Resilient communities: transitions, pathways and resourcefulness

Abstract

This is a Review Essay. It uses as a starting point ideas from the recent book by Geoff A Wilson, Community resilience and environmental transitions, to develop arguments about the nature of work by geographers on the resilience of human communities. It considers the legacy of ideas about resilience derived from ecology and engineering, whilst noting a third interpretation relating to adaptive resilience and the contribution of work from psychology on resilience in individuals. The Review addresses the notion of ‘community capital’, considering how ideas from Pierre Bourdieu have been extended in the past two decades, including attempts to measure various capitals. Scale effects of resilience are examined as is the development of theory linking multi-functionality and resilience. Related work on adaptability and transition pathways are also addressed as are contributions on the resilience of cities and regions. The Review concludes by presenting critiques of some of the work on resilience, whilst referring to potential alternatives and potentially fruitful future lines of inquiry.