Resilience principles are emerging as an important paradigm for understanding and managing complex ecosystems and the interactions between these ecosystems and the human societies that depend on them. The increasing threats associated with climate change and increased population pressures are driving an urgent need to accelerate developments in resilience science and its incorporation into realistic and meaningful management strategies.

This need is particularly critical for coral reef ecosystems, which are both highly vulnerable to climate change and also vital to the welfare of large human populations throughout the tropical world. The World Conservation Union (IUCN) recognizes this need to promote the integration of resilience science and coral reef ecosystem management.

With generous support from the MacArthur Foundation, IUCN has established a Marine Working Group on Climate Change and Coral Reefs (CCCR), with its first purpose to address the issue of resilience, coral reefs and climate change.