Ecosystems and Human Well-Being

by Alcamo, Joseph; Hassan, Rashid; Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (Program); Bennett, Elena M.

• ISBN13: 9781559634038
• ISBN10: 1559634030
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2003-08-15
• Publisher: Island Pr

Summary

Ecosystems and Human Well-being is the first product of the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA), a four-year international work program designed to meet the needs of decision-makers for scientific information on the links between ecosystem change and human well-being. The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment is modeled on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and will provide information requested by governments, through four international conventions, as well as meeting needs within the private sector and civil society. Ecosystems and Human Well-being offers an overview of the assessment, describing the conceptual framework that is being used, defining its scope and providing a baseline of understanding that all participants need to move forward. The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment focuses on how humans have altered ecosystems, and how changes in ecosystems have affected human well-being. The assessment also evaluates how ecosystem changes may affect people in future decades and what responses can be adopted at local, national, or global scales to improve ecosystem management and thereby contribute to human well-being and poverty alleviation. The assessment was launched by United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan in June 2001, and the primary assessment reports will be released by Island Press in 2005. The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment series is an invaluable new resource for professionals and policy-makers concerned with international development, environmental science, environmental policy, and related fields. It will help both in choosing among existing options and in identifying new approaches for achieving integrated management of land, water, and living resources while strengthening regional, national, and local capacities. The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment series will also improve policy and decision-making at all levels by increasing collaboration between natural and social scientists, and between scientists and policy-makers. Ecosystems and Human Well-being is an essential introduction to the program.

Table of Contents

Preface	p. x
Acknowledgments	p. xiii
Summary	p. 1
Introduction and Conceptual Framework	p. 26
Introduction	p. 26
Overview of Conceptual Framework	p. 34
The Multiscale Approach	p. 43
Types of Knowledge Assessed	p. 44
Minimizing Structural Biases	p. 45
Use in Decision-making	p. 47
Ecosystems and Their Services	p. 49
Introduction	p. 49
Ecosystems Boundaries and Categories	p. 50
Ecosystem Services	p. 53
Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services	p. 60
Ecosystem Condition and Sustainable Use	p. 62
Ecosystems and Human Well-being	p. 71
Introduction	p. 72
Key Components of Human Well-being	p. 73
Linkages between Ecosystem Services and Human Well-being	p. 76
Substitutability and Well-being	p. 79
Balancing Priorities: Present Versus Future	p. 81
Institutions and Freedoms	p. 82
Conclusion	p. 83
Drivers of Change in Ecosystems and Their Services	p. 85
Introduction	p. 86
Previous Approaches on the Factors of Change	p. 88
Drivers: An Overview	p. 90
The Decision-maker within the Ecosystem	p. 91
Ecosystem Consequences of Decisions Outside an Ecosystem	p. 94
Drivers of Ecosystem Change	p. 96
Interactions among Drivers	p. 104
Dealing with Scale	p. 107
Introduction	p. 108
Why Scale Matters	p. 110
Changing Scales	p. 112
Space and Time Domains	p. 114
Inertia in Human and Ecological Systems	p. 117
Viewing a Particular Scale in Context	p. 118
Scales in Ecological and Human Systems	p. 119
Scale and Policy	p. 122
Guidance for Multiscale Assessments	p. 124
Concepts of Ecosystem Value and Valuation Approaches	p. 127
Introduction	p. 128
The Utilitarian Approach and Economic Valuation Methods	p. 130
Non-utilitarian Value	p. 139
Conclusion	p. 147
Analytical Approaches	p. 148
Introduction	p. 149
Data	p. 152
Units of Analysis and Reporting	p. 159
Modeling Issues	p. 162
Scenario Analysis	p. 166
Overarching Issues	p. 173
Conclusion	p. 177
Strategic Interventions, Response Options, and Decision-making	p. 178
Introduction	p. 179
Decision-making Processes	p. 180
Response Options and Strategic Interventions	p. 183
Usable Knowledge	p. 187
Dealing with Risk and Uncertainty	p. 193
Decision Analytical Frameworks and Tools	p. 195
Authors	p. 201
Reviewers	p. 206
Abbreviations and Acronyms	p. 207
Glossary	p. 208
Bibliography	p. 217
Index	p. 236
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.