Resilience
Critical Planning
UCLA Urban Planning Journal
Volume 17, Summer 2010
Deadline: January 15, 2010
Knowledge of the system we deal with is always incomplete. Surprise is
inevitable. Not only is the science incomplete, the system itself is a
moving target.
– C. S. Holling (1993)
Recent macro-economic crises, from the American subprime mortgage
collapse to the global financial meltdown, together with projected
ecological catastrophes, from climate change to the post-peak oil
production decline, have all raised a crucial question: how might
urban systems accommodate future “shocks,” “crises,” “disasters,” and
“emergencies” in whatever (un)expected forms they might take?
Derived from ecology, the concept of resilience is defined as the
“measure of the persistence of systems and of their ability to absorb
change and disturbance and still maintain the same relationships
between populations or state variables” (Holling 1973). A resilient
system is formed by the dynamic interplay between deterministic forces
and random events, structural factors and human agency, linear paths
and contingency. Such heterogeneity and variability allow resilient
systems to absorb unforeseen shocks, continually adapting and evolving
so as to resist collapse.
As the earth’s population approaches seven billion — and becomes
increasingly urbanized, globalized, and interconnected — our
collective vulnerability to large-scale shocks also multiplies,
demanding more sophisticated, critical approaches in theory and
practice. Sprawling natural/ecological and human/social systems grow
intricately intertwined as well as ever more precarious. How then
might the concept of resilience inform urban research on the ground?
How might urban planning scholars, practitioners, and policymakers
integrate a perspective that presupposes uncertainty, heterogeneity,
and collective entanglement?
For its 17th volume, Critical Planning invites articles that explore
the question of resilience empirically, theoretically, and
historically in specific urban contexts around the world. We welcome
papers and creative projects that investigate resilience in relation
to: theoretical problems (sustainability, development, scale,
diversity); ongoing environmental/ecological concerns (climate change,
dwindling natural resources); the changing urban built environment
(sprawl, the rural/urban interface); unfolding civil conflict and
struggle (urban social movements); movements of people (migration and
refugee flows); evolving socioeconomic regimes (neoliberalism, market
socialism); and the interplay of political ideologies and collective
imaginaries, among other topics.
References
Holling, C. S. 1973. Resilience and stability of ecological systems.
Laxenburg, Austria: International Institute for Applied Systems
Analysis.
Perrings, Charles. 2006. Resilience and sustainable development.
Environment and Development Economics. 11 (4): 417-427.
Scoones, I. 1999. New ecology and the social sciences: What prospects
for a fruitful engagement? Annual Review of Anthropology. 28: 479-507.
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Critical Planning is a double-blind peer-reviewed publication. Feature
articles are generally between 5,000 and 7,000 words, while shorter
articles are between 1,000 and 3,000 words. We encourage submissions
that incorporate cross-disciplinary, multi-scalar, multi-sited,
transnational, and/or mixed-method approaches. We also welcome
submissions of photographs, maps, art, or design projects related to
the topic of resilience for publication in the journal.
The 2010 Edward W. Soja Prize for Critical Thinking in Urban and
Regional Research will be awarded to the best article published in
Critical Planning volume 17. The prize celebrates the lifetime
achievements of this critical thinker whose work continues to open new
research directions for the theoretical and practical understanding of
con
temporary cities and regions. For the prize, we will consider articles selected for publication through Critical Planning’s
double-blind peer review process. Preference will be given to authors
speaking to critical issues outside the research agendas of
traditional funding agencies and institutional donors. A $1,000 prize
will be awarded to the author of the winning article.
Submissions will be accepted on a rolling basis, and we highly
encourage early submissions. Feel free to contact us by email to
discuss your ideas. All submissions should be written according to the
standards of the Chicago Manual of Style, 15th Edition. Please follow
the journal’s additional style guidelines for submissions. Manuscripts
should be submitted by 5 PM PST on January 15, 2010 as .doc
attachments via email to [log in to unmask] and two hardcopies
(postmarked by January 15) mailed to:
Critical Planning
c/o Orly Linovski, Managing Editor
UCLA Department of Urban Planning
School of Public Affairs
3250 Public Policy Building
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1656
USA
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