Abstract
It has become common for sustainability science and resilience theory to be considered as complementary approaches. Occasionally the terms have been used interchangeably. Although these two approaches share some working principles and objectives, they also are based on some distinct assumptions about the operation of systems and how we can best guide these systems into the future. Each approach would benefit from some scholars keeping sustainability science and resilience theory separate and focusing on further developing their distinctiveness and other scholars continuing to explore them in combination. Three areas of research in which following different procedures might be beneficial are whether to prioritize outcomes or system dynamics, how best to take advantage of community input, and increasing the use of knowledge of the past as a laboratory for potential innovations.
Highlights
To advance understanding of how best to accomplish maximum good for society and the environment, many researchers are attempting to combine the concepts and theoretical approaches of sustainability science and resilience theory
It has become common for sustainability science and resilience theory to be considered as complementary approaches
Each approach would benefit from some scholars keeping sustainability science and resilience theory separate and focusing on further developing their distinctiveness and other scholars continuing to explore them in combination
Summary
To advance understanding of how best to accomplish maximum good for society and the environment, many researchers are attempting to combine the concepts and theoretical approaches of sustainability science and resilience theory. To the extent that transformative strategies are aimed at specific system changes or outcomes, they have much in common with sustainability-science approaches such as transition management (Rotmans et al 2001, Loorbach 2010), in which projecting trajectories of change and making appropriate interventions are the objectives. These efforts benefit from enabling factors such as effective leaders who act as change agents, knowledge of the implications of probable outcomes, and the financial and institutional resources to enact the changes. Because the outcome of the system moving through the adaptive cycle is not predetermined, the resilience theorist must be willing to take action based on incomplete knowledge of the impact of that action and with confidence that the emergent properties of the
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