Resilient Practices
Neelambari Phalkey
Related terms: Resilience, Mangrove Resilience
Introduction
The concept of resilience holds deep significance both in my work as a researcher and as an artist, particularly in the context of the ongoing climate crisis. As a scholar in the environmental humanities and an artist exploring the intersection of climate change, culture, and adaptation, I find that resilience is not just a theoretical concept but a guiding principle in how we, as individuals and communities, engage with the world around us. Resilience – at its core – represents a powerful force that allows us to adapt to environmental stressors, reimagine our relationships with the natural world, and find pathways to collective survival. However, as the effects of climate change become increasingly visible and urgent, the need to develop a shared definition of resilience that resonates across academic disciplines, artistic expressions, and cultural contexts has never been more critical. This essay reflects my belief that such a definition is crucial not only for advancing scholarly understanding but also for fostering practical action that can address the global challenge before us (Adger 2000).
Defining Resilience: A Critical Exploration
Historically, resilience has been defined in ecological terms, referring to the capacity of ecosystems to absorb disturbances and return to a stable state (Holling, 2013). While this definition served its purpose, the unprecedented pace of environmental change and its far-reaching consequences necessitate a broader understanding of resilience – one that embraces adaptation, transformation, and the capacity to endure, even in the face of irreversible damage. As someone who has studied marginalised communities in areas like the Sundarbans and explored urban resilience through art, I have come to see resilience as more than just recovery. In my work, resilience must also encompass transformation – a reshaping of systems to ensure that communities not only survive but thrive amid future uncertainties (Phalkey 2020; Walker et al. 2004; Pelling 2011).
My research and artistic projects have increasingly explored how resilience is not just a scientific or ecological response but a social, cultural, and emotional process. In the context of the climate crisis, resilience means more than adapting to environmental stressors; it involves recognising how human beings, particularly those in marginalised communities, respond to these challenges through collective action, cultural practices, and shared narratives. This is why resilience must be understood as a dynamic, evolving process – a concept that stretches beyond the immediate ability to ‘bounce back’ and that incorporates the need for long-term social and environmental transformation.
The Intersection of Art, Culture, and Resilience
Art offers a unique way of exploring resilience that goes beyond traditional, functional definitions. Art invites us to reimagine what resilience looks like in the face of a global crisis. Through visual arts, soundscapes, and immersive installations, I have sought to create work that challenges us to consider not just how we can survive climate change, but how we can reimagine our futures in more sustainable, culturally resonant ways. Art becomes a tool for both personal and collective reflection – a way of making sense of complex, intangible issues such as the emotional impacts of climate change or the slow, often imperceptible changes in our ecosystems (Demos, 2017).
In my projects, such as the Sponge City series developed during the K11 × ArtReview Residency in Wuhan, China, in 2024, and soundscapes focused on urban resilience, I aim to create experiences that encourage empathy and understanding, enabling viewers and listeners to engage with environmental change in ways that go beyond facts and figures. These artworks are an exploration of resilience not just in an abstract sense, but as an embodied, emotional, and sensory experience. I believe that such art can help make resilience feel more accessible, especially in communities that often feel disconnected from academic or policy discussions on climate change.
Cultural traditions and artistic practices are central to how communities worldwide navigate environmental stress. In my study of communities in the Sundarbans and my work on the ‘Sponge City’ projects, I have seen firsthand how resilience is not just a scientific or ecological concept but something deeply ingrained in the ways people understand their relationship with the natural world. Indigenous knowledge systems, local traditions, and cultural expressions all offer unique frameworks for resilience – frameworks that balance human needs with ecological sustainability and acknowledge the interdependence of all lifeforms (Berkes et al., 2000b) (Medeiros & Radomsky, 2010).
By embracing the cultural and artistic dimensions of resilience, we can broaden the scope of how resilience is understood and operationalised in the face of climate change. In this sense, resilience is not merely a technical or academic term; it is a dynamic, lived experience that manifests in everyday practices, stories, and expressions of hope.
The Need for an Interconnected Understanding of Resilience
Resilience, as it stands today, is often fragmented across disciplines, cultures, and contexts. Ecologists, economists, sociologists, and artists each approach resilience through their own lenses, yet these definitions rarely align in a way that fosters cohesive action. In the face of the climate crisis – an issue that transcends geographical, social, and disciplinary boundaries – there is an urgent need for an understanding of resilience that does not impose uniformity but instead highlights the interconnections between diverse perspectives (Berkes et al., 2000a).
Rather than a single, one-size-fits-all definition, what is needed is a framework that allows different interpretations of resilience to work together in a coherent and complementary way. This interconnected approach is crucial not only for scholarly discourse but for meaningful, collective action (Brown, 2014). A shared yet flexible understanding of resilience can help bridge research, policy, and cultural practices, ensuring that efforts towards sustainability and social justice are aligned rather than siloed.
As both an artist and a researcher, I explore resilience as an evolving and relational concept – one that is not merely about enduring the impacts of climate change but also about shaping new futures. Resilience must be continuously negotiated and redefined, embracing both the capacity to withstand disruptions and the agency to transform societies in ways that enable them to thrive within planetary boundaries. Through artistic practice, community engagement, and research, I seek to contribute to a discourse on resilience that is not only theoretical but also actionable, fostering deeper connections between disciplines, communities, and the environment (Bennett et al. 2016; Ekman 2019).
Operationalising Resilience: Action-Oriented Approaches
Operationalising resilience is essential if it is to translate from a theoretical concept to real-world solutions. As a researcher, I work on community-based adaptation strategies and design interventions that aim to operationalise resilience in practical terms. For example, my work on the ‘Sponge City’ project explores how urban resilience can be integrated into city planning through green infrastructure, which not only mitigates the effects of climate change but also creates more sustainable, equitable urban environments (Yu et al., n.d.).
Art also plays a role in this operationalisation. By creating works that visualise future possibilities, such as those exploring the impacts of climate change on cities or the vulnerability of island communities, artists can provoke action and inspire audiences to think critically about what resilience looks like in different contexts (Demos, 2017). In my practice, I strive to create work that not only provokes thought but also inspires tangible action, whether through raising awareness, encouraging new policy approaches, or fostering community-led resilience projects.
Ultimately, resilience must be viewed as a collective action that requires participation from individuals, communities, policymakers, and artists alike. As a researcher and artist, I see it as my responsibility to help facilitate conversations that bridge the gap between these various fields, bringing together scientific, cultural, and artistic perspectives to create a more comprehensive and inclusive approach to resilience.
Conclusion: Resilience as a Collective, Transformative Process
For me, resilience is not just a term that is important to my research or art – it is a lens through which I approach the climate crisis as both a global challenge and an opportunity for transformation. As the world grapples with unprecedented environmental changes, it is clear that resilience must be understood as more than a passive response to adversity. It must be a collective, transformative process that brings together all disciplines and cultures in a shared effort to ensure a sustainable, just future. By developing a definition of resilience, one that incorporates both scientific rigour and artistic expression, we can better equip ourselves to meet the challenges of the climate crisis – and to build a world where resilience is not just about surviving, but about thriving in harmony with the planet.
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