English
 
Privacy Policy Disclaimer
  Advanced SearchBrowse

Item

ITEM ACTIONSEXPORT
Add to Basket
  Local TagsRelease HistoryDetailsSummary

Released
Journal Article

Advances in understanding and managing catastrophic ecosystem shifts in mediterranean ecosystems

Authors

van den Elsen,  Erik
External Organizations;

Stringer,  Lindsay C.
External Organizations;

De Ita,  Cecilia
External Organizations;

Hessel,  Rudi
External Organizations;

Kéfi,  Sonia
External Organizations;

Schneider,  Florian D.
External Organizations;

Bautista,  Susana
External Organizations;

Mayor,  Angeles G.
External Organizations;

Baudena,  Mara
External Organizations;

Rietkerk,  Max
External Organizations;

Valdecantos,  Alejandro
External Organizations;

Vallejo,  Victoriano R.
External Organizations;

Geeson,  Nichola
External Organizations;

Brandt,  C. Jane
External Organizations;

Fleskens,  Luuk
External Organizations;

Hemerik,  Lia
External Organizations;

Panagos,  Panos
External Organizations;

Valente,  Sandra
External Organizations;

Keizer,  Jan J.
External Organizations;

Schwilch,  Gudrun
External Organizations;

Jucker Riva,  Matteo
External Organizations;

/persons/resource/Diana.Sietz

Sietz,  Diana
Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research;

Christoforou,  Michalakis
External Organizations;

Hadjimitsis,  Diofantos G.
External Organizations;

Papoutsa,  Christiana
External Organizations;

Quaranta,  Giovanni
External Organizations;

Salvia,  Rosanna
External Organizations;

Tsanis,  Ioannis K.
External Organizations;

Daliakopoulos,  Ioannis
External Organizations;

Claringbould,  Heleen
External Organizations;

de Ruiter,  Peter C.
External Organizations;

External Ressource
No external resources are shared
Fulltext (public)

24654oa.pdf
(Publisher version), 4MB

Supplementary Material (public)
There is no public supplementary material available
Citation

van den Elsen, E., Stringer, L. C., De Ita, C., Hessel, R., Kéfi, S., Schneider, F. D., Bautista, S., Mayor, A. G., Baudena, M., Rietkerk, M., Valdecantos, A., Vallejo, V. R., Geeson, N., Brandt, C. J., Fleskens, L., Hemerik, L., Panagos, P., Valente, S., Keizer, J. J., Schwilch, G., Jucker Riva, M., Sietz, D., Christoforou, M., Hadjimitsis, D. G., Papoutsa, C., Quaranta, G., Salvia, R., Tsanis, I. K., Daliakopoulos, I., Claringbould, H., de Ruiter, P. C. (2020): Advances in understanding and managing catastrophic ecosystem shifts in mediterranean ecosystems. - Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, 8, 561101.
https://doi.org/10.3389/fevo.2020.561101


Cite as: https://publications.pik-potsdam.de/pubman/item/item_24654
Abstract
One of the most challenging issues in Mediterranean ecosystems to date has been to understand the emergence of discontinuous changes or catastrophic shifts. In the era of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, which encompass ideas around Land Degradation Neutrality, advancing this understanding has become even more critical and urgent. The aim of this paper is to synthesize insights into the drivers, processes and management of catastrophic shifts to highlight ways forward for the management of Mediterranean ecosystems. We use a multidisciplinary approach that extends beyond the typical single site, single scale, single approach studies in the current literature. We link applied and theoretical ecology at multiple scales with analyses and modeling of human–environment–climate relations and stakeholder engagement in six field sites in Mediterranean ecosystems to address three key questions: i) How do major degradation drivers affect ecosystem functioning and services in Mediterranean ecosystems? ii) What processes happen in the soil and vegetation during a catastrophic shift? iii) How can management of vulnerable ecosystems be optimized using these findings? Drawing together the findings from the use of different approaches allows us to address the whole pipeline of changes from drivers through to action. We highlight ways to assess ecosystem vulnerability that can help to prevent ecosystem shifts to undesirable states; identify cost-effective management measures that align with the vision and plans of land users; and evaluate the timing of these measures to enable optimization of their application before thresholds are reached. Such a multidisciplinary approach enables improved identification of early warning signals for discontinuous changes informing more timely and cost-effective management, allowing anticipation of, adaptation to, or even prevention of, undesirable catastrophic ecosystem shifts.