OOS 1 - Biodiversity and Human Diversity for Ecosystem Health and Sustainability in a World of Change

Monday, August 7, 2017: 1:30 PM-5:00 PM
Portland Blrm 254, Oregon Convention Center
Organizer:
Norman Christensen, Duke University
Co-organizer:
Steward T.A. Pickett, Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies
Moderator:
Norman Christensen, Duke University
The diversity of ecological systems is acknowledged as a key aspect of their structure and function, as well as an important target for conservation and ecological management. Likewise, the human diversity of the systems that ecologists study and of the scientific community itself, is a crucial ingredient for success of scientific research and application. However, rarely are these two kinds of diversity considered together. This lack of attention is especially significant given that global changes are altering the local and regional diversity of ecosystems, and through urbanization and global connectivity, are also altering the human diversity within ecosystems and landscapes. An improved understanding of ecological and human diversity and their response to a changing world is urgently required. This organized oral session will summarize current knowledge about biodiversity, human diversity, their existing and yet to be discovered relationships, and their joint role in ensuring sustainable outcomes in a changing world. Ecologists, sustainability scientists and thinkers, and scholars and practitioners in the areas of environmental justice and conservation will present aspects of their work that summarizes the state of our knowledge and identifies future needs for research or application. Using case studies, each talk will explore a key component of the linkage of biodiversity to human diversity. Talks will address a variety of dimensions of that linkage, including ecosystem processes, species diversity, infectious disease vectors, agriculture, environmental justice, urbanization, human well-being, and environmental economics. Fundamental discoveries relating sustainability, ecosystem services and change will be a central theme. The session will end with a synthesis of key connections that emerge and gaps remaining.
2:10 PM
 Situating sustainability: From metaphor to model
Mary L. Cadenasso, University of California, Davis; Steward T. A. Pickett, Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies; J. Sze, University of California, Davis
2:30 PM
 Linkages between biodiversity and ecosystem services in city planning
Myla FJ Aronson, Rutgers University; Charles H. Nilon, University of Missouri; Sarel Cilliers, North-West University - Potchefstroom Campus; Cynnamon Dobbs, Universidad de Chile; Lauren J. Frazee, Rutgers University; Mark A. Goddard, Newcastle University; Debra Roberts, eThekwini Municipality; Emilie K Stander, Raritan Valley Community College; Peter Werner, Institute Wohnen und Umwelt; Marten Winter, iDiv – German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research; Ken Yocom, University of Washington
2:50 PM
 Ecosystem services: Economy and beyond
Heather Tallis, The Nature Conservancy
3:10 PM
3:40 PM
 Human diversity and urbanization in South Africa: Democratizing ecosystem service assessments for sustainable development
Melissa R. McHale, Colorado State University; Daniel L. Childers, Arizona State University; Steward T. A. Pickett, Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies; Mary L. Cadenasso, University of California, Davis; Scott Beck, Colorado State University; David N Bunn, Colorado State University; Liesel Ebersohn, University of Pretoria; Wayne Twine, University of the Witwatersrand; Louise Swemmer, South African National Parks
4:00 PM
4:20 PM
 Biodiversity and human diversity in a changing world: Key insights and knowledge gaps
Steward T.A. Pickett, Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies