The back-loop of transformation

A leading thinker in fundamental ecosystem science is coming to Montreal. C.S. Holling, the Arthur R. Marshall Jr. Chair in Ecological Sciences, Department of Zoology at the University of Florida, is visiting McGill University to deliver a talk entitled, "The Back-Loop of Transformation."

Where: Redpath Museum, 859 Sherbrooke St. W.
When: Monday, February 17, 2003, 4:30 pm
Please note that seating is limited.

Crawford (Buzz) Holling is a renowned researcher in fundamental ecosystem science and its role in resource management. He was among the first ecologists to recognize the importance of bifurcation theory, which views ecosystems in terms of stability, multiple stable states, strange attractors and chaotic behaviour. He was also a pioneer in applying ecology and evolution to human affairs. His work on adaptive ecosystem management and the Adaptive Cycle has led to the recognition of both nature and society as constantly-evolving complex adaptive systems.

Professor Holling is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and a foreign Fellow of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. He has received numerous awards including the Austrian Cross of Honor for Arts and Science, the Eminent Ecologist Award of the Ecological Society of America (1999) and the Kenneth Boulding Memorial Prize, International Society for Ecological Economics (2000).

The above lecture is part of the McGill-DuPont Initiative on Social Innovation, a collaborative initiative between the Faculty of Management and DuPont Canada focused on developing useable methodologies and tools that will support the conception and execution of community projects that demonstrate "breakthrough" results. Bringing together knowledge on the process of creating innovation in the social sector and understanding how existing systems can be leveraged to produce real and lasting change.