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A Dynamic Network Model of Societal Complexity and Resilience Inspired by Tainter’s Theory of Collapse

This study examines the dynamics of societal collapse based on Joseph Tainter’s theory of the “collapse of complex societies.” It explores how rising societal complexity influences productivity and the likelihood of collapse. The findings show that increasing complexity, driven by external stresses, increases the risk of collapse, highlighting the direct link between complexity and vulnerability […]

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Polycrisis in the Anthropocene: An Invitation to Contributions and Debates

This commentary introduces “Polycrisis in the Anthropocene,” a special issue of Global Sustainability journal. It elaborates upon three major contributions of the issue’s lead article, “Global Polycrisis: The Causal Mechanisms of Crisis Entanglement,” and it explores three key debates surrounding the polycrisis concept: Are we in a polycrisis, at risk of a polycrisis, or neither?

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The Terrible Twenties? The Assholocene? What to Call Our Chaotic Era

Kyle Chayka considers different possible labels for “our chaotic historical moment, a term that we can use when we want to evoke the panicky incoherence of our lives of late.” Contenders include artist and author James Biddle’s “New Dark Age,” which emphasizes the dangers and disappointments of the internet era; social strategist Liz Lenkinski’s “Age

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Navigating the Polycrisis – Governing for Transformation: The 2024 Agenda for the Systems Community

The authors argue that the concept of the “global problematique” introduced by the Club of Rome over 50 years ago anticipated what we now call polycrisis by presenting a cybersystemic perspective on the linkages between multiple challenges. They warn that the polycrisis concept could suffer the same fate as global problematique by changing discourse but

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Why So Much is Going Wrong at the Same Time

Addressing critiques of the polycrisis concept from the political right and left, Thomas Homer-Dixon argues that the world is in a polycrisis generated by novel and unprecedented conditions, as measured by total human energy consumption, Earth’s energy imbalance, the human population’s total biomass, and global connectivity. He then highlights the interconnected nature of contemporary problems

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Understanding Polycrisis: Definitions, Applications, and Responses

This paper compares conceptualizations of the term “polycrisis,” raising questions about the key aspects of different definitions while stressing a convergence in critical features. It conceives a polycrisis as a state in which multiple, macroregional, ecologically embedded, and inexorably interconnected systems face high – and advancing – risk across socioeconomic, political, and other dimensions. After

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The Polycrisis: An Introduction

This webinar addresses the origin and definition of the term ‘Polycrisis’; the environmental, social, political and economic factors contributing to the Polycrisis; and the risks arising from the accumulation, interaction, and worsening of those contributory factors. It also considers the ways in which complexity, uncertainty and conflicting priorities are contributing to the Polycrisis, how the

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Hawaii Wildfires Expose Need for Resilience in a Polycrisis World

Joseph Fiskel argues that the Maui wildfire reveals just how unprepared communities are to face polycrises. In response, he advocates systems thinking and greater resilience: “Rather than simply ‘bouncing back’ from crises, a resilient organization will ‘bounce forward’ by sensing threats, adapting to new conditions, and improving its responsiveness to surprise events. This requires long-term thinking,

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