June 21, 2011 You've just been told you're going on a trip. The
only problem is, you don't know where you're going, how you'll
be traveling, or what you'll do when you get there. Sound like a
wild ride? It's the one our planet is on right now. As land use,
human population, consumption and atmospheric greenhouse gas
concentrations change at an unprecedented pace with complex and
unpredictable interactions, it's anybody's guess where we'll end
up or what we can do to ensure the most favorable outcome.
Recognizing that "guess" is not good enough when talking about
the viability of an entire planet, researchers from the
University of Minnesota's College of Food, Agricultural and
Natural Resource Sciences and Institute on the Environment
teamed up with others at the University of Wisconsin and the
Stockholm Resilience Center to find a better way. Together,
experts evaluated existing environmental decision-making tools
and constructed an approach they think will give us the best
chance at making good choices for a