Advancing landscape sustainability science: theoretical foundation and synergies with innovations in methodology, design, and application

Liao, Chuan; Qiu, Jiangxiao; Chen, Bin; Chen, Deliang; Fu, Bojie; Georgescu, Matei; He, Chunyang; Jenerette, G. Darrel; Xia, Li; Li, Xiaoyan; Li, Xin; Qiuying, Bading; Shi, Peijun; Wu, Jianguo

doi:10.1007/s10980-020-00967-0

Cited by 38 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 61 publications

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“…Research that explores the role of landscape perceptions as an agent connecting knowledge systems and individual and collective practices and actions will be crucial for increasing social-ecological resilience in PAs and broader social-ecological systems (Bennett 2016). Finally, we argue that acknowledging the relationships between experiences, knowledge, and perceptions of benefits and threats in PAs by local communities can inform processes aiming at landscape sustainability (Berthet et al 2019;Liao et al 2020).…”

Section: Caveatsmentioning

confidence: 98%

Scientific and local ecological knowledge, shaping perceptions towards protected areas and related ecosystem services

et al. 2020

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Context Most protected areas are managed based on objectives related to scientific ecological knowledge of species and ecosystems. However, a core principle of sustainability science is that understanding and including local ecological knowledge, perceptions of ecosystem service provision and landscape vulnerability will improve sustainability and resilience of social-ecological systems. Here, we take up these assumptions in the context of protected areas to provide insight on the effectiveness of nature protection goals, particularly in highly human-influenced landscapes. Objectives We examined how residents’ ecological knowledge systems, comprised of both local and scientific, mediated the relationship between their characteristics and a set of variables that represented perceptions of ecosystem services, landscape change, human-nature relationships, and impacts. Methods We administered a face-to-face survey to local residents in the Sierra de Guadarrama protected areas, Spain. We used bi- and multi-variate analysis, including partial least squares path modeling to test our hypotheses. Results Ecological knowledge systems were highly correlated and were instrumental in predicting perceptions of water-related ecosystem services, landscape change, increasing outdoors activities, and human-nature relationships. Engagement with nature, socio-demographics, trip characteristics, and a rural–urban gradient explained a high degree of variation in ecological knowledge. Bundles of perceived ecosystem services and impacts, in relation to ecological knowledge, emerged as social representation on how residents relate to, understand, and perceive landscapes. Conclusions Our findings provide insight into the interactions between ecological knowledge systems and their role in shaping perceptions of local communities about protected areas. These results are expected to inform protected area management and landscape sustainability.

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Section: Caveatsmentioning

confidence: 98%

Scientific and local ecological knowledge, shaping perceptions towards protected areas and related ecosystem services

et al. 2020

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“…This type of risk assessment reflects the negative impacts of human activities or natural environmental changes on the ecosystem from a spatial perspective [ 4 , 5 ]. The landscape is the optimal scale to understand the dynamic relationship between society and nature, achieve the sustainability of ecosystem services, and promote human well-being [ 6 ]. Furthermore, benchmarking landscape ecological risks with SDGs indicators shows consistency and leadership in ecosystem protection [ 7 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multi-Scenario Landscape Ecological Risk Simulation for Sustainable Development Goals: A Case Study on the Central Mountainous Area of Hainan Island

Han

Jia

2022

IJERPH

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The sustainable development goals (SDGs) of the United Nations are focused on regional development and ecological security. Based on these SDGs, quantitative regional landscape ecological risk assessment is significant to realize regional sustainable development. This study took the central mountainous area (CMA) of Hainan Island as the research area, and combined SDGs and a patch-generating land-use simulation (PLUS) model to analyze multi-scenario land-use change and landscape ecological risk simulation. The study results show that the low ecological risk areas are located in the central hinterland of the CMA, and the high ecological risk areas are located on the northern and southern edges, with strong disturbances from human activities. The construction land in the CMA expanded drastically from 2010 to 2018, mainly invading forestland and grassland, leading to landscape fragmentation, which was the main cause of the increased ecological risk in the CMA landscape. The future multi-scenario simulations for SDGs show that under the scenario of natural development and economic development, the construction land and water area will significantly expand and the forest land will be dramatically reduced. Under the ecological protection scenario, the expansion of construction land will be restrained, and the area of forest land will increase. The results showed that the landscape ecological risks in the three simulated scenarios would be higher than in 2018, but the increase in the landscape ecological risks under the ecological protection scenario would be relatively slight. Forest land plays an essential role in maintaining the ecological security of the CMA. The expanding construction land in the CMA has led to landscape fragmentation and increased ecological risk. Therefore, it is necessary to protect the forest land in the CMA. In addition, construction and development should be limited in high-risk areas. Although the adoption of the ecological conservation scenario favors regional sustainability, it is still necessary to improve ecological protection policies such as ecological compensation to ensure the realization of other SDGs.

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“…Thus, we regarded the herder-grassland system as the target system and investigated herders' perceptions and understanding of herder-grassland systems, livestock management goals, and livestock management strategies. Because actionable knowledge for landscape sustainability transition should be credible, salient, and legitimate (Cash et al 2003, Wu 2013, 2021, Opdam et al 2018, Cumming and Epstein 2020, Liao et al 2020b, we linked herders' perceptions and understanding of herder-grassland systems, livestock decision-making goals, and intervention strategies with grassland policies and scientific knowledge. Fig.…”

Section: Conceptual Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%

Causes of overgrazing in Inner Mongolian grasslands: Searching for deep leverage points of intervention

Fang¹,

Wu²

2022

E&S

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The legendary Mongolian Plateau has faced increasing environmental challenges associated with overgrazing, and achieving a sustainability transition for this region needs herders' participation. However, why herders let grasslands be overgrazed even after property rights were privatized-"the tragedy of privatization"-remains unclear. We aimed to understand the causes of overgrazing in Xilingol, Inner Mongolia, and sought deep leverage points of intervention by examining livestock decision-making processes with semi-structured interviews. We found the following: (1) Herders generally recognized grassland degradation with decreased plant diversity and vegetation height. (2) Nearly half of herders were not satisfied with their current quality of life, especially in terms of income, food security, energy security, and clean water. (3) Herders prioritized economic benefits and food provisioning services of grasslands and did not think of overgrazing as an important cause for grassland degradation. (4) Herders tended to protect their own grasslands but over-exploited leased grasslands. ( 5) Herders tried to keep a high number of livestock without being able to anticipate climatic and economic fluctuations. ( 6) The government's Forage-Livestock Balance policy was widely ignored by herders. We conclude that herders' zeal for higher living standards, misperceptions about key drivers of grassland degradation, decoupling of herders' income from grasslands, inability to cope with drought, and ineffective policies together constitute the underlying causes for overgrazing. Future grassland policies should focus more on the deep leverage points of intervention including reducing poverty and economic inequality, improving the grassland property system, reconnecting the long-term health of leased grasslands to herders' livelihoods, and developing holistic livestock management strategies that integrate science with herders' traditional ecological knowledge.

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Advancing landscape sustainability science: theoretical foundation and synergies with innovations in methodology, design, and application

Cited by 38 publications

References 61 publications

Scientific and local ecological knowledge, shaping perceptions towards protected areas and related ecosystem services

Scientific and local ecological knowledge, shaping perceptions towards protected areas and related ecosystem services

Multi-Scenario Landscape Ecological Risk Simulation for Sustainable Development Goals: A Case Study on the Central Mountainous Area of Hainan Island

Causes of overgrazing in Inner Mongolian grasslands: Searching for deep leverage points of intervention

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