Scope

Biodiversity Change and Human Health brings together leading experts from the natural science and social science realms as well as the medical community to explore the explicit linkages between human-driven alterations of biodiversity and documented impacts of those changes on human health. The book utilizes multidisciplinary approaches to explore and address the complex interplay between natural biodiversity and human health and well-being. The five parts examine health trade-offs between competing uses of biodiversity (highlighting synergistic situations in which conservation of natural biodiversity actually promotes human health and well-being); relationships between biodiversity and quality of life that have developed over ecological and evolutionary time; the effects of changing biodiversity on provisioning of ecosystem services, and how they have affected human health; the role of biodiversity in the spread of infectious disease; native biodiversity as a resource for traditional and modern medicine Biodiversity Change and Human Health synthesizes our current understanding and identifies major gaps in knowledge as it places all aspects of biodiversity and health interactions within a common framework. Contributors explore potential points of crossover among disciplines (both in ways of thinking and of specific methodologies) that could ultimately expand opportunities for humans to both live sustainably and enjoy a desirable quality of life.

Scientists and researchers concerned with the behavior of large ecosystems have focused in recent years on the concept of "resilience." Traditional perspectives held that ecological systems exist close to a steady state and resilience is the ability of the system to return rapidly to that state following perturbation. However beginning with the work of C. S. Holling in the early 1970s, researchers began to look at conditions far from the steady state where instabilities can cause a system to shift into an entirely different regime of behavior, and where resilience is measured by the magnitude of disturbance that can be absorbed before the system is restructured. Resilience and the Behavior of Large-Scale Systems examines theories of resilience and change, offering readers a thorough understanding of how the properties of ecological resilience and human adaptability interact in complex, regional-scale systems. The book addresses the theoretical concepts of resilience and stability in large-scale ecosystems as well as the empirical application of those concepts in a diverse set of cases. In addition, it discusses the practical implications of the new theoretical approaches and their role in the sustainability of human-modified ecosystems. The book begins with a review of key properties of complex adaptive systems that contribute to overall resilience, including multiple equlibria, complexity, self-organization at multiple scales, and order; it also presents a set of mathematical metaphors to describe and deepen the reader's understanding of the ideas being discussed. Following the introduction are case studies that explore the biophysical dimensions of resilience in both terrestrial and aquatic systems and evaluate the propositions presented in the introductory chapters. The book concludes with a synthesis section that revisits propositions in light of the case studies, while an appendix presents a detailed account of the relationship between return times for a disturbed system and its resilienc. In addition to the editors, contributors include Stephen R. Carpenter, Carl Folke, C. S. Holling, Bengt-Owe Jansson, Donald Ludwig, Ariel Lugo, Tim R. McClanahan, Garry D. Peterson, and Brian H. Walker.

While a number of gases are implicated in global warming, carbon dioxide is the most important contributor, and in one sense the entire phenomena can be seen as a human-induced perturbation of the carbon cycle. The Global Carbon Cycle offers a scientific assessment of the state of current knowledge of the carbon cycle by the world's leading scientists sponsored by SCOPE and the Global Carbon Project, and other international partners. It gives an introductory over-view of the carbon cycle, with multidisciplinary contributions covering biological, physical, and social science aspects. Included are 29 chapters covering topics including: an assessment of carbon-climate-human interactions; a portfolio of carbon management options; spatial and temporal distribution of sources and sinks of carbon dioxide; socio-economic driving forces of emissions scenarios. Throughout, contributors emphasize that all parts of the carbon cycle are interrelated, and only by developing a framework that considers the full set of feedbacks will we be able to achieve a thorough understanding and develop effective management strategies. The Global Carbon Cycle edited by Christopher B. Field and Michael R. Raupach is part of the Rapid Assessment Publication series produced by the Scientific Committee on Problems of the Environment (SCOPE), in an effort to quickly disseminate the collective knowledge of the world's leading experts on topics of pressing environmental concern.

National governments and research scientists may be equally concerned with issues of global environmental change, but their interests-and their timelines-are not the same. Governments are often focused on short-term effects and local impacts of global phenomena. Scientists, on the other hand, are loath to engage in speculation about the specific consequences of large-scale environmental trends. How then can we translate scientific understanding of these trends into public policy? Communicating Global Change Science to Society examines the growing number of instances in which governments and scientists have engaged in research projects in which the goal is to inform policy decisions. It assesses these experiences and suggests their implications for future collaborations. The book begins with a discussion of interactions between science and policy, particularly as they relate to the broad significance of environmental change. It then addresses concerns that emerge from this discussion, including how scientific research results are communicated in democratic societies, the uses (and misuses) of scientific findings, and what the natural and social sciences could learn from each other. "Communicating Global Change Science to Society: An Assessment and Case Studies presents a thoughtful consideration of how we can use science in the service of society-a grand challenge for the 21st century if we are going to successfully mange the planet for the benefit of present and future generations. By exploring ways of creating knowledge partnerships between decision makers (government and business leaders, resource managers) and scientists, society can find sustainable ways of creating dynamic economies, while protecting and improving the environment in the face of rapid global environmental changes."---Jerry M. Melillo, co-director of The Ecosystems Center at the Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole

Sustaining Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services in Soils and Sediments brings together the world's leading ecologists, systematists, and evolutionary biologists to present scientific information that integrates soil and sediment disciplines across terrestrial, marine, and freshwater ecosystems. It offers a framework for a new discipline, one that will allow future scientists to consider the linkages of biodiversity below-surface, and how biota interact to provide the essential ecosystemservices needed for sustainable soils and sediments. Contributors consider key-questions regarding soils and sediments and the relationship between soil- and sediment- dwelling organisms and overall ecosystem functioning. The book is an important new synthesis for scientists and researchers studying a range of topics, including global sustainability, conservation biology, taxonomy, erosion, extreme systems, food production, and related fields. In addition, it provides new insight and understanding for managers, policymakers, and others concerned with global environmental sustainability and global change issues. "A path-breaking book that provides a remarkable cross-disciplinary synthesis of the state of science in this field and compelling evidence for the need to better understand these systems is we are to successfully manage ecosystem services."---Walter Reid, director, Millennium Ecosystem Assessment

Nitrogen is an essential element for plant growth and development and a key agricultural input-but in excess it can lead to a host of problems for human and ecological health. Across the globe, distribution of fertilizer nitrogen is very uneven, with some areas subject to nitrogen pollution and others suffering from reduced soil fertility, diminished crop production, and other consequences of inadequate supply. Agriculture and the Nitrogen Cycle provides a global assessment of the role of nitrogen fertilizer in the nitrogen cycle. The focus of the book is regional, emphasizing the need to maintain food and fiber production while minimizing environmental impacts where fertilizer is abundant, and the need to enhance fertilizer utilization in systems where nitrogen is limited. The book is derived from a workshop held by the Scientific Committee on Problems of the Environment (SCOPE) in Kampala, Uganda, that brought together the world's leading scientists to examine and discuss the nitrogen cycle and related problems. It contains an overview chapter that summarizes the group's findings, four chapters on cross-cutting issues, and thirteen background chapters. The book offers a unique synthesis and provides an up-to-date, broad perspective on the issues of nitrogen fertilizer in food production and the interaction of nitrogen and the environment.

Invasive alien species are among today's most daunting environmental threats, costing billions of dollars in economic damages and wreaking havoc on ecosystems around the world. In 1997, a consortium of scientific organizations including SCOPE, IUCN, and CABI developed the Global Invasive Species Programme (GISP) with the explicit objective of providing new tools for understanding and coping with invasive alien species. Invasive Alien Species is the final report of GISP's first phase of operation, 1997-2000, in which authorities from more than thirty countries worked to examine invasions as a worldwide environmental hazard. The book brings together the world's leading scientists and researchers involved with invasive alien species to offer a comprehensive summary and synthesis of the current state of knowledge on the subject. Invasive alien species represent a critical threat to natural ecosystems and native biodiversity, as well as to human economic vitality and health. The knowledge gained to date in understanding and combating invasive alien species can form a useful basis on which to build strategies for controlling or minimizing the effects in the future. Invasive Alien Species is an essential reference for the international community of investigators concerned with biological invasions. "...provides a new foundation for everyone interested in the biological, socioeconomic, policy, or management implications of biological invasions." "Well referenced. A truly comprehensive state-of-the-issue kind of text." "An outstanding summary of the results of Phase I of the Global Invasive Species Program, this volume presents up-to-date syntheses of important aspects of how to manage this worldwide problem. In ample, well-written chapters, it provides sound advice in areas that range from prediction of invasiveness and practical management to economics and the law. It will reward careful study by all those concerned with these problems!"---Peter H. Raven, Director of Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis "Another benchmark volume from SCOPE. A comprehensive synthesis of the greatest challenges to biodiversity in the 21st century, as the negative synergies of climate change, land transformation, and invasions of ecosystems by aggressive alien species accelerate in the absence of adequate response strategies. This book, elegantly researched and presented in the Island Press tradition, crystallizes the results of over a century of good science and hard lessons that help us understand and combat the negative impacts of invasive alien species."---Brian Huntley, Chief Executive, South African National Biodiversity Institute "No better entrée exists for the diverse issues surrounding invasive alien species. This volume charts a coherent way forward from increased understanding at the scientific level to successful reduction of the unintended harm that results from moving species around the globe. Up-to-date coverage is provided of the biological issues, risk characterization, legal and policy instruments, on-the-ground management, the various ways in which humans are both responsible for and suffer from invasive alien species, and other topics essential to an effective societal response. Finally we have a rigorous volume that unites descriptions of the problems with suggested solutions."---David M. Lodge, Professor of biological sciences, University of Notre Dame

Silicon is among the most abundant elements on earth. It plays a key but largely unappreciated role in many biogeochemical processes, including those that regulate climate and undergird marine food webs. The Silicon Cycle is the first book in more than 20 years to present a comprehensive overview of the silicon cycle and issues associated with it. The book summarizes the major outcomes of the project Land-Ocean Interactions: Silica Cycle, initiated by the Scientific Community on Problems of the Environment (SCOPE) of the International Council of Scientific Unions (ICSU). It tracks the pathway of silicon from land to sea and discusses its biotic and abiotic modifications in transit as well as its cycling in the coastal seas. Natural geological processes in combination with atmospheric and hydrological processes are discussed, as well as human perturbations of the natural controls of the silicon cycle. "The Silicon Cycle is a unique and important volume. There is nothing else like it currently. It addresses authoritatively the growing interest in the role that Si plays in controlling other biogeochemical cycles . . . I will use this as both a research reference and a teaching tool."---Jonathan Cole, Institute for Ecosystem Studies, Millbrook, NY "The authors in The Silicon Cycle are leading researchers in the field of silicon geochemistry, which makes for a great volume . . . The book deals not only with issues such as changes in the riverine dissolved silicate flux, but also with global warming and the associated changes in ocean circulation, which may have an enormous impact on the silicon cycle. The authors have a good balance in their discussions of silicon cycling in terrestrial and marine environments."---Dave Demaster, North Carolina State University

While the concept of sustainability has been widely embraced, it has been only vaguely defined and is exceedingly difficult to measure. Sustainability indicators are critical to making the broad concept of sustainability operational by providing specific measures by which decision makers and the public can judge progress. Sustainability Indicators defines the present state of the art in indicator development. It presents a comprehensive assessment of the science behind various indicators, while placing special emphasis on their use as communications tools. The contributors draw on their experience as academics and practitioners to describe the conceptual challenges to measuring something as complex as sustainability at local, regional, national, and global scales. The book also reviews existing indicators to assess how they could be better employed, considering which indicators are overused and which have been underutilized. Sustainability Indicators will help planners and policy makers find indicators that are ready for application and relevant to their needs, and will help researchers identify the unresolved issues where progress is most urgently needed. All readers will find advice as to the most effective ways to use indicators to support decision making. "…Sustainability Indicators brings us one step further in turning diverse scientific data into understandable and useful information that can be put to work in policy making processes and everyday life. As such, it is an authoritative reference volume for everyone involved with environmental information, sustainability issues, and the health of our planet."---Dr. Achim Steiner, United Nations Environment Programme Executive Director "This comprehensive volume is essential reading for anyone working professionally in the field of sustainability … a masterful job of surveying the current state of the field from a global scientific perspective. In addition to framing future research, the lessons here can (and should) be applied to business, local government, or any system where the measurement of sustainability is a condition of successful management."---Alan Atkisson, Executive Director, Earth Charter International "Sustainability Indicators is necessary reading for scholars, policymakers, and activists engaged in the critical task of taking the measure of our world along the equally vital dimensions of our economy, social justice, and the environment. It provides an invaluable guide to re-setting our direction towards an uncompromised future."---Michael Gelobter, President, Redefining Progress "Most useful for graduate students and researchers wanting to explore, develop, or use indicators of sustainability."