%0 Journal Article
%T A Revisit to the Impacts of Land Use Changes on the Human Wellbeing via Altering the Ecosystem Provisioning Services
%A Xiangzheng Deng
%A Zhihui Li
%A Jikun Huang
%A Qingling Shi
%A Yanfei Li
%J Advances in Meteorology
%D 2013
%I Hindawi Publishing Corporation
%R 10.1155/2013/907367
%X It is widely acknowledged that land use changes (LUC) associated with climate variations are affecting the human wellbeing. This paper conducted a revisit to relevant researches on the impacts of LUC on human wellbeing via specifically altering the ecosystem provisioning services. First, the explorations on the influences of LUC on ecosystem provisioning services were reviewed, including the researches on the influences of LUC on agroecosystem services and forest and/or grassland ecosystem services. Then the quantitative identification of the impacts of LUC on ecosystem provisioning services was commented on. In the light of enhanced observation and valuation methods, several approaches to ecosystem services and improved models for assessing those ecosystem services were assessed. The major indicators used to uncover the influences of LUC on human wellbeing were summarized including the increase of inputs and the reduction of outputs in production and the augmented health risk induced by the irrational land uses. Finally, this paper uncovered the research gaps and proposed several research directions to address these gaps. 1. Introduction The relationship between human activities and ecosystems has been discussed for many years by both natural and social scientists. LUC and climate variations and their effects on ecosystems have been core issues of the International Geosphere-Biosphere Program (IGBP) and International Human Dimensions Program on Global Environmental Change (IHDP). As two interacting processes, LUC and climate variations influence each other. On one hand, climate variations affect human activities, which indirectly exert influences on LUC, and on the other hand, LUC caused by humans accelerate influences on climate variations. Meanwhile, all these changes exert impacts on ecosystems together. In recent years, ecosystem services have been considered as an entry point of science to uncover the human and nature coevolution processes. Ecosystem services represent the benefits that living organisms derived from ecosystems to maintain the earth¡¯s life support system and emphasize the role of humans in socioecological systems, which include supporting services, regulating services, provisioning services, and cultural services [1]. As the global population grows and its consumption patterns change, additional land will be required for living space and agricultural production. Then the knotty question facing global society is how to meet humans¡¯ growing demands for living space, food, fuel, and other materials while sustaining ecosystem services
%U http://www.hindawi.com/journals/amete/2013/907367/