How Many Transitions doth the Sustainability Transition Need?

About

Robert Kates' central research question for the past 40 years has been "What is and what ought to be the human use of the earth." Translated into his current research and professional interests this includes: a sustainability transition, long-term population dynamics, global environmental change, and the prevalence and persistence of hunger. Previous research included: natural and technological hazards, rural resource and water development, and methodologies for studying people's perception of the environment, the assessment of risk, and the impacts of climate on society. As chair of the NAS-NRC Coordinating Committee on a Transition toward Sustainability he has a major interest in the development of a broadened global change agenda and an evolution toward sustainability science. As Co-principle investigator of the Global Change in Local Places research project he has actively explored over the last five years scale relationships, multiple stresses, and local science and policy initiatives at four sites across the U.S. In his most recent writing, drawing upon his work on both hazards and human needs, he has examined vulnerability, adaptation, and the links between poverty and environment particularly in developing countries.