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We have entered the geological epoch of the Anthropocene: the age of humans. Humanity is now the largest driving force of change on the planet – and the changes we have contributed to are vast and ever-growing, from social and political shocks to global environmental crises. Learn in Transforming Development: The Science and Practice of Resilience Thinking how resilience thinking can help us tackle these changes and why it is a valuable lens for global development. With experts from the Stockholm Resilience Centre, Stellenbosch University, and other leading institutions, this is a can’t-miss overview of modern approaches to sustainable development.

About Transforming Development: The Science and Practice of Resilience Thinking
It explores how concepts from resilience may help us re-think and transform current development practice. With concerns about climate and global environmental changes, extreme events, and increases in social, economic, and political shocks, the concept of resilience is proving popular across a range of sectors as a way to understand and respond to our surprise-riddled world.

Resilience thinking includes the ability to persist in the face of change, adapt to new realities, or transform to fundamentally new paths for development. Resilience thinking is more than a theory, more than a set of tools. It is a way of seeing the world, offering a new perspective on how change happens in the world. Resilience thinking provides a new approach for building understanding and taking action in a complex world that is deeply interconnected and ever-changing. A world where planned approaches, existing knowledge and current solutions are not enough to effectively respond to the challenges in a highly dynamic and uncertain future. Addressing poverty, injustice, and inequality, and advancing human well-being remain a major ambition and challenge for the 21st century. Now is the time to consider how development will happen in a context radically different from the past.

This course includes examples from practitioners working with resilience concepts in diverse contexts around the world. It is supported by strong scientific evidence and case studies from researchers at a number of universities. Above all, this course is committed to being a platform that brings together individuals and organizations from around the world, with the common goal of transforming development.

This course is for:

• Development practitioners, policymakers and managers around the world, as well as those working in the development field with an interest in resilience thinking as it relates to policy and practice
• Students interested in the intersection of resilience, sustainability and development, and with a general interest in local to global sustainability challenges
• Anyone with an interest in development, resilience thinking, and sustainability

Course begins: 30 April 2018

Course ends: all graded content must be submitted by 23:00 UCT on June 30, 2018

Length: Seven modules released weekly, with a two-week catch-up period at the end

Effort: 2-4 hours per week

Price: FREE

Languages: English, with French and Spanish transcripts available

Prerequisites: None

Requirements: An internet connection to access course materials

Read more here.