There is agreement in the literature that Crawford (Buzz) Holling first introduced the concept of resilience to ecology and the environment.  He promoted the use of systems theory and modelling, and is credited with the introduction of ecological economics, the adaptive cycle, panarchy (understanding transformations in human and natural systems) and resilience to ecology and evolution.

In his 1973 paper, Resilience and Stability of Ecological Systems, Holling defined the resilience of an ecosystem as the measure of its ability to absorb changes and still exist. He compared and contrasted the concept of resilience with the notion of stability, which he defined as the ability of a system to return to its equilibrium state after a temporary disturbance; that is the more rapidly the system returns to its equilibrium, the more stable it is. He concluded that resilience and stability are two important properties of an ecological system.

Some ecologists, such as Richard Klein, argue that ecosystems are dynamic and evolve continuously in response to external influences taking place over a period of time. In a conceptual study of the resilience of the Dutch coastline, Klein points out that coastal systems are continually changing, so no original or equilibrium state exists. Moreover, the changes are not isolated events from which the coastal systems may not recover, but are ever-present and occur at different times and in different ways.

In spite of its lack of specificity, the concept of resilience is considered useful in understanding the behaviour and improving the management of ecosystems. Academic networks and organisations such as the Resilience Alliance and the Stockholm Resilience Centre aim to advance our understanding of complex social-ecological systems and generate new insights and tools to improve the management practices and long-term sustainability of ecosystems.

The Resilience Alliance (www.resalliance.org) is a global network of scientists and practitioners from a wide range of disciplines who collaborate to explore the dynamics of social-ecological systems. The Stockholm Resilience Centre (www.stockholmresilience.org) is a joint initiative between Stockholm University, the Stockholm Environment Institute, and the Beijer International Institute of Ecological Economics at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.