Disruption, risk, threats and complex unbounded problems

Peter M. Weiske, Stephen Dovers, William J. Durch and John Handmer

Chapter 1 in Re-imagining Risk and Disruption, 2026, pp 1-11 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: This chapter outlines the concept of complex unbounded problems (CUPs), which captures a wider array of disruptive phenomena than usually grouped together, including climate and geologically-driven disasters, technical incidents, geopolitical crises, conflict and humanitarian emergencies. It proposes that exploring this range of disruptions together as forms of CUPs helps with the identification of commonalities and shared attributes, allowing better understanding of humanity's challenges, and a more informed approach to responding to these. It explains this approach and the choice of four focus areas discussed in later chapters (Earth System disruption, nuclear accidents, pandemics and other biological threats and cascading disorder in near-Earth space).

Keywords: Risk; Threat; Disasters; Complex Unbounded Problems (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
ISBN: 9781035375264
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