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What is the SES Library?

The SES Library contains descriptions of social-ecological systems (SES) and coupled infrastructure systems (CIS) (the more general term we use for "social-ecological-technical systems") from around the world. Each entry in the database contains information about the attributes of the ecological, social, and built environment constituents of a particular system. The quality and level of detail shown across entries varies widely, as it can contain a cursory description that only covers the basic information or details of SES variables elaborated in collaboration with the Center for Behavior, Institutions and the Environment (CBIE) to gather data to help develop theory. In addition to quantitative data on SES variables, there are detailed descriptions of attributes, processes, and relationships. If there are experimental resources (protocols, software) associated with a case, these are linked to the case study entry.

How to use the SES Library?

There are multiple databases and resources available in the SES Library to support research on SESs and more general Coupled Infrastructure Systems including databases on case studies, CPR coding protocols, coding manuals, and related references. The entry point database is SES Library. From the SES Library you can search the case study database that contains descriptions of cases, and structured metadata for all cases (e.g., place-based, comparative-theory-based and data types (e.g., models, coded data, qualitative data)). You can also search the Case Studies and Coding Databases by going directly to those databases through the SES Library tab and go to case studies. Many of the other databases and resources can be reached through the case studies. Databases provide links to related resources via bibliographic lists or the coding database. Specific instructions on the data content and usage are included with each database. The best way to discover the resources available in the SES Library is to explore it first, explore the tabs following this introduction and view related content.

The development of this database has been supported by the US National Science Foundation grants BCS-0527744, SES-0645789 and SES-1137404.