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Publications
Evolution of the polycrisis: Anthropocene traps that challenge global sustainability
Søgaard Jørgensen, P., R. E. V. Jansen, D. I. Avila Ortega, L. Wang-Erlandsson, J. F. Donges, H. Österblom, P. Olsson, M. Nyström, S. J. Lade, T. Hahn, C. Folke, G. D. Peterson, and A.-S. Crépin. 2023. Evolution of the polycrisis: Anthropocene traps that challenge global sustainability. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 379(1893):20220261.
The Anthropocene is characterized by accelerating change and global challenges of increasing complexity. Inspired by what some have called a polycrisis, we explore whether the human trajectory of increasing complexity and influence on the Earth system could become a form of trap for humanity. Based on an adaptation of the evolutionary traps concept to a global human context, we present results from a participatory mapping....
Transnational corporations, biosphere stewardship, and sustainable futures
Österblom, H., J. Bebbington, R. Blasiak, M. Sobkowiak, and C. Folke. 2022. Transnational corporations, biosphere stewardship, and sustainable futures. Annual Review of Environment and Resources 47:609-635.
Corporations are perceived as increasingly powerful and critically important to ensuring that irreversible climatological or ecological tipping points on Earth are not crossed. Environmental impacts of corporate activities include pollution of soils, freshwater and the ocean, depletion of ecosystems and species, unsustainable use of resources, changes to air quality, and alteration of the global climate. Negative social impacts include unacceptable working conditions, erosion of traditional...
Scientific mobilization of Keystone Actors for Biosphere Stewardship
Österblom, H., C. Folke, J. Rocha, J. Bebbington, R. Blasiak, J.-B. Jouffray, E.R. Selig, C. C. Wabnitz, F. Bengtsson, B. Crona, R. Gupta, P.J. Henriksson, K.A. Johansson, A. Merrie, S. Nakayama, G.O. Crespo, J. Rockström, L. Schultz, M. Sobkowiak, P.S. Jørgensen, J. Spijkers, M. Troell, P. Villarrubia-Gómez, and J. Lubchenco. 2022. Scientific mobilization of Keystone Actors for Biosphere Stewardship. Scientific Reports 12(3802).
The biosphere crisis requires changes to existing business practices. We ask how corporations can become sustainability leaders, when constrained by multiple barriers to collaboration for biosphere stewardship. We describe how scientists motivated, inspired and engaged with ten of the world’s largest seafood companies, in a collaborative process aimed to enable science-based and systemic transformations (2015–2021). CEOs faced multiple industry crises in 2015 that incentivized novel...
The Power of giants
Galaz, V., Crépin, A.-S., Fichtner, J., Hallerby, R., Jonsson, M., Kedward, K., Nessen, M., Ryan-Collins, J., Ölcer, D., Österblom, H. 2022. The Power of giants. In: Galaz V. and Collste, D. (eds). Economy and Finance for a Just Future on a Thriving Planet. Report for Stockholm+50. Beijer Institute of Ecological Economics (Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences) and Stockholm Resilience Centre (Stockholm University). Chapter 5.
Not all economic and financial actors are equally influential. Our globalised economies contain a considerable concentration of influence and power, possibly putting Earth’s future in the hands of but a few.
