Oregon Sea Grant

"Resilience holds the key to our future. It is a deceptively simple idea, but its application has proven elusive." - Jane Lubchenco, administrator of NOAA

Fishery management programs designed to control Pacific salmon for optimum production have failed to prevent widespread fish population decline and have caused greater uncertainty for salmon, their ecosystems, and the people who depend upon them. Strengthening salmon resilience will require expanding habitat opportunities for salmon populations to express their maximum life-history variation. Such actions also may benefit human communities by expanding the opportunities for people to express diverse social and economic values.

The 11 essays in this book represent the most forward thinking about resilience and Pacific salmon collected to date, and they point to new ways we may consider and interact with this iconic fish. It will be of interest not only to those active in fisheries but also to policymakers -- and, by extension, to those interested in the resilience of other ecological and social systems.

"By linking theory with practice, the authors of this volume have made a quantum leap forward in understanding how to manage critical populations. A must read for resilience scholars and practitioners." - Lance Gunderson, Professor of Environmental Studies, Emory University

"All too often, our attempts at conservation fail because we think too small. We fail to see connections, the broader context, and longer-term processes. The authors of this volume think big. Pathways to Resilience is just what we need for animals that migrate thousands of miles and cross ecosystem and political boundaries at will. This is worth reading and taking good notes." - Jack E. Williams, Senior Scientist, Trout Unlimited.