A system's perspective on the safe and just operating space - analyzing the conditions of existence and stability via data-driven conceptual co-evolutionary World-Earth System models
The concept of the safe and just operating space (SAJOS) for human development - i.e. between the Planetary Boundaries and the social foundations - has been proven fruitful for the sustainability debate. However, a precise understanding of the SAJOS, the preconditions for its existence and its stability in a dynamical, nonlinear world is still missing. The aim of this PhD project is to provide answers for these questions by constructing a conceptual coevolutionary model, using adaptive network of network models, models of coevolving social networks, ecosystems and the climate system, such that model and empirical observations of planetary social-ecological coevolution qualitatively agree. Further methods, influenced by statistical physics, shall be applied to analysis the model's macroscopic properties, e.g. phase transitions, bifurcations, critical points and tipping elements, to strengthen the systems understanding. In summary, this PhD project aims for a clearer, data-supported view on the SAJOS that will promote the scientific debate and lay foundations for policy makers.