The eighth plenary of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES-8): online, nexus, and transformative change

Scientists' warning of threats to mountains

Mountains are an essential component of the global life-support system. They are characterized by a rugged, heterogenous landscape with rapidly changing environmental conditions providing myriad ecological niches over relatively small spatial scales. Although montane species are well adapted to life at extremes, they are highly vulnerable to human derived ecosystem threats. Here we build on the manifesto 'World Scientists' Warning to Humanity', issued by the Alliance of World Scientists, to outline the major threats to mountain ecosystems. We highlight climate change as the greatest threat to mountain ecosystems, which are more impacted than their lowland counterparts. We further discuss the cascade of "knock-on" effects of climate change such as increased UV radiation, altered hydrological cycles, and altered pollution profiles; highlighting the biological and socio-economic consequences. Finally, we present how intensified use of mountains leads to overexploitation and abstraction of water, driving changes in carbon stock, reducing biodiversity, and impacting ecosystem functioning. These perturbations can provide opportunities for invasive species, parasites and pathogens to colonize these fragile habitats, driving further changes and losses of micro- and macro-biodiversity, as well further impacting ecosystem services. Ultimately, imbalances in the normal functioning of mountain ecosystems will lead to changes in vital biological, biochemical, and chemical processes, critically reducing ecosystem health with widespread repercussions for animal and human wellbeing. Developing tools in species/habitat conservation and future restoration is therefore essential if we are to effectively mitigate against the declining health of mountains.

Spatiotemporal Changes in Ecosystem Services Value and Its Driving Factors in the Karst Region of China

Over the last few decades, most regional ecosystem services (ESs) have significantly deteriorated, primarily driven by an increase in human dominance over the natural environment. Creating an assessment framework of ESs and identifying its driving factors at the regional scale is challenging for researchers, administrators, and policy-makers. In this study, we attempt to quantify the economic value of ESs (ESV) in Guizhou Province from 2000 to 2018, one of the most prominent areas of karst landforms in China. We identified the major factors affecting ESs using the geographical detector (GD) model. Then, we conducted a multiscale geographically weighted regression (MGWR) analysis to examine the spatial differentiation of the causal effects of both natural and anthropogenic factors on ESs. Our results demonstrate the following: (1) the total ESV of Guizhou Province was approximately USD 81,764.32 million in 2000, USD 82,411.06 million in 2010, and USD 82,065.31 million in 2018, and the increase of USD 300.99 million from 2000 to 2018 was the result of the remarkable conversion from cultivated land to forestland; (2) significantly considerable differentiation existed in the spatial distribution of ESV at the county level, with a higher value in the eastern region and a lower value in the western region; (3) among the driving factors, population density had a more significant effect on the spatial differentiation of ESV than did natural factors; and (4) agricultural output value was the dominant factor influencing the ESV during the study period, with a significantly positive correlation, whereas per capita GDP and population density had significantly negative impacts on ESV, according to the effective performance of the MGWR model that evaluated the spatial heterogeneity in geospatial relationships between the driving factors of ESV. Our findings can provide notable guidance to land administrators and policy-makers for effective land resource conservation and management plans, thereby improving regional sustainability.

The eighth plenary of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES-8): online, nexus, and transformative change

The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services held its 8th plenary session online in June 2021, during which a new budget was approved up to 2023, continuing work plans were agreed, and scoping documents for two new assessments, the nexus and transformative change assessments, were accepted.

The eighth plenary of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES-8): online, nexus, and transformative change

The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services held its 8th plenary session online in June 2021, during which a new budget was approved up to 2023, continuing work plans were agreed, and scoping documents for two new assessments, the nexus and transformative change assessments, were accepted.

The eighth plenary of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES-8): online, nexus, and transformative change

The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services held its 8th plenary session online in June 2021, during which a new budget was approved up to 2023, continuing work plans were agreed, and scoping documents for two new assessments, the nexus and transformative change assessments, were accepted.

The eighth plenary of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES-8): online, nexus, and transformative change

The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services held its 8th plenary session online in June 2021, during which a new budget was approved up to 2023, continuing work plans were agreed, and scoping documents for two new assessments, the nexus and transformative change assessments, were accepted.

Why are social sciences and humanities needed in the works of IPBES? A systematic review of the literature

Despite the increased attention, which has been given to the issue of involving knowledge and experts from the social sciences and humanities (SSH) into the products and works of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), little is known on what the expectations towards the involvement of SSH in IPBES actually are. The aim of this paper is to close this gap by identifying the range of possible SSH contributions to IPBES that are expected in the literature, and discuss the inherent challenges of and concrete ways to realize these contributions in the particular institutional setting of IPBES. We address these two points by: firstly, assessing the literature dealing with IPBES and building a typology describing the main ways in which contributions from SSH to IPBES have been conceived between 2006 and 2017. We discuss these expected contributions in light of broader debates on the role of SSH in nature conservation and analyse some of the blind spots and selectivities in the perception of how SSH could substantially contribute to the works of IPBES. Then, secondly, by looking at one particular example, economics and its use in the first thematic assessment on pollinators, pollination and food production, we will concretely illustrate how works in a given discipline could contribute in many different and unprecedented ways to the works of IPBES and help identify paths for enhancing the conservation of biodiversity. Finally, we propose a range of practical recommendations as to how to increase the contribution of SSH in the works of IPBES.