Thinking on large-scale terrestrial ecosystem management and its theoretical fundament and practice.

Abstract

Ecosystem management at large scales is one of the core solutions to solve current global challenges of environmental and resources problem, mitigate climate change, govern ecosystems and environments regionally and achieve sustainable development. It is also a hotspot in the research and practice of conservation of global natural resources and ecosystems. Based on recalling and synthesizing of several large international actions on ecosystem management in the past two decades, this article rethought the concept of ecosystem management and its application from the perspective of discipline development of ecosystem management, theoretical fundaments and practices. The content included three parts: firstly, we reviewed the development of the scientific concept and practice of ecosystem management, discussed the connotations of the concept and redefined it, and summarized the practice of ecosystem management and its contribution to the development of the discipline. Secondly, we clarified the scientific and technological mission and basic tasks of ecosystem management, organized the discipline system of ecosystem management and its main research fields, summarized fundamental theories and the knowledge system of the science of ecosystem management, and clarified critical steps of ecosystem management actions, basic elements of management plans and management approaches. Finally, we proposed new trends of scientific research and the discipline development of ecosystem management, discussed the important spatial scales and its objects system of the scientific research on ecosystem management, proposed the cutting-edge scientific questions of global ecosystem management, integrative ecology thought and macro ecosystem approach. This review aimed at providing references for the scientific research and discipline deve-lopment of ecosystem management in China.