DSS application of the VIp provides input to a DSS in the form of a prioritized set of issues considered vital to the appropriate management of a critical infrastructure and preliminary lists of information considered necessary to properly address each issue. The VIp was used in the Puerto Rico Water Resources Management Initiative to help develop a state-of-the-art DSS that would be responsive to issues considered vital to water management and preservation in Puerto Rico.
