Session 8– 11.01.2010 Emergent properties of coupled human-environment systems (Speaker: B.L. Turner II)

Required reading from the Sustainability Science book (Speaker: B.L. Turner II)

B. L. (Bill) Turner II took his B.A. and M.A. degrees in geography from the University of Texas at Austin in 1968 and 1969 respectively, and his Ph.D. in geography from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1974. At ASU he is the Gilbert F. White Professor of Environment and Society. Turner came to ASU after 28 years in the Graduate School of Geography, Clark University, where he was Higgins Professor of Environment and Society, served as Director of that School for more than decade, and helped to create and administer the George Perkins Marsh Institute, which engages a range of human-environment problems. He previously held appointments at the University of Oklahoma and the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Professor Turner is currently engaged in land change science focused especially on deforestation and sustainability in the southern Yucatán. Turner is a recipient of Distinguished Research Honors from the Association of American Geographers (1995) and the Centenary Medal, Royal Scottish Geographical Society (1996), among other honors. He is former Guggenheim Fellow (1981) and Fellow of the Center for Advanced Studies in the Behavioral Sciences (1994). He was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 1995, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1998, and the inaugural class of the Massachusetts Academy of Sciences in 2008. Professor Turner continues to engage in large range of research activities focused on the theme of human-environment relationships. See http://geoplan.asu.edu/turner

Supplemental readings from the Reader

1) Holling, C. S. 2001. Understanding the complexity of economic, ecological, and social systems. Ecosystems 4(5):390-405. 2) Lenton, T. M., H. Held, E. Kriegler, J. W. Hall, W. Lucht, S. Rahmstorf, and H. J. Schellnhuber. 2008. Tipping elements in the Earth’s climate system. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 105(6):1786-1793. 3) Cumming, G. S., and J. Collier. 2005. Change and identity in complex systems. Ecology and Society 10(1): 29.

Supplemental readings from moderator/discussant Jim Heffernan, Cambridge Group

 

Supplemental readings from Cambridge students

 

Speaker Presentations

 

Video Recording: Emergent properties of coupled human-environment systems

Speaker B.L. Turner, J. Heffernan moderator, Cambridge students

Session 8 Summary from Cambridge Students