Lakes and society: The contribution of lakes to sustainable societies

Lake management is typically approached from a biophysical perspective. Lake managers ask how lakes can be managed to sustain their ecological functions. The social value of lakes is usually given less attention. The present paper begins the analysis at the other end of the lake and society connection by posing the question: what social needs must be met to sustain society? The primary social needs of sustainable societies are outlined and then the contribution of lakes to each need is discussed. Lakes can only provide optimal social benefits if management decisions recognize the full set of potential contributions lakes can make to society and those management decisions are integrated to provided balanced attention to all values that lakes provide. The present paper expands the domain of values beyond the traditional environmental and recreational contributions of lake management to also include aesthetics, education, economic opportunity, emotional security, cultural opportunity, individual freedom and spirituality. Citizen involvement is essential in broadening the conceptualization of the lake values and in implementing integrated management plans.