Abstract
The vulnerability of people and places has emerged in the past decade as a central concern related to climate change (IPCC 2001; IHDP 2001) and a key question in the emerging field of sustainability science (see Clark et al. 2000; Kates et al. 2001; Turner, Kasperson, et al. 2003; Turner, Matson, et al. 2003; Eakin and Luers 2006). As it becomes increasingly clear that not everyone or every place is equally vulnerable to the rising frequency of environmental stresses, such as floods and drought resulting from climate change, or to major price shocks and policy changes, researchers and practitioners are seeking to understand what makes some places more vulnerable than others. What can be done to reduce the likelihood of harm for the most vulnerable? How can more resilient and adaptive communities and ecosystems be built or managed?
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Acknowledgments
We thank Bill Turner, Bill Clark, Robert Corell, Lindsey Christensen, Noelle Eckley, Grete Hovelsrud-Broda, Jeanne Kasperson, Roger Kasperson, Marybeth Martello, Svein Mathiesen, Rosamond Naylor, Colin Polsky, Alexander Pulsipher, Andrew Schiller, Henrik Selin, and Nicholas Tyler for their assistance in the development, analysis, and interpretation of this work in the context of our broader vulnerability research. Ivan Ortiz-Monasterio was there for every part of the work. This work was supported in part by National Science Foundation Grant BCS-0004236, with contributions from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Office of Global Programs for the Research and Assessment Systems for Sustainability Program (http://sust.harvard.edu). It builds on collaborations sponsored by the Stockholm Environment Institute with Clark University, the Consortium for Social Science Associations, the International Human Dimensions Program, and the Land-Use/Cover Change Focus 1 Office at Indiana University.
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Matson, P., Luers, A., McCullough, E. (2012). Exploring Vulnerability in the Yaqui Valley Human-Environment System. In: Matson, P.A. (eds) Seeds of Sustainability. Island Press/Center for Resource Economics. https://doi.org/10.5822/978-1-61091-177-1_6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.5822/978-1-61091-177-1_6
Publisher Name: Island Press/Center for Resource Economics
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