Symposium on Resilience and Sustainability

Georgia Tech Research Corporation, Atlanta GA

Investigators

Abstract

1247729 (Crittenden). This award provides partial financial support for the participation of U.S. scientists and engineers in the Symposium on Resilience and Sustainability that is being organized by faculty at Ohio State University, Portland State University, the Georgia Institute of Technology, and Oberlin College in collaboration with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The symposium will be held on Monday, January 14, 2013 in conjunction with the National Council for Science and Environment (NCSE) annual conference on January 15-17, 2013, which has an overall theme of ?Environmental Disasters, Science Preparedness and Resilience.? Highlights of the symposium results will be presented in a plenary session at the NCSE conference. The purpose of this symposium is to convene researchers and practitioners from a variety of fields that are investigating the modeling, assessment, and improvement of resilience in economic, social, and ecological systems. By stimulating trans-disciplinary thinking and collaboration, the symposium aims to (a) develop a more integrated understanding of common principles of resilient and sustainable systems, and (b) identify useful approaches or tools for enhancing the resilience, sustainability, and productive harmony of human and natural systems. This symposium will contribute to the understanding that ecological insights and systems thinking can help human enterprises and communities to develop greater resilience in order to anticipate surprises, recover from disruptions, and evolve in response to external pressures. Special efforts will be made to recruit speakers from groups that are underrepresented in science and engineering (e.g., minorities and women). The topics of environmental justice and equitable policies for disaster response will be addressed.