Participation in multi-criteria decisions: a software tool and a case study

The paper describes AMACI, a software prototype supporting the decision process in the choice among alternatives. AMACI has been designed in the context of environmental assessment, considering participation essential to elicit interests and judgment parameters of the different groups involved in the decision. Therefore, the software makes possible a clear and transparent communication and supports the active involvement of the stakeholders. The main features of AMACI are the following: it provides a framework for the description of a decision problem and structures the decision making process for each decision-maker with the integrated use of trees and matrices; it makes use of the classical multiattribute decision analysis, including tools to define utility functions; it computes the ranking of the alternatives; it helps a group of decision-makers in dealing with uncertainty and in managing the possible conflict. AMACI has been used to perform the Strategic Environmental Assessment of the local planning process of the Municipality of Trezzo sull’Adda (Italy). The main steps of the procedure and the use of AMACI are briefly described: identification of stakeholders (public, relevant authorities); definition of alternatives; identification of the evaluation criteria; elicitation of the decision-maker preferences; estimation of the effects of the alternatives; comparison between alternatives; sensitivity analysis.