Catherine Gross

Human behavior and sustainability

7 Sustainability demands changes in human behavior. To this end, priority areas include reforming formal insti- tutions, strengthening the institutions of civil society, improving citizen engagement, curbing consumption and population growth, addressing social justice issues, and reflecting on value and belief systems. We review existing knowledge across these areas and conclude that the global sustainability deficit is not primarily the result of a lack of academic knowledge. Rather, unsustainable behaviors result from a vicious cycle, where tra- ditional market and state institutions reinforce disincentives for more sustainable behaviors while, at the same time, the institutions of civil society lack momentum to effectively promote fundamental reforms of those insti- tutions. Achieving more sustainable behaviors requires this cycle to be broken. We call on readers to contribute to social change through involvement in initiatives like the Ecological Society of Americas Earth Stewardship Initiative or the nascent Millennium Alliance for Humanity & the Biosphere.

From barriers to limits to climate change adaptation: path dependency and the speed of change

Research on the barriers and limits to climate change adaptation identifies many factors, but describes few processes whereby adaptation is constrained or may indeed fail to avoid catastrophic losses. It often assumes that barriers are by and large distinct from limits to adaptation. We respond to recent calls for comparative studies that are able to further knowledge about the underlying drivers of barriers and limits to adaptation. We compare six cases from across Australia, including those in alpine areas, rivers, reefs, wetlands, small inland communities, and islands, with the aim of identifying common underlying drivers of barriers and limits to adaptation. We find that the path-dependent nature of the institutions that govern natural resources and public goods is a deep driver of barriers and limits to adaptation. Path-dependent institutions are resistant to change. When this resistance causes the changes necessary for adaptation to be slower than changes in climate, then it becomes a limit to adaptation.

Fairness and Justice in Environmental Decision Making: Water Under the Bridge

1. A Global Concern: Seeking Fairness in Resource Sharing 2. Theories of Justice and the Search for Fairness 3. Developing a Justice-based Research Approach 4. Voices and Stories: Two Water Conflicts in Australia 5. Finding Injustice - Seeking Justice 6. A Sense of Justice - Processes and Outcomes 7. Muddying the Waters: Worldviews, Institutions and Change 8. Justice as a Means and an End in Environmental Decision-making