Key words: Jim Thorpe, adversity, Olympics, can, resilience, capacity, psychology, ecology, socio-ecological systems, adaptation, sustainability Imagine the biggest event of your life. Now - imagine something going awry. A job interview - you mess up on the date of the interview. A flight to go see a sick relative - you forget your ID. An Olympic track race - your running shoes disappear. What would you do? For me, my first instinct is feeling a tightening in my chest...just thinking about it....! I want to share a story of an incredible person, who faced with not just one critical moment, but many critical moments. A person who transformed and thrived in pivotal moments of stress. Someone who was resilient..and continually displayed resilience. Jim Thorpe was the first Native American to win a U.S. Olympic gold medal in the 1912 Summer Olympics (specifically the pentathlon and decathlon). Co-founder of the International Society of Olympic Historians, Bill Mallon, states that Thorpe's displays of athleticism show him to be, "the greatest athlete of all time. Still. To me, it's not even a question" (Jenkins 2012). Let's go back to this photo. Let's take a look at his feet. On the second day of a three-day decathlon, Thorpe's shoes were missing/stolen. Thorpe and his track coach found a pair from different sneakers and different sizes. One shoe fit well while the other was too big. Thorpe put on two pairs of socks to create a snug fit for the shoe that was too big (Mikhail 2017). Thorpe won the high jump and 110-meter hurdles in those shoes. In the final day of the decathlon, in the last event, 1,500 meter run, Thorpe dusted his competitors...in those same mismatched shoes. His time was 4 minutes 40.1 seconds. It was only in 1972, that finally, an Olympic decathlete, Bryan Clay, beat him, only by a second (Jenkins 2012). Jim Thorpe's overall winning total was 8,412.95 points out of 10,000 points. It would take another four Olympics before someone else would beat his score! This isn't the first time Jim Thorpe faced adversity, displaying resilience in the face of unexpected events. He lived during a period of genocide against Native Americans. His twin brother died when he was 9. His mother died when he was 14. His father died when he was 16. He spent time at schools that participated in the forced cultural assimilation of American Indian children (Tucker 2012) . In spite of all these incredible circumstances, Thorpe thrived as a naturally-gifted, humble and disciplined athlete. Pick a sport - football, baseball, lacrosse, track, tennis, boxing, hockey. He broke records left and right. He is considered one of the most versatile athletes of modern sports. Why is his name, story and recognition lost in obscurity? The IOC (International Olympic Committee), after learning that he played minor-league baseball in 1909 and 1910, revoked his medals, titles and marks from official record. Playing minor-league baseball violates the rules of amateurism that were in place during that time (Jenkins 2012). Jim Thorpe's photo is posted above my desk, as a reminder of focus, creativity, opportunity and tenacity. He's a resilience hero. What is resilience? In my academic and life journey, I have continually revisited the meaning of resilience. Words like, "tough", "unfettered", "brave", "toughing it out", "seeing the silver lining", "bouncing back", and "phoenix" come to mind. It seems life-giving and life-reinforcing. But also - really difficult. How do we do it? How does the environment do it? As a student, I've read about resilience in ecological systems and I can't help but also try to understand how it applies to our own human conditions. What does psychology say? What does ecology say? What propels us forward? Are there any ideas or lessons that crossover? Psychology. Human resilience goes something like this - a person grows up in an adverse circumstance (big events like loss and/or trauma). Through these circumstances, a person develops skills to function and thrive as an adult (Bonanno 2004). There are protective factors and processes that can impact a person's life trajectory. These factors and processes can transform risk to adaptation (Matin et al. 2015). Early studies pointed to healthy self-esteem, self-efficacy and the opening of opportunities as protective mechanisms that equip people against the psychological risks linked with adversity (Werner 2000). More recent studies emphasize the ultimate complexity of nailing down a definition or the many attributes and processes involved. Turns out, there are a lot of different pathways to promoting resilience and there are no magic 'one-size-fits-all approach' for producing resilience (Ellis et al. 2017, Masten and Obradović 2006, Rutter 2012, ). Ecology. Resilience is the overall capacity of an ecosystem to absorb disturbance and reorganize itself afterwards. So while a system (think environment) is undergoing a change caused by a factor, it essentially retains its function, structure, feedbacks and therefore, its identity. (Holling 1973, Matin et al. 2015) Pretty amazing. Human behavior + Ecology. This idea of social-ecological resilience emerged, recognizing the interplay between ecosystems and the behaviors of human societies – a link in the very nature of our environment and existence. This idea propels the capacity for renewal, reorganization and development in the field of sustainable resource management and sustainability. Two concepts come to mind in the inclusive socio-ecological framework – adaptation and adaptive capacity. Generally speaking, its the ability for processes of behavior and patterns to change in order for a system to maintain itself within the parameters of certain thresholds (Folke 2006, Walker et al 2004). Ways to build adaptive capacity to maintain resilience include: 1) maintaining a well of resources, 2) managing connectivity, 3) responding efficiently to disturbances, and 4) self-organization (Walker and Salt 2012). What's an example of a socio-ecological resilience approach? Let's think about fishing and living in a manner that promotes socio-ecological resilience. A resilient sustainable fishing management approach would include reducing fishing pressures when fish stocks are low and allowing harvests to increase when fish stocks are plentiful. This type of approach can help stabilize fish populations. A less effective approach would be to have strict adherence to harvest quotas in a dynamic environment. This could lead to fishery collapse (Roughgarden and Smith 1996). Context and recognizing change is key in promoting resilience. Sometimes, disturbances (like diseases, draughts, pollution, land-use conversion) can really mess things up. In the case above, let's say a disturbance causes a fishery to collapse, then fisher people face the impact of diversifying their way of living. Transformations occur for multiple reasons and can be traumatic. Planning ahead can reduce the burden during these times of adaptation, transition and innovation. What do psychology and ecology tell us about resilience? Here are my 2 cents about factors that promote resilience from these two fields and how we can think about them in our own lives. 1) Resources are important. What different types of resources do you already have and/or need? Lean into your strengths. Also, recognize that resource distribution isn't equal along systems or among people. Ecology - Biodiversity can provide redundancy, buffering ecosystems from functional losses (Biggs et a.l 2012, Levin 1999, Walker and Salt 2006, ). Psychology - Friends, family, involvement in community, cultural, school, charitable or faith-based groups can be great resources and open up opportunities (Werner 2000). 2) Keep connections strong - communicate! Understand your context in the world. Reach for help when you need it and offer help to others when you can. These interactions can lead to creative solutions. Ecology - Understanding interconnectivity in ecosystems is an objective of an ecosystems services approach. However, managing connectivity can be challenging and limited in practical situations (Larondelle and Haase 2012, May et al. 2008). In addition, recovery from shocks, like a hurricane or flood, can be greatly improved where there is high social cohesion in a community (Picou and Martin 2006). Psychology - Maintaining connections and close ties to community and/or family can nurture a solid sense of security (Ginsberg 2014). In both fields, there are many other factors that promote resilience but aren't convergent. They are more nuanced and context-specific. There's a lot of literature that looks at that (Board and National Research Council 2013, Stokols et al. 2013, Werner 2000). In the case with resilient folks in our lives or the ones we read about, there are certain skills that are practiced consistently. They: 1) practice self-efficacy, 2) reframe situations as possible opportunities of learning, 3) reorganize when necessary, and 4) exercise focus, control and deep intent on a goal. A lesson from Jim Thorpe. In October 1982, the International Olympic Committee provided two replica medals to his family, announcing, "The name of James Thorpe will be added to the list of athletes who were crowned Olympic champions at the 1912 Games." The IOC also added, "However, the official report for these Games will not be modified" (Jenkins 2012). Sounds like a blatant example of a symbolic gesture with no real, institutional meaning. Jim Thorpe passed away in 1953, and in his years, didn't campaign for his reputation or recognition of his Olympic medals. He told his daughter, Grace Thorpe, "I won'em, and I know I won'em." He also stated at another time, "I played with the heart of an amateur-for the pure hell of it." May we all do things from the consciousness of a resilient heart. May we keep going when the going gets tough. As Jim Thorpe put it, "For the pure hell of it." Citations Biggs, Reinette, et al. "Toward principles for enhancing the resilience of ecosystem services." Annual review of environment and resources 37 (2012): 421-448. Board, Ocean Studies, and National Research Council. An ecosystem services approach to assessing the impacts of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. National Academies Press, 2013. Bonanno, George A. "Loss, trauma, and human resilience: Have we underestimated the human capacity to thrive after extremely aversive events?." American psychologist 59.1 (2004): 20. Ellis, Bruce J., et al. "Beyond risk and protective factors: An adaptation-based approach to resilience." Perspectives on Psychological Science 12.4 (2017): 561-587. Folke, Carl. "Resilience: The emergence of a perspective for social–ecological systems analyses." Global environmental change 16.3 (2006): 253-267. Ginsburg, Kenneth. "Building Resilience in Children." Healthy Children Magazine (2007). Holling, Crawford S. "Resilience and stability of ecological systems." Annual review of ecology and systematics 4.1 (1973): 1-23. Jenkins, Sally. "Why Are Jim Thorpe’s Olympic Records Still Not Recognized?." Smithsonian Magazine (2012). Larondelle, Neele, and Dagmar Haase. "Valuing post-mining landscapes using an ecosystem services approach—An example from Germany." Ecological Indicators 18 (2012): 567-574. Levin, Simon A. "Towards a science of ecological management." Conservation Ecology 3.2 (1999): 6. Masten, Ann S., and Jelena Obradović. "Competence and resilience in development." Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences 1094.1 (2006): 13-27. Matin, Nilufar, and Richard Taylor. "Emergence of human resilience in coastal ecosystems under environmental change." Ecology and Society 20.2 (2015). May, Robert M., Simon A. Levin, and George Sugihara. "Complex systems: Ecology for bankers." Nature 451.7181 (2008): 893. Mikhail, Roman. “Jim Thorpe Wins Olympic Gold Wearing Track Shoes Found in Garbage Bin.” Medium, Historical Snapshots, 9 Dec. 2017, https://medium.com/a-moment-in-history/jim-thorpe-wins-olympic-gold-medal-wearing-track-spikes-found-in-garbage-bin-aae08796f91b. Picou, J. Steven, and Cecelia G. Martin. "Community impacts of Hurricane Ivan: a case study of Orange Beach, Alabama." (2006). Roughgarden, Jonathan, and Fraser Smith. "Why fisheries collapse and what to do about it." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 93.10 (1996): 5078-5083. Rutter, Michael. "Resilience as a dynamic concept." Development and psychopathology 24.2 (2012): 335-344. Stokols, Daniel, Raul Perez Lejano, and John Hipp. "Enhancing the resilience of human–environment systems: A social ecological perspective." Ecology and Society 18.1 (2013). Tucker, Neely. "Battle over athlete Jim Thorpe's burial site continues" Washington Post Magazine (2012). Walker, Brian, et al. "Resilience, adaptability and transformability in social–ecological systems." Ecology and society 9.2 (2004). Walker, Brian, and David Salt. "Resilience thinking: how can landscapes and communities absorb disturbance and maintain function." (2006). Walker, Brian, and David Salt. Resilience thinking: sustaining ecosystems and people in a changing world. Island press, (2012). Werner, Emmy E. "Protective factors and individual resilience." Handbook of early childhood intervention 2 (2000): 115-132.
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