Resilience is a term at the center of many conversations. Whether we look at our own individual resilience, the resilience of others, or more broadly, how resilience works in materials or communities or societies can bring new light to the way we individually affect our community.

Here are a few definitions of resilience within certain fields of study:

Psychological Reslience

An individual's ability to successfully adapt to life in the face of social disadvantage or adverse conditions. (Adversity and stress can come from relationship, health, workplace, financial, or other areas.)

Resilience within physics or engineering

The capacity of a material to absorb energy when it is deformed elastically and then, upon unloading, to have this energy recovered. More simply stated, it is the maximum energy per volume that can be elastically stored.

Resilience in Ecology

The capacity of an ecosystem to respond to a perturbation or disturbance by resisting damage and recovering quickly.

Economic Resilience

The economy’s ability to cope, recover, and reconstruct and minimize aggregate consumption losses.

Community Resilience

The capacity of individuals, communities, or systems to survive, adapt, and grow in the face of stress and shock, and even transform when situations require it.