Pragmatist and American Philosophical Perspectives on Resilience

Parker and Keith have brought together an outstanding collection of scholars, working in the American philosophical tradition to unearth the depths of the idea of resilience, both as a general concept and with a specific focus on the environment. I’m convinced by at least one of the common themes throughout: resilience is an inherently pragmatic idea, and in turn, American Pragmatism contains a repository of tools to help us better understand it. These essays contain important guidance for how resilience can help us in our emerging world of persistent, and--sometimes-- overwhelming change and flux. -- Andrew Light, George Mason University
As species disappear, forests burn, and the climate changes, the quest for resilience has morphed from desirable pursuit to existential struggle. This winning collection is not only a plea to think more deeply about the foundations of our policy goals and community practices; it fittingly also demonstrates the hardiness of the American pragmatist tradition in an era increasingly defined by novel environmental and social challenges. And it shows that, unlike with our forests, farms, and waters, we’re still a long way from exhausting our philosophical resources.--Ben Minteer, Arizona State University -- Ben Minteer