Photo: M. Troell/Azote

Photo: M. Troell

Marine system dynamics

This theme aims to provide a broader and deeper understanding of the resilience and dynamics of marine social-ecological systems

Research within the theme explores and analyses the dynamics of the marine social-ecological systems, and how they are connected to markets and processes that act across different spatial and temporal scales. We aim to synthesize information across case studies that span the tropics (around Australia, Hawaii, the East coast of Africa, South East Asia, and Latin America), the Arctic, as well as temperate systems including the Seas of Norden (e.g. Baltic Sea, Norwegian Sea).

Important research areas within the marine theme include:
- Social-ecological cross-scale interactions
- Global seafood production systems and their links to food security, human wellbeing, and sustainable seafood.
- Transformations of seafood supply chains and consumption patterns.
- Exploring adaptive management approaches.
- Testing regime shifts and CAS theory across marine case studies using modelling and advanced statistics.
- Exploring alternative sustainable development transformations.

Research topics include, for example, coral reef dynamics, fisheries governance, sustainability of aquaculture, marine food-web dynamics, social-ecological health assessments, management implications of global trade dynamics and geopolitics, and sustainable seafood supply chains and fisheries improvements.

The theme uses and tests theories and transdisciplinary methods, including agent based modelling, complex adaptive system modelling, social network analysis, spatial analyses, and qualitative comparison analysis. Researchers of the theme collaborate closely with several other themes and streams at the Stockholm Resilience Centre as well as colleagues at the Stockholm University and other leading international research institutes around the world, including Princeton and Stanford Universities.

Theme contact

Staff details

Theme contact

Theme contact

Thorsten Blenckner

Tracy van Holt

Susa Niiranen

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THEME PUBLICATIONS

Benchmarking the environmental performance of best management practice and genetic improvements in Egyptian aquaculture using life cycle assessment

Henriksson, P.J.G., M. Dickson, A.N. Allah AN, D. Al-Kenawy, M. Phillips

2017 - Journal / article

Egyptian aquaculture is gaining importance as an affordable and nutritious source of animal protein among Egyptians. Nile tilapia dominates production (77% of total production), followed by carps (17%) and mullets (11%). Egyptian tilapia farmers are, however, facing challenges with regards to financial viability and poor water quality. Fish farms are also contributing towards water pollution and other environmental impacts. In...

Marine Ecosystem Science on an Intertwined Planet

Österblom, H., B.I. Crona, C. Folke, M. Nyström, M. Troell.

2017 - Journal / article

Marine ecosystem science has developed since the 1940s, when humans obtained the ability to spend substantial time underneath the surface of the ocean. Since then, and drawing on several decades of scientific advances, a number of exciting research frontiers have emerged. We find: Understanding interacting drivers of change, Identifying thresholds in ecosystems, and Investigating social-ecological dynamics to represent particu...

The consequences of landscape change on fishing strategies

Van Holt, T., B. Crona, J.C. Johnson, S. Gelcich.

2017 - Journal / article

We show how land-use change can affect fisher-harvesting behavior. We test whether fisher harvesting behavior can be predicted by landscape change patterns at local (~ 200 km) and regional (~ 1200 km) levels. Our data suggest that fishers harvesting in areas near tree plantations reduced benthic-invertebrate harvests in favor of demersal and pelagic finfish that are usually located further offshore. Fishers' management areas, ...

Step-wise drops in modularity and the fragmentation of exploited marine metapopulations

Peña, T.S., Watson, J.R., González-Guzmán, L.I. et al.

2017 - Journal / article

Many nearshore species are distributed in habitat patches connected only through larval dispersal. Genetic research has shown some spatial structure of such metapopulations and modeling studies have shed light onto possible patterns of connectivity and barriers. However, little is known about human impact on their spatial structure and patterns of connectivity. We examine the effects of fishing on the spatial and temporal dyna...

Projects

Baltic Health Index

The Baltic Health Index is a regional study under the global Ocean Health Index framework. The aim is to provide a tool for decision-makers to guide management of the Baltic Sea region towards increased sustainability. Read more here

Sustainable Poverty Alleviation from Coastal Ecosystem Services (SPACES)

SPACES aims to understand the complex relationship between ecosystem services and the wellbeing of the poor in coastal Kenya and Mozambique. Read more here

Stockholm Resilience Centre is a collaboration between Stockholm University and the Beijer Institute of Ecological Economics at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences

Stockholm Resilience Centre
Stockholm University, Kräftriket 2B
SE-10691
Phone: +46 8 674 70 70
info@stockholmresilience.su.se

Organisation number: 202100-3062
VAT No: SE202100306201