Understanding Polycrisis: Definitions, Applications, and Responses
Daniel P. Aldrich, Professor of Political Science and Director of the Global Resilience Institute at Northeastern University, presents a compelling argument for reframing how scholars and policymakers approach complex global crises. In his recent article Understanding Polycrisis: Definitions, Applications, and Responses, Aldrich and colleagues introduce the concept of the “polycrisis” as a framework for understanding how modern disasters—such as climate change, pandemics, and geopolitical conflicts—interact in mutually reinforcing ways.
The term “polycrisis” has entered the lexicon of a growing circle of academics, policymakers, and the public. Polycrisis is a state that encompasses a complex set of risks characterized by multiple, macroregional, and often ecologically-embedded linkages between inexorably interconnected systems. The article reevaluates disaster studies concepts within this polycrisis framework, locates historical events along a spectrum of such moments, and offers recommendations for democratic resilience.