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Interdisciplinary foundations of urban ecology

“…Humboldt's work reflected this goal: joining social and ecological systems in his studies on the natural sciences as well as urban geography, political economy and anthropology. He brought together these perspectives to identify the role of ecology in the development of human agriculture, settlements and consciousness as well as their effect in turn on the configuration and comprehension of ecology (Humboldt 1969(Humboldt , 1966(Humboldt , 1880. Ecology and society were parts of a seamless continuum that radiated, Humboldt argued, throughout the entire cosmos.…”

Management and Social Problems Linked to the Human Use of European Urban and Suburban Forests

“…In Europe, urban forests in the form of communal, city, or town woodlands have a long history of conservation and management [1]. Theoretically, urban forestry is focused on providing urban communities with psychological, sociological, economic, and aesthetic benefits of forests, so it places the needs of people above those of trees [2][3][4]; however, this priority is not so evident everywhere.…”

“…The aforementioned human needs in relation to forest use have evolved (e.g., [5][6][7][8]) and they have changed with the progress of civilization, from the initial pragmatic needs (e.g., fuel, food reserves) to the current ones, also including higher-level needs (e.g., aesthetic values, nature conservation, hobbies). This is associated with more free time being available than in the past, the increasing wealth of society, and the rise of environmental consciousness (e.g., [2,6,[9][10][11]). Additionally, current trends in tourism, which most strongly affect the use of urban and suburban forests, are linked to a return to nature, care for health (e.g., active pastimes, activation of elderly people), and a polarization of interests [2,8,9,12].…”

“…This is associated with more free time being available than in the past, the increasing wealth of society, and the rise of environmental consciousness (e.g., [2,6,[9][10][11]). Additionally, current trends in tourism, which most strongly affect the use of urban and suburban forests, are linked to a return to nature, care for health (e.g., active pastimes, activation of elderly people), and a polarization of interests [2,8,9,12]. Therefore, the presence of forests in the vicinity of the place of residence (in and around towns and cities) makes it possible to meet these diverse needs of people and to respond to modern trends in tourism.…”

“…The health value of urban and suburban forests (barrier against noise, shade, clean air, and water) and the safety value (reducing the risk of natural disasters) consist in regulating services (benefits obtained from the regulation of ecosystem processes [17,18]). In the first case (health value), urban forests create a specific microclimate; protect against air pollution and have a soothing and healing influence on organisms exposed to the everyday pressure of crowded conditions, noise, and haste ( [2,19,20,42], e.g., in the United Kingdom [21,43], Finland [9,22,23], the Czech Republic [38], Turkey [44], Switzerland [12], Poland (e.g., [3,7,26,27,45]), France [40], Austria [24], Sweden [6], the Netherlands [31], and Norway [31]). In the second case (safety value), urban forests stabilize the soil, preventing its erosion, but also reduce the effects of storm water runoff (through canopy retention and infiltration) or winter wind; sequester carbon; and moderate the urban microclimate [26,46,47].…”