Resilience revisited 011: Resilience as ‘capacity to embrace uncertainty’

For centuries, we’ve believed that with enough knowledge and technology, humanity could master nature. Our worldview positions certainty (confidence in ‘knowing’ what to expect) and preparedness (capacity to respond with minimal ‘casualty’) as natural allies, shaping everything from economic systems to emergency responses. However, in our age of Polycrisis, this foundational construct is unravelling. Climate change, political instability, pandemics, and economic upheaval reveal not just the limitations of our assumed control but the necessity of embracing unresolved tension. Nature’s complex interconnections demonstrate that our efforts to impose order are often directly linked to the cascading challenges we now face.

Tamzin Ractliffe

Read full article by Tamzin Ractliffe on LinkedIn