Johan Rockström
Encyclopedia
Johan Rockström is executive director of the Stockholm Environment Institute
and the Stockholm Resilience Centre
, and teaches natural resource management at Stockholm University
. He is a strategist on how resilience
can be built into land regions which are short of water, and has published over 100 papers in fields ranging from practical land and water use to global sustainability.
Rockström is internationally recognized on global sustainability issues. In 2009, he led the team which developed the Planetary Boundaries
framework, a proposed precondition for facilitating human development at a time when the planet is undergoing rapid change. In recognition of this work, Fokus magazine named him "Swede of the Year" for "engaging and exciting work in sustainable development. Rockström is vice-chair of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research
and chair of the Earth System Visioning Task Team of International Council for Science
. In 2010, the magazine Miljöaktuellt ranked him the second most influential person in Sweden on environmental issues, and Veckans Affärer
gave him its “Social Capitalist Award". In 2011 he chaired the third Nobel Laureate Symposium on Global Sustainability in Stockholm.
. The framework posits that there are Earth system processes on the planet that have boundaries or thresholds which should not be crossed. The extent to which these boundaries are not crossed marks what the group calls the safe operating space for humanity. The group identified nine "planetary life support systems" essential for human survival, and attempted to quantify just how far seven of these systems have been pushed already. They then estimated how much further we can go before our own survival is threatened; beyond these boundaries there is a risk of "irreversible and abrupt environmental change" which could make Earth less habitable
. Boundaries can help identify where there is room and define a "safe space for human development", which is an improvement on approaches which aim at just minimizing human impacts on the planet.
Stockholm Environment Institute
The Stockholm Environment Institute, or SEI, is a non-profit, independent research and policy institute specialising in sustainable development and environmental issues.-Mission:...
and the Stockholm Resilience Centre
Stockholm Resilience Centre
The Stockholm Resilience Centre is an international research centre at Stockholm University that focuses on the resilience of social-ecological systems....
, and teaches natural resource management at Stockholm University
Stockholm University
Stockholm University is a state university in Stockholm, Sweden. It has over 28,000 students at four faculties, making it one of the largest universities in Scandinavia. The institution is also frequently regarded as one of the top 100 universities in the world...
. He is a strategist on how resilience
Resilience (ecology)
In ecology, resilience is the capacity of an ecosystem to respond to a perturbation or disturbance by resisting damage and recovering quickly. Such perturbations and disturbances can include stochastic events such as fires, flooding, windstorms, insect population explosions, and human activities...
can be built into land regions which are short of water, and has published over 100 papers in fields ranging from practical land and water use to global sustainability.
Rockström is internationally recognized on global sustainability issues. In 2009, he led the team which developed the Planetary Boundaries
Planetary boundaries
Planetary boundaries is the central concept in an Earth system framework proposed by a group of Earth system and environmental scientists led by Johan Rockström from the Stockholm Resilience Centre and Will Steffen from the Australian National University...
framework, a proposed precondition for facilitating human development at a time when the planet is undergoing rapid change. In recognition of this work, Fokus magazine named him "Swede of the Year" for "engaging and exciting work in sustainable development. Rockström is vice-chair of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research
Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research
The Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research is a research institute specialising in the fields of global change, climate impact and sustainable development.-References:* USA Today -Further Reading:* Study -See Also:* Climatic Research Unit...
and chair of the Earth System Visioning Task Team of International Council for Science
International Council for Science
The International Council for Science , formerly the International Council of Scientific Unions, was founded in 1931 as an international non-governmental organization devoted to international co-operation in the advancement of science...
. In 2010, the magazine Miljöaktuellt ranked him the second most influential person in Sweden on environmental issues, and Veckans Affärer
Veckans Affärer
Veckans Affärer is a Swedish business journal published weekly, dealing in all business-related matters both within and outside Sweden....
gave him its “Social Capitalist Award". In 2011 he chaired the third Nobel Laureate Symposium on Global Sustainability in Stockholm.
Planetary boundaries
In 2009, Rockström lead an international group of 28 leading academics, who proposed a new Earth system framework for government and management agencies as a precondition for sustainable developmentSustainable development
Sustainable development is a pattern of resource use, that aims to meet human needs while preserving the environment so that these needs can be met not only in the present, but also for generations to come...
. The framework posits that there are Earth system processes on the planet that have boundaries or thresholds which should not be crossed. The extent to which these boundaries are not crossed marks what the group calls the safe operating space for humanity. The group identified nine "planetary life support systems" essential for human survival, and attempted to quantify just how far seven of these systems have been pushed already. They then estimated how much further we can go before our own survival is threatened; beyond these boundaries there is a risk of "irreversible and abrupt environmental change" which could make Earth less habitable
Planetary habitability
Planetary habitability is the measure of a planet's or a natural satellite's potential to sustain life. Life may develop directly on a planet or satellite or be transferred to it from another body, a theoretical process known as panspermia...
. Boundaries can help identify where there is room and define a "safe space for human development", which is an improvement on approaches which aim at just minimizing human impacts on the planet.
Some recent publications
- Rockström J, L Karlberg and M Falkenmark (2011) "Global Food Production in a water-constrained world: exploring 'green' and 'blue' challenges and solutions." In Grafton, R. Q. and K. Hussey (eds.) 2011. Water Resources Planning and Management. Cambridge University Press.
- Rockström J and L Karlberg (2010) The quadruple squeeze: Defining the safe operating space for freshwater use to achieve a triply green revolution in the Anthropocene. Ambio, 39(3): 257-265.
- Hoff H, M Falkenmark, D Gerten, L Gordon, L Karlberg and J Rockström (eds.) (2010) Journal of Hydrology: Green-Blue Water Initiative (GBI), 384(3/4): 175-306.
- Enfors E, J Barron, H Makurira, J Rockström and S Tumbo (2010) Yield and soil system changes from conservation tillage in dryland farming: A case study from North Eastern Tanzania. Agricultural Water Managemen, online 7 April. doi:10.1016/j.agwat.2010.02.013
- Reid WV, D Chen, L Goldfarb, H Hackmann, YT Lee, K Mokhele, E Ostrom, K Raivio, J Rockström, HJ Schellnhuber and A Whyte (2010) Earth System Science for Global Sustainability: Grand Challenges. Science, 12 November, pp. 916–917.
- Kijne, J, J Barron, H Hoff, J Rockström, L Karlberg, J Gowing, SP Wani, D Wichelns (2009) Opportunities to increase water productivity in agriculture with special reference to Africa and South Asia. Stockholm: SEI. SEI project report.
- Hoff H, M Falkenmark, D Gerten, L Gordon, L Karlberg and J Rockström (2010) Greening the global water system. Journal of Hydrology, 384(3/4): 177-186.
- Wani SP, Rockström J and Oweis TY (2009) Rainfed agriculture: unlocking the potential CABI. ISBN 9781845933890.
- Rockström J, M Falkenmark, L Karlberg, H Hoff, S Rost and D Gerten (2009) Future water availability for global food production: The potential of green water for increasing resilience to global change. Water Resources Research, vol. 45.
- Rost S, D Gerten, H Hoff, W Lucht, M Falkenmark, J Rockström (2009) Global potential to increase crop production through water management in rainfed agriculture. Environmental Research Letters, no. 4, 9 pp.
- Kartha S, Siebert CK, Mathur R, Nakicenovic N, Ramanathan V, Rockström J, Schellnhuber HJ, Srivastava L and Watt R (2009) A Copenhagen Prognosis: towards a safe climate future Stockholm Environment Institute.
- Rockström J, Steffen W, Noone K, Persson Å, Chapin III FS, Lambin EF, Lenton TM, Scheffer M, Folke C, Schellnhuber HJ, Nykvist B, de Wit CA, Hughes T, van der Leeuw S, Rodhe H, Sörlin S, Snyder PK, Costanza R, Svedin U, Falkenmark M, Karlberg L, Corell RW, Fabry VJ, Hansen J, Walker B, Liverman D, Richardson K, Crutzen P and Foley JA (2009) "A safe operating space for humanity" Nature, 461: 472–475. * Rockström J, Vohland K, Lucht W, Lotze-Campen H, von Weizsäcker EU and Tariq Banuri T (2007) "Making progress within and beyond borders" In: Schellnhuber H-J, Stern N and Molina M (eds) Global sustainability: a Nobel cause, Chapter 4, pages 33–48. Cambridge University Press, 2010. ISBN 9780521769341.
- Falkenmark M and Rockström J (2004) Balancing water for humans and nature: the new approach in ecohydrology Earthscan. ISBN 9781853839276.
- Wijkman AAnders WijkmanAnders Ivar Sven Wijkman is a Swedish politician and Member of the European Parliament. As a member of the European Parliament, he focusses on issues related to climate change, environment, development cooperation and humanitarian affairs.He is a member of the Christian Democrats, part of the...
and Rockström J (2011) Den stora förnekelsen (Swedish), The Great Denial (English version due late 2011), new book: interview review
External links
- Johan Rockström Stockholm Environment Institute.
- Win-win solutions from a new Green Revolution People & Planet, 27 April 2011.
- Humanity needs to take 'giant leap' BBC News, 27 July 2010.
- Johan Rockstrom: Let the environment guide our development TEDTED (conference)TED is a global set of conferences owned by the private non-profit Sapling Foundation, formed to disseminate "ideas worth spreading"....
video, July 2010. Transcript html