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Human and biophysical systems are closely interconnected. Yet not only have scientists and practitioners largely failed to recognize the tight coupling between these systems, but the stakes of failing also to harness the dynamic behavior of socioecological systems are getting higher. Two clear signals of this failure are the loss of vital ecosystem services at a global scale (Millennium Ecosystem Assessment 2005) and the farreaching societal challenges posed by global environmental change (Steffen et al. 2004). Although analysts can project some of the future impacts on ecosystems and livelihoods, other effects will surface completely unexpectedly because of limited understanding of the strong interconnectedness of social and biophysical systems. Impacts will occur across many scales, with effects measured across time and space and at different levels of social organization and administration where humans …