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1. Reframing the payments for ecosystem services framework in a coupled human and natural systems context: strengthening the integration between ecological and human dimensions

   https://doi.org/10.1080/20964129.2017.1335931  

   Lewison, Rebecca L. ; An, Li ; Chen, Xiaodong ( July 2017 , Ecosystem Health and Sustainability)

   Introduction:As challenges to biodiversity mount, land-use policies have been implemented to balance human needs and the integrity of ecological systems. One such program, Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES), incentivizes resource users to protect ecosystem services and has been implemented around the world to reduce soil erosion, create or improve wildlife habitats, and improve water quality and other environmental goals. The PES policy, at its core, is a concept that aims to capture the reciprocal relationships between human systems and ecological function and process. As such, PES epistemologically embodies a coupled human and natural systems approach.

   Outcomes:Yet, despite this conceptual alignment, the on-the-ground implementation or evaluation of PES typically does not adopt this coupled approach and PES programs have little integration between socioeconomic, sociocultural, human demographic, and ecological elements. To advance the evolution of PES, we consider what and how socioeconomic and ecological factors have been incorporated into PES program implementation and evaluation. We also present a conceptual model to articulate how PES research can capture the reciprocal relationships among socioeconomics, demography, and ecology and discuss the quantitative modeling approaches that can support this conceptual development, i.e., structural equation and agent-based modeling, and latent trajectory models.

   Conclusions:By strengthening the conceptual framework for PES within a coupled human and natural systems approach and identifyinganalytical approaches that can be used to quantify and characterize these complex cross-disciplinary relationships, we aim to support the evolution and advancement of PES, in service of more meaningful and positive outcomes for human well-being and ecological sustainability.

    

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2. Bryophytes in fir waves: Forest canopy indicator species and functional diversity decline in canopy gaps

   https://doi.org/10.1111/jvs.12718  

   Berdugo, Monica B. ; Dovciak, Martin ; Nakashizuka, ed., Tohru ( March 2019 , Journal of Vegetation Science)

   Bryophytes can cover three quarters of the ground surface, play key ecological functions, and increase biodiversity in mesic high‐elevation conifer forests of the temperate zone. Forest gaps affect species coexistence (and ecosystem functions) as suggested by the gap and gap‐size partitioning hypotheses (GPH,G_SPH). Here we test these hypotheses in the context of high‐elevation forest bryophyte communities and their functional attributes.

   Spruce–fir forests on Whiteface Mountain, NY,USA.

   We characterized canopy openness, microclimate, forest floor substrates, vascular vegetation cover, and moss layer (cover, common species, and functional attributes) in three canopy openness environments (gap, gap edge, forest canopy) across 20 gaps (fir waves) (n = 60); the functional attributes were based on 16 morphologic, reproductive, and ecological bryophyte plant functional traits (PFTs). We testedGPHandG_SPHrelative to bryophyte community metrics (cover, composition), traits, and trait functional sensitivity (functional dispersion;FDis) using indicator species analysis, ordination, and regression.

   Canopy openness drove gradients in ground‐level temperature, substrate abundance and heterogeneity (beta diversity), and understory vascular vegetation cover. TheGPHwas consistent with (a) the abundance patterns of forest canopy indicator species (Dicranum fuscescens,Hypnum imponens, andTetraphis pellucida), and (b)FDisbased on threePFTs (growth form, fertility, and acidity), both increasing with canopy cover. We did not find support forGPHin the remaining species or traits, or forG_SPHin general; gap width (12–44 m) was not related to environmental or bryophyte community gradients.

   The observed lack of variation in most bryophyte metrics across canopy environments suggests high resistance of the bryophyte layer to natural canopy gaps in high‐elevation forests. However, responses of forest canopy indicator species suggest that canopy mortality, potentially increased by changing climate or insect pests, may cause declines in some forest canopy species and consequently in the functional diversity of bryophyte communities.

    

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3. Using Metabolic Energy Density Metrics to Understand Differences in Ecosystem Function During Drought

   https://doi.org/10.1029/2019JG005335  

   Wiesner, Susanne ; Stoy, Paul C. ; Staudhammer, Christina L. ; Starr, Gregory ( February 2020 , Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences)

   Terrestrial ecosystems obtain energy in the form of carbon‐containing molecules. Quantifying energy acquisition and dissipation throughout an ecosystem may be useful for describing their resistance and resilience to disturbances. Three longleaf pine savannas with different vegetation composition—a result of variation in soil moisture and land use legacy—were used as a case study to test energy‐based metrics of ecosystem metabolic function. Available energy from gross ecosystem exchange of CO₂and its dissipation into metabolic energy density (E_M) and energy storage were used to identify differences in drought recovery over an 8‐year period. Sites with higher plant functional diversity in the understory stored more energy and lowered their E_Mby ~20% when adapting to drought. In contrast, the site with greater abundance of woody understory and overstory species relied on stored energy twice as often as the more diverse sites. The absence of native understory species, due to anthropogenic legacy, prolonged ecosystem‐scale drought recovery by 1 year. This study provides the tools to understand differences in site metabolic energy dynamics and has the potential to identify site characteristics that indicate greater vulnerability to disturbances. Metabolic energy density can be applied to any global ecosystem and provides a first step to describe coupled carbon and energy allocation in ecosystems, which may be used to further refine ecological theory and its management implications.

    

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4. Using payment for ecosystem services to meet national reforestation commitments: impacts of 20+ years of forestry incentives in Guatemala

   https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/acf602  

   Patrick, Evan ; Butsic, Van ; Potts, Matthew D. ( September 2023 , Environmental Research Letters)

   International environmental initiatives, such as the Bonn Challenge and the UN Decade on Restoration, have prompted countries to put the management and restoration of forest landscapes at the center of their land use and climate policies. To support these goals, many governments are promoting forest landscape restoration and management through financial forestry incentives, a form of payment for ecosystem services. Since 1996, Guatemala has implemented a series of forestry incentives that promote active forest landscape restoration and management on private and communal lands. These programs have been widely hailed as a success with nearly 600 000 ha enrolled since 1998. However, there has been no systematic assessment of the effectiveness of these programs on preserving and restoring Guatemalan forests. This study evaluates the impacts of over 16 000 individual PES projects funded through two incentive programs using a synthetic control counterfactual. Overall, a program for smallholders resulted in lower rates of forest loss, while a program for industrial timber owners led to greater gains in forest cover. Across policies, we found dramatically higher forest cover increases from restoration projects (15% forest cover increase) compared to plantation and agroforestry projects (3%–6% increase in forest cover). Projects that protected natural forest also showed a 6% reduction in forest loss. We found forest cover increases to be under 10% of total enrolled area, although positive local spillovers suggest this is an underestimate. Restoration projects show the most promise at promoting forest landscape restoration, but these benefits need to be weighed against priorities like resilience and rural development, which may be better served by other projects.

    

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5. Green Vegetation Cover Has Steadily Increased since Establishment of Community Forests in Western Chitwan, Nepal

   https://doi.org/10.3390/rs12244071  

   Dai, Jie ; Roberts, Dar A. ; Stow, Douglas A. ; An, Li ; Zhao, Qunshan ( December 2020 , Remote Sensing)

   null (Ed.)

   Community forests have been established worldwide to sustainably manage forest ecosystem services while maintaining the livelihoods of local residents. The Chitwan National Park in Nepal is a world-renowned biodiversity hotspot, where community forests were consolidated in the park’s buffer zone after 1993. These western Chitwan community forests stand as the frontiers of human–environment interactions, nurturing endangered large mammal species while providing significant natural resources for local residents. Nevertheless, no systematic forest cover assessment has been conducted for these forests since their establishment. In this study, we examined the green vegetation dynamics of these community forests for the years 1988–2018 using Landsat surface reflectance products. Combining an automatic water extraction index, spectral mixture analysis and the normalized difference fraction index (NDFI), we developed water masks and quantified the water-adjusted green vegetation fractions and NDFI values in the forests. Results showed that all forests have been continuously greening up since their establishment, and the average green vegetation cover of all forests increased from approximately 30% in 1988 to above 70% in 2018. With possible contributions from the invasion of exotic understory plant species, we credit community forestry programs for some of the green-up signals. Monitoring of forest vegetation dynamics is critical for evaluating the effectiveness of community forestry as well as developing sustainable forest management policies. Our research will provide positive feedbacks to local community forest committees and users. 

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