In a special issue, Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment explores ecology in an era of globalization, looking at the impacts of human migration, production systems, and invasive species on ecosystems and people throughout North, Central, and South America. Scientists from throughout the Americas gathered last year in Merida Mexico and held a conference on this very topic. The following are highlights from the meeting, including more extensive work done since the event.
In an introduction by Jeffrey Herrick (US Department of Agriculture) and Jos Sarukhan (Universidad Nacional Autnoma de Mexico, Ciudad Universitaria, Mexico), the authors discuss the impacts of globalization on environmental degradation. They suggest ecological science must be more rapidly integrated to keep up with the changes, including an ecological knowledge system to facilitate access to new and existing sources of ecological information throughout the world.
Frederick Meyerson (University of Rhode Island, US), Leticia Merino (Universidad Nacional Autnoma de Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico), and Jorge Durand (Universidad de Guadalajara, Mexico) describe the impacts of human migration and population growth in their piece, "Migration and environment in the context of globalization." The researchers describe the economic, environmental and social factors that will play a major role in the future of ecosystems, biodiversity, land use, and conservation policy. They suggest that migration and other demographics - when combined with ecological data - present opportunities for modeling projections, long-range conservation strategies, and policy interventions.
In "The future of production systems in a globalized world," Elena Bennett (McGill University, Montreal, Canada) and Patricia Balvanera (Universidad Nacional Autnoma de Mexico, Morelia, Mexico) analyze ecosystem services, especially those providing food, fiber, and timber. They discuss the challenges ahead in sus
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Contact: Annie Drinkard
annie@esa.org
Ecological Society of America
2-May-2007