A fundamental environmental challenge facing humanity in the 21st century and beyond is predicting the impacts of global environmental change. This challenge is complicated by the fact that we live on a non-stationary, unreplicated planet that is rapidly moving outside the envelope of natural variability into an historical non-analog world. In other words, while the past helps inform us about how the world has worked, it may no longer be the relevant frame of reference for management, conservation, and sustainability. In this future world the two questions at the foundation of sustainability are “How are ecosystems and the services they provide going to change in the future?” and “How do human decisions affect this trajectory?” These are, at their heart, questions about ecological forecasting.
Citation Information
Publication Year | 2016 |
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Title | Iterative ecological forecasting: Needs, opportunities, and challenges |
DOI | 10.6084/m9.figshare.4715317 |
Authors | Mike Dietze, Andrew Fox, Julio L. Betancourt, Mevin Hooten, Catherine S. Jarnevich, Tim H. Keitt, Melissa Kenney, Christine Laney, Laurel Larsen, Henry W. Loescher, Claire Lunch, Bryan Pijanowski, James T. Randerson, Emily K. Read, Andrew T. Tredennick, Kathleen Weathers, Ethan P. White |
Publication Type | Conference Paper |
Publication Subtype | Conference Paper |
Index ID | 70185996 |
Record Source | USGS Publications Warehouse |
USGS Organization | National Research Program - Eastern Branch |