Studies have consistently shown that diverse systems have exhibited greater resilience to extreme environmental conditions and greater potential to recover from disturbance than less diverse communities. This relationship makes less diverse communities inherently more susceptible to future changes and stressors. The diversity of potential responses of a system to environmental change (response diversity), is a critical component of ecosystem resilience. Response diversity is generally reduced in less diverse ecological systems. Genetic diversity within species is also critical for the ability of populations to adapt to climate change, because species with high genetic variation have better odds of producing individuals that can withstand extreme events and adapt to changes over time.