Henrik Österblom
Biographic Data
| ID | 1570199 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Henrik Österblom |
| GIVEN NAMES | Henrik |
| FAMILY NAME | Österblom |
| SIGNATURE | ÖSTERBLOM H |
| AFFILIATIONS | Stockholm Resilience Centre |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-1913-5197 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 38 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 380 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 38 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2006 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2025 |
| H-INDEX | 9 |
Exploring evidence of cascading change towards stewardship in the Japanese seafood industry
There is a growing global demand for a more sustainable seafood industry, and pre-competitive initiatives have emerged on multiple continents to meet this demand. Such initiatives could have “cascading effects,” suggesting that their impacts may extend beyond their direct participants to effect broader, industry-wide change. To date, little research has been conducted to determine whether pre-competitive initiatives are triggering such cascading …
An expanded evaluation of global fisheries management organizations on the high seas
The high seas comprise nearly half the Earth’s surface and the 2023 United Nations Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction agreement renewed efforts to better manage this vast area. Regional fisheries management organizations (RFMOs) are tasked with a UN dual-mandate to ensure the (1) long-term conservation of fish stocks and their associated ecosystems while managing the (2) sustainable use of high seas fisheries. Building on a previous analys…
Meaningful transdisciplinary collaborations for sustainability
Meaningful transdisciplinary collaborations that weave diverse ways of knowing, doing, and feeling are increasingly recognized as central for enabling just and sustainable transformations. This Special Feature explores the unique contributions of art-science transdisciplinary collaborations in addressing complex social-ecological challenges. Drawing from a series of transdisciplinary projects, we examine how co-created processes between scientist…
The Ocean Decade as an instrument of peace
The United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development 2021–2030 (the ‘Ocean Decade’) is poised to stimulate new cooperation for ocean science, but makes no mention of conflict or peace. We contend that this is a missed opportunity, and use an environmental peacebuilding typology to review how ocean science has historically contributed to peace. Such considerations are timely in the context of an increasingly complex and multidime…
To split a stone
Science and art are often disconnected but, if combined, can help stimulate learning and novelty and guide societal change. How then to bridge the divide between scientists and artists in a way that extends beyond superficial, short-term interactions? We describe an ongoing coproduction practice between a Swedish sustainability scientist and two Chilean artists—a sculptor and painter—striving to find ways to work together. Our transdisciplinary c…
A regional Pecs node built from place-based social-ecological sustainability research in Latin America and the Caribbean
Sustainability requires a combination of meaningful co-production of locally relevant solutions, synthesis of insights gained across regions, and increased cooperation between science, policy and practice. The Programme for Ecosystem Change and Society (PECS) has been coordinating Place-Based Social-Ecological Sustainability Research (PBSESR) across the globe and emphasizes the need for regional scientific nodes from diverse biocultural regions t…
Earth altruism
Six modes of co-production for sustainability
Co-productive agility and four collaborative pathways to sustainability transformations
Co-production, the collaborative weaving of research and practice by diverse societal actors, is argued to play an important role in sustainability transformations. Yet, there is still poor understanding of how to navigate the tensions that emerge in these processes. Through analyzing 32 initiatives worldwide that co-produced knowledge and action to foster sustainable social-ecological relations, we conceptualize ‘co-productive agility’ as an eme…
Our future in the Anthropocene biosphere
The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed an interconnected and tightly coupled globalized world in rapid change. This article sets the scientific stage for understanding and responding to such change for global sustainability and resilient societies. We provide a systemic overview of the current situation where people and nature are dynamically intertwined and embedded in the biosphere, placing shocks and extreme events as part of this dynamic; humanity…
Beyond social-ecological traps
Eriksson, H., J. L. Blythe, H. Österblom, and P. Olsson. 2021. Beyond social-ecological traps: fostering transformations towards sustainability. Ecology and Society 26(1):13. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-12198-260113
Science-Industry Collaboration
There is substantial and unexplored potential for scientists to engage with the private sector for a sustainable ocean. The importance of such cooperation is a frequent emphasis of international dialogues and statements, it is embedded within the Sustainable Development Goals, and has been championed by prominent business leaders and scientists. But an uncritical embrace of science-industry collaboration is unhelpful, and candid reflections on th…
Who is the high seas fishing industry
The Blue Acceleration
Does humanity's future lie in the ocean? As demand for resources continues to grow and land-based sources decline, expectations for the ocean as an engine of human development are increasing. Claiming marine resources and space is not new to humanity, but the extent, intensity, and diversity of today's aspirations are unprecedented. We describe this as the blue acceleration—a race among diverse and often competing interests for ocean food, materi…
The theory of cross-scale interactions
Interdependence of social-ecological systems (SES) across the globe is rapidly increasing through increased connectivity, for example, through flow of information and trade. This case study of highly remote Himalayan villages in West Sikkim, India, explores how cross-scale interactions can shape the development of a local SES. In-depth interviews across four different institutional scales—state, district, gram panchayat unit and ward, show a rapi…
Principles for knowledge co-production in sustainability research
Transnational corporations and the challenge of biosphere stewardship
Unsustainable Science
Global patterns of fisheries conflict
Radical ocean futures-scenario development using science fiction prototyping
Scenarios can help individuals, communities, corporations and nations to develop a capacity for dealing with the unknown and unpredictable, or the unlikely but possible. A range of scientific methods for developing scenarios is available, but we argue that they have limited capacity to investigate complex social-ecological futures because: 1) non-linear change is rarely incorporated and: 2) they rarely involve co-evolutionary dynamics of integrat…
Tracing a pathway to success
From shared socio-economic pathways (SSPs) to oceanic system pathways (OSPs)
Transnational Corporations as ‘Keystone Actors’ in Marine Ecosystems
Keystone species have a disproportionate influence on the structure and function of ecosystems. Here we analyze whether a keystone-like pattern can be observed in the relationship between transnational corporations and marine ecosystems globally. We show how thirteen corporations control 11-16% of the global marine catch (9-13 million tons) and 19-40% of the largest and most valuable stocks, including species that play important roles in their re…
Adaptive governance, ecosystem management, and natural capital
Significance Adaptive governance (AG) has been suggested as a suitable approach for ecosystem management in changing environments. It rests on the assumption that landscapes and seascapes need to be understood and governed as complex social–ecological systems rather than as ecosystems alone. We compared three AG initiatives and their effects on natural capital and ecosystem services. In comparison with other efforts aimed at conservation and sust…
Adaptive governance of the Baltic Sea - lessons from elsewhere
Governance of marine resources is increasingly characterized by integrated, cross sectoral and ecosystem based approaches. Such approaches require that existing governing bodies have an ability to adapt to ecosystem dynamics, while also providing transparent and legitimate outcomes. Here, we investigate how the Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission (HELCOM), the international governing body for the Baltic Sea, could improve its prospect…
Our future in the Anthropocene biosphere
The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed an interconnected and tightly coupled globalized world in rapid change. This article sets the scientific stage for understanding and responding to such change for global sustainability and resilient societies. We provide a systemic overview of the current situation where people and nature are dynamically intertwined and embedded in the biosphere, placing shocks and extreme events as part of this dynamic; humanity…
Principles for knowledge co-production in sustainability research
Co-productive agility and four collaborative pathways to sustainability transformations
Co-production, the collaborative weaving of research and practice by diverse societal actors, is argued to play an important role in sustainability transformations. Yet, there is still poor understanding of how to navigate the tensions that emerge in these processes. Through analyzing 32 initiatives worldwide that co-produced knowledge and action to foster sustainable social-ecological relations, we conceptualize ‘co-productive agility’ as an eme…
Reconnecting to the Biosphere
Six modes of co-production for sustainability
Radical ocean futures-scenario development using science fiction prototyping
Scenarios can help individuals, communities, corporations and nations to develop a capacity for dealing with the unknown and unpredictable, or the unlikely but possible. A range of scientific methods for developing scenarios is available, but we argue that they have limited capacity to investigate complex social-ecological futures because: 1) non-linear change is rarely incorporated and: 2) they rarely involve co-evolutionary dynamics of integrat…
Tracing a pathway to success
Toothfish crises, actor diversity and the emergence of compliance mechanisms in the Southern Ocean
An ocean of surprises – Trends in human use, unexpected dynamics and governance challenges in areas beyond national jurisdiction
Global patterns of fisheries conflict
Global networks and global change-induced tipping points
From shared socio-economic pathways (SSPs) to oceanic system pathways (OSPs)
International fisheries regime effectiveness—Activities and resources of key actors in the Southern Ocean
Adaptive Management of the Great Barrier Reef and the Grand Canyon World Heritage Areas
Conventional perceptions of the interactions between people and their environment are rapidly transforming. Old paradigms that view humans as separate from nature, natural resources as inexhaustible or endlessly substitutable, and the world as stable, predictable, and in balance are no longer tenable. New conceptual frameworks are rapidly emerging based on an adaptive approach that focuses on learning and flexible management in a dynamic social-e…
Adaptive governance of the Baltic Sea - lessons from elsewhere
Governance of marine resources is increasingly characterized by integrated, cross sectoral and ecosystem based approaches. Such approaches require that existing governing bodies have an ability to adapt to ecosystem dynamics, while also providing transparent and legitimate outcomes. Here, we investigate how the Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission (HELCOM), the international governing body for the Baltic Sea, could improve its prospect…
Beyond social-ecological traps
Eriksson, H., J. L. Blythe, H. Österblom, and P. Olsson. 2021. Beyond social-ecological traps: fostering transformations towards sustainability. Ecology and Society 26(1):13. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-12198-260113
A message from magic to science
Österblom, H., M. Scheffer, F. R. Westley, M. Van Esso, J. Miller, and J. Bascompte. 2015. A message from magic to science: seeing how the brain can be tricked may strengthen our thinking. Ecology and Society 20(4):16. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-07943-200416
Globalization, Roving Bandits, and Marine Resources
Overfishing is increasingly threatening the world's marine ecosystems (1, 2). The search for the social causes of this crisis has often focused on inappropriate approaches to governance and lack of incentives for conservation (3, 4). Little attention, however, has been paid to the critical impact of sequential exploitation: the spatially expanding depletion of harvested species (5). The economist Mancur Olson (6) argued that local governance crea…
Adaptive Management of the Great Barrier Reef and the Grand Canyon World Heritage Areas
Conventional perceptions of the interactions between people and their environment are rapidly transforming. Old paradigms that view humans as separate from nature, natural resources as inexhaustible or endlessly substitutable, and the world as stable, predictable, and in balance are no longer tenable. New conceptual frameworks are rapidly emerging based on an adaptive approach that focuses on learning and flexible management in a dynamic social-e…
Toothfish crises, actor diversity and the emergence of compliance mechanisms in the Southern Ocean
Reconnecting to the Biosphere
International fisheries regime effectiveness—Activities and resources of key actors in the Southern Ocean
Emergence of Global Adaptive Governance for Stewardship of Regional Marine Resources
Overfishing has historically caused widespread stock collapses in the Southern Ocean. Until recently, illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing threatened to result in the collapse of some of the few remaining valuable fish stocks in the region and vulnerable seabird populations. Currently, this unsustainable fishing has been reduced to less than 10% of former levels. We describe and analyze the emergence of the social-ecological governa…
Does aquaculture add resilience to the global food system?
Aquaculture is the fastest growing food sector and continues to expand alongside terrestrial crop and livestock production. Using portfolio theory as a conceptual framework, we explore how current interconnections between the aquaculture, crop, livestock, and fisheries sectors act as an impediment to, or an opportunity for, enhanced resilience in the global food system given increased resource scarcity and climate change. Aquaculture can potentia…
Global networks and global change-induced tipping points
An ocean of surprises – Trends in human use, unexpected dynamics and governance challenges in areas beyond national jurisdiction
Transnational Corporations as ‘Keystone Actors’ in Marine Ecosystems
Keystone species have a disproportionate influence on the structure and function of ecosystems. Here we analyze whether a keystone-like pattern can be observed in the relationship between transnational corporations and marine ecosystems globally. We show how thirteen corporations control 11-16% of the global marine catch (9-13 million tons) and 19-40% of the largest and most valuable stocks, including species that play important roles in their re…
Adaptive governance, ecosystem management, and natural capital
Significance Adaptive governance (AG) has been suggested as a suitable approach for ecosystem management in changing environments. It rests on the assumption that landscapes and seascapes need to be understood and governed as complex social–ecological systems rather than as ecosystems alone. We compared three AG initiatives and their effects on natural capital and ecosystem services. In comparison with other efforts aimed at conservation and sust…
Adaptive governance of the Baltic Sea - lessons from elsewhere
Governance of marine resources is increasingly characterized by integrated, cross sectoral and ecosystem based approaches. Such approaches require that existing governing bodies have an ability to adapt to ecosystem dynamics, while also providing transparent and legitimate outcomes. Here, we investigate how the Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission (HELCOM), the international governing body for the Baltic Sea, could improve its prospect…
Adaptive governance of the Baltic Sea - lessons from elsewhere
Governance of marine resources is increasingly characterized by integrated, cross sectoral and ecosystem based approaches. Such approaches require that existing governing bodies have an ability to adapt to ecosystem dynamics, while also providing transparent and legitimate outcomes. Here, we investigate how the Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission (HELCOM), the international governing body for the Baltic Sea, could improve its prospect…
Baltic Sea ecosystem-based management under climate change
Ecosystem-based management (EBM) has emerged as the generally agreed strategy for managing ecosystems, with humans as integral parts of the managed system. Human activities have substantial effects on marine ecosystems, through overfishing, eutrophication, toxic pollution, habitat destruction, and climate change. It is important to advance the scientific knowledge of the cumulative, integrative, and interacting effects of these diverse activities…
The role of cooperation for improved stewardship of marine social-ecological systems in Latin America
Villasante, S., and H. Österblom. 2015. The role of cooperation for improved stewardship of marine social-ecological systems in Latin America. Ecology and Society 20(1): 8. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-05949-200108
A message from magic to science
Österblom, H., M. Scheffer, F. R. Westley, M. Van Esso, J. Miller, and J. Bascompte. 2015. A message from magic to science: seeing how the brain can be tricked may strengthen our thinking. Ecology and Society 20(4):16. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-07943-200416
Tracing a pathway to success
From shared socio-economic pathways (SSPs) to oceanic system pathways (OSPs)
Radical ocean futures-scenario development using science fiction prototyping
Scenarios can help individuals, communities, corporations and nations to develop a capacity for dealing with the unknown and unpredictable, or the unlikely but possible. A range of scientific methods for developing scenarios is available, but we argue that they have limited capacity to investigate complex social-ecological futures because: 1) non-linear change is rarely incorporated and: 2) they rarely involve co-evolutionary dynamics of integrat…
Transnational corporations and the challenge of biosphere stewardship
Unsustainable Science
Global patterns of fisheries conflict
Science-Industry Collaboration
There is substantial and unexplored potential for scientists to engage with the private sector for a sustainable ocean. The importance of such cooperation is a frequent emphasis of international dialogues and statements, it is embedded within the Sustainable Development Goals, and has been championed by prominent business leaders and scientists. But an uncritical embrace of science-industry collaboration is unhelpful, and candid reflections on th…
Who is the high seas fishing industry
The Blue Acceleration
Does humanity's future lie in the ocean? As demand for resources continues to grow and land-based sources decline, expectations for the ocean as an engine of human development are increasing. Claiming marine resources and space is not new to humanity, but the extent, intensity, and diversity of today's aspirations are unprecedented. We describe this as the blue acceleration—a race among diverse and often competing interests for ocean food, materi…
Business (24 works) · Political science (24 works) · Economics (19 works) · Environmental resource management (19 works) · Geography (16 works) · Coastal and Marine Management (15 works) · Ecology (15 works) · Coral and Marine Ecosystems Studies (14 works) · Biology (13 works) · Marine and fisheries research (12 works)