Can We Measure Resilience? Reducing Agriculture’s Vulnerability to Climate Change

This briefing note by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) discusses the application of resilience measurement in the agricultural sector, specifically focusing on a study conducted in eastern Ontario, Canada. It outlines a system-based approach to developing resilience indicators that move beyond traditional risk-reduction to assess the capacity of socioeconomic and natural systems to absorb shocks and transform.

• Resilience is defined as the capacity of a system to absorb shocks and the ability to prepare for, cope with, adapt to, and potentially transform in response to stresses.
• The study developed a suite of 36 resilience indicators for the agricultural sector categorized into six themes: climate change, population, farmland production activities, market and economy, rural infrastructure, and natural environment.
• The indicator selection process involved a literature review of international and national agencies, an online survey of over 80 respondents, and focus group meetings with over 50 stakeholders from three levels of government and non-governmental agencies.
• Data availability for the 36 indicators varies: 14% of data is readily available, 33% is available but requires calculation, 31% is available but was not accessible to the project team, and 22% is not available.
• The study highlights a need for cross-sectoral monitoring because many resilience indicators for agriculture also cover other rural sectors such as human health, economic development, and natural resource management.
• While the indicators were developed for eastern Ontario, the authors state they are highly relevant to other agricultural regions in Canada because they focus on broad natural and socioeconomic changes rather than highly region-specific indicators.

APA

International Institute for Sustainable Development (n.d.). Can We Measure Resilience? Reducing Agriculture’s Vulnerability to Climate Change. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/reducing-agriculture-vulnerability-climate-change.pdf

Chicago

International Institute for Sustainable Development. Can We Measure Resilience? Reducing Agriculture’s Vulnerability to Climate Change. n.d. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/reducing-agriculture-vulnerability-climate-change.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=International Institute for Sustainable Development |title=Can We Measure Resilience? Reducing Agriculture’s Vulnerability to Climate Change |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/reducing-agriculture-vulnerability-climate-change.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{internationalinstituteforsustainabledevelopmentndcan, author = {{International Institute for Sustainable Development}}, title = {{Can We Measure Resilience? Reducing Agriculture’s Vulnerability to Climate Change}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/reducing-agriculture-vulnerability-climate-change.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }