摘要：Adaptive management (AM) promises to improve our ability to cope with the inherent uncertainties of managingcomplex dynamic systems such as watersheds. However, despite the increasing adherence and attempts at implementation, theAM approach is rarely successful in practice. A one-size-fits-all AM strategy fails because some watersheds are better positionedat the outset to succeed at AM than others. We introduce a diagnostic tool called the Index of Management Condition (IMC)and apply it to twelve diverse watersheds in order to determine their AM "fitness"; that is, the degree to which favorable adaptivemanagement conditions are in place in a watershed
