| Focus on Land Ecosystems and landscapes are subject to
constant change as a result of human activities. This is leading to changes in
biogeochemical cycles, hydrologic processes and landscape dynamics affecting
ecosystems and ecosystem services. Human well-being and the ability of the
biosphere to sustain life depends on the function of ecosystems and ecosystem
services.
An integrated multidisciplinary approach is
needed to understand coupled human environmental systems and how human actions
affect natural process of the terrestrial biosphere. This is particularly true
in areas of the globe which have undergone recent changes in land use change as
a result of anthropogenic activity.
Eurasia constitutes such an area, with much
of it having
gone through major political changes during the 1990s with resultant land use
change. In addition,
this part of the globe is undergoing significant changes –
particularly those changes associated with a rapidly warming climate. Much
of Eurasia consists of carbon rich tundra, with massive potential for carbon
release to the atmosphere under a warmer climate, which would exacerbate the
problem of global warming. A better understanding of the impact of human actions
on the terrestrial biosphere in Eurasia, is therefore needed at the global as
well as the local level.
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