Land-use and land-cover change on the Albemarle-Pamlico Peninsula
Land-use and land-cover change (LULCC) is one of the fundamental processes by which humans affect natural systems and the life-sustaining services they provide. LULCC is not only the result of human use, but also the result of environmental processes like forest succession and climate change. As such, LULCC is a multifaceted and dynamic process, one that involves multiple spatio-temporal scales and complex multi-directional interactions between social and ecological systems. LULCC also influences the production of highly valued ecosystem services like water filtration, carbon sequestration, storm surge protection, and biodiversity conservation. Ultimately, a region’s adaptive capacity and resilience to threats from environmental change are influenced by changes in land-use and land-cover and the decision-making processes driving them.
Although recognized as an important process in LULCC studies, incorporating human behavior and decision-making processes into scientific models remains a challenge. Traditionally, the natural and social sciences have operated separately and have dealt with very specific research questions. There is clearly a need to make progress on linking LULCC models with models of dynamic human decision making that reflect behavior at multiple spatial and organizational scales.
The Albemarle-Pamlico Peninsula - with its diverse but sensitive ecological systems, its human population that is highly resource-dependent, and its proximity to the ocean – is a landscape particularly sensitive to changes in land-use, land-cover, as well as climate. Changes in land-use and land-cover influence the region’s ability to produce important ecosystem services – services that sustain the lives and livelihoods of communities across the Peninsula. In the SALT project, we are exploring how human decision making shapes LULCC across the Albemarle-Pamlico Peninsula by using computational models that explicitly link human behavior to dynamic landscape-scale processes. We are evaluating vulnerabilities and trade-offs in ecosystem service production under alternate adaptation strategies through the integration of both natural and social science methodologies. By using a bottom-up approach and incorporating human decision-making processes into LULCC models, we are beginning to identify sustainable solutions for both human and natural communities in an ever-changing landscape.
Written by Lindsey S. Smart
Although recognized as an important process in LULCC studies, incorporating human behavior and decision-making processes into scientific models remains a challenge. Traditionally, the natural and social sciences have operated separately and have dealt with very specific research questions. There is clearly a need to make progress on linking LULCC models with models of dynamic human decision making that reflect behavior at multiple spatial and organizational scales.
The Albemarle-Pamlico Peninsula - with its diverse but sensitive ecological systems, its human population that is highly resource-dependent, and its proximity to the ocean – is a landscape particularly sensitive to changes in land-use, land-cover, as well as climate. Changes in land-use and land-cover influence the region’s ability to produce important ecosystem services – services that sustain the lives and livelihoods of communities across the Peninsula. In the SALT project, we are exploring how human decision making shapes LULCC across the Albemarle-Pamlico Peninsula by using computational models that explicitly link human behavior to dynamic landscape-scale processes. We are evaluating vulnerabilities and trade-offs in ecosystem service production under alternate adaptation strategies through the integration of both natural and social science methodologies. By using a bottom-up approach and incorporating human decision-making processes into LULCC models, we are beginning to identify sustainable solutions for both human and natural communities in an ever-changing landscape.
Written by Lindsey S. Smart