E & S Feature Article: Planetary Boundaries: Exploring the Safe Operating Space for Humanity addresses resilience at the global level for the first time.

Rockström introduces Planetary Boundaries in a whiteboard seminar: "These scientists propose that so far there are only 9 identifiable processes in the Earth system that have clear risk of causing disastrous or unacceptable, large threshold effects if we cross beyond safe boundaries."

A condensed version of the article was first published in Nature where links to follow-up commentaries and discussions can be found.

Congratulations to Elinor Ostrom - recipient of the 2009 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences! Resilience Alliance members extend their warmest congratulations to Elinor for this well-deserved recognition of her research on economic governance and the commons. See also Lin's press conference and additional links and congratulations from The Workshop in Political Theory and Policy Analysis.

RECENT PUBLICATIONS

Principles of Ecosystem Stewardship: Resilience-Based Natural Resource Management in a Changing World. The first textbook to take a resilience-based approach to natural resource management is now available from the publisher’s website. Written for students, researchers, and practitioners, the textbook links current research with practical applications for managing ecosystems in times of change and uncertainty. Edited by RA members Stuart F. Chapin, Gary Kofinas, and Carl Folke.

Complexity Theory for a Sustainable Future Edited by Jon Norberg and Graeme Cumming. From the publisher's website "Complexity Theory for a Sustainable Future is a hands-on treatment of this exciting new body of work and its applications, bridging the gap between theoretical and applied perspectives in the management of complex adaptive systems. Focusing primarily on natural resource management and community-based conservation, the book features contributions by leading scholars in the field, many of whom are among the leaders of the Resilience Alliance."

Institutions and Environmental Change: Principal Findings, Applications, and Research Frontiers Edited by Oran R. Young, Heike Schroeder and Leslie A. King, this book summarizes and reports the key findings of a decade of research on the role of institutions in addressing global environmental change. The international research project on the Institutional Dimensions of Global Environmental Change (IDGEC) was carried out under the auspices of the International Human Dimensions Programme. More information is on the MIT publishing website.

Resilience Thinking A book by CSIRO scientist and RA Program Director Brian Walker and science writer David Salt provides an accessible introduction to resilience research and argues for a dramatic change in how natural resources are managed. The resilience framework is explored by way of five case studies that demonstrate how communities are better able to withstand cycles of change when ecological drivers are better understood and when natural change is embraced rather than controlled. Copies of the book can be ordered online from Island Press

RA RESOURCES

Resilience Assessment Workbooks - The RA has developed two workbooks for assessing resilience in social-ecological systems. "Assessing and managing resilience in social-ecological systems: A practitioners workbook" has been designed specifically to provide guidance to people engaged in natural resource management, through a set of activities designed to explore system parameters and management options for their own system of interest from a resilience perspective. A second workbook "Assessing resilience in social-ecological systems - A workbook for scientists" emerged from case-study comparisons of regional SESs in the Resilience Alliance, and builds on an earlier framework. It is intended as a guide for those familiar with the basic concepts of resilience and systems dynamics. Access the workbooks here.

Join the RA's researcher database, submit your own profile, and search the database to find others working in your field. Anyone may submit their information for review and inclusion in the database. Database fields include: name, institution, position, country, geographic area of research, keywords, brief summary of research interests, and contact information.

Join the RA's email group for graduate students and post-docs doing resilience-related research. The email group is open to all graduate students/post-docs who are interested in discussing resilience research and sharing information on events, conferences, literature, etc. Read More.

Radio Feature: Resilience, Adaptation and Transformation in Turbulent Times. Mark Sommer, host and executive producer of A World of Possibilities, interviewed scientists and researchers from around the world at the Resilience 2008 conference in Stockholm, Sweden. The 55minute long radio show can be heard online and includes interviews with Buzz Holling, Brian Walker, Carl Folke, Charles Redman, Will Steffan and Frances Westley. Their combined wisdom provides insight into how societies can become resilient in the face of traumatic change and unprecedented transition. World of Possibilities is an award-winning, nationally and internationally syndicated radio program, that is part of the Mainstream Media Project. The show’s website includes links to other guest interviews that were recorded at the conference.