Minisymposium (ID: SS-TPCHES)

Tipping Points in Coupled Human-Environment Systems

Isaiah Farahbakhsh (University of Guelph), Chris Bauch (University of Waterloo) and Madhur Anand (University of Guelph)

Humans and the environment form an interdependent complex system that exhibits non-linear feedbacks in both directions. These feedbacks can lead to the potential for abrupt transitions, known as tipping points, which often occur between alternative stable states. Not only can these transitions be difficult to reverse once crossed, but there is growing evidence that we are currently approaching tipping points in ecological and climate systems that are critical to maintaining sustainable trajectories in the future. This symposium will bring together interdisciplinary research on tipping points in coupled human-environment systems, both through theoretical models and empirical studies. There will be a focus on human drivers of tipping points, examples of coupled systems that are prone to tipping including climate and land use change, as well as recent developments in predicting these often surprising events through early warning signals. Models presented will draw from methodologies that include ordinary differential equations, network models, agent-based models and machine learning algorithms. This session will offer insight for new researchers interested in the relatively new fields of human-environment systems and tipping points, as well as policy-relevant discussion to further understand the impacts of social behaviour and interventions with an emphasis on their potential to promote sustainable outcomes.

Please note the ID code assigned to your presentation (identical to the ID code of your accepted abstract). It is required for submitting your paper for the AMMCS-2023 Proceedings. Submission is not mandatory. All submitted papers will be refereed and only accepted papers will be published in the AMMCS-2023 Proceedings.

If you intend to submit your paper, please go to the AMMCS Proceedings Page. Follow exactly the Author Instructions accessible from that page.