Delivery Of Multiple Services Research Articles

Social success of in-stream habitat improvement: from fisheries enhancement to the delivery of multiple ecosystem services

Stream restoration often aims to enhance fisheries by improving stream conditions for target fish species. However, river restoration has a potential impact on a variety of ecosystem services. Among stakeholders, the emerging expectations about restoration attain different priorities. How well these expectations are met influences social perceptions of success or failure. Although public support for restoration is known to have a significant impact on the sustainability and overall success of restoration, social aspects are rarely considered in this context. To address these issues, we conducted a questionnaire study among the residents and fishermen of three recently restored rivers in Finland. Results indicate that both user groups highly supported the restoration goals, but they were not always satisfied with the restoration outcomes. The changes in landscape value and amenity and fish provisioning had the highest influence on the user groups’ attitudes. Restoration-induced changes in ecosystem services showed clear variation between the different locations, but the differences in the perceptions of the two user groups were less evident. Comparing perceptions between the user groups and locations and applying the ecosystem services approach are a novel contribution to the debate on restoration success. Our study highlights the importance of perspective, social-ecological context, and adequate communication for success.

Functionally rich dung beetle assemblages are required to provide multiple ecosystem services

Dung beetles mediate a variety of important ecosystem services in both natural and human-modified habitats. These services are associated with the exploitation of dung by beetles for breeding and feeding, with different functional groups using dung in different ways. While many studies have considered how individual ecosystem functions and services (primarily dung removal and seed dispersal) are affected by changes in dung beetle diversity, fewer studies have considered the consequences for multiple functions and services. We used manipulative experiments to evaluate the functional efficiency of three species of dung beetles, each representing one of the three functional groups present in temperate Europe. Standardising beetle biomass, we compared single-species treatments to a three-species mixture containing each of the species in equal biomass. We then measured three ecosystem services relevant in supporting pasture-based livestock production systems: dung removal, soil fauna activity, and soil aeration. The presence of dung beetles significantly elevated all three ecosystem services. However, delivery of each service peaked under different treatments, indicating that no single-species assemblage can provide maximum functioning across multiple services. For all three services, the three-species polyculture provided a level of functioning indistinguishable from the most efficient single-species treatment. Our results highlight the importance of considering multiple functions and services when assessing the relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem functioning, and suggest that the conservation of functional richness within dung beetle communities could play an important role in securing the delivery of multiple ecosystem services.

A toolbox for garden governance

A substantial fraction of the open space in (peri-) urban and rural areas is covered by domestic gardens which support the delivery of multiple ecosystem services. Although individually they may look insignificant, the aggregation of domestic gardens and of gardening actions can be significant. Referring to ‘the tyranny of small decisions’, we launch the concept of a ‘resource by small gardening actions’: the positive cumulative outcome of individual garden owners adopting pro-environmental gardening practices. Using qualitative research, we gained a thorough insight into the barriers and levers related to the development of domestic gardens as a ‘resource by small gardening actions’. By combining the data from expert interviews with a design workshop addressing garden and landscape architects, and focus groups with private garden owners, we identified eight barriers and nine levers. These levers are part of a ‘mix and match’ toolbox, allowing the development of tailor-made strategies for garden governance. These insights increase the understanding on if and how private actors and their properties could become part of policy plans to support ecosystem services. This adds to the global understanding of the strategic value of daily-life landscapes that exist all over the world.

Land use intensification alters ecosystem multifunctionality via loss of biodiversity and changes to functional composition.

Global change, especially land‐use intensification, affects human well‐being by impacting the delivery of multiple ecosystem services (multifunctionality). However, whether biodiversity loss is a major component of global change effects on multifunctionality in real‐world ecosystems, as in experimental ones, remains unclear. Therefore, we assessed biodiversity, functional composition and 14 ecosystem services on 150 agricultural grasslands differing in land‐use intensity. We also introduce five multifunctionality measures in which ecosystem services were weighted according to realistic land‐use objectives. We found that indirect land‐use effects, i.e. those mediated by biodiversity loss and by changes to functional composition, were as strong as direct effects on average. Their strength varied with land‐use objectives and regional context. Biodiversity loss explained indirect effects in a region of intermediate productivity and was most damaging when land‐use objectives favoured supporting and cultural services. In contrast, functional composition shifts, towards fast‐growing plant species, strongly increased provisioning services in more inherently unproductive grasslands.

Engineering a plant community to deliver multiple ecosystem services

The sustainable delivery of multiple ecosystem services requires the management of functionally diverse biological communities. In an agricultural context, an emphasis on food production has often led to a loss of biodiversity to the detriment of other ecosystem services such as the maintenance of soil health and pest regulation. In scenarios where multiple species can be grown together, it may be possible to better balance environmental and agronomic services through the targeted selection of companion species. We used the case study of legume-based cover crops to engineer a plant community that delivered the optimal balance of six ecosystem services: early productivity, regrowth following mowing, weed suppression, support of invertebrates, soil fertility building (measured as yield of following crop), and conservation of nutrients in the soil. An experimental species pool of 12 cultivated legume species was screened for a range of functional traits and ecosystem services at five sites across a geographical gradient in the United Kingdom. All possible species combinations were then analyzed, using a process-based model of plant competition, to identify the community that delivered the best balance of services at each site. In our system, low to intermediate levels of species richness (one to four species) that exploited functional contrasts in growth habit and phenology were identified as being optimal. The optimal solution was determined largely by the number of species and functional diversity represented by the starting species pool, emphasizing the importance of the initial selection of species for the screening experiments. The approach of using relationships between functional traits and ecosystem services to design multifunctional biological communities has the potential to inform the design of agricultural systems that better balance agronomic and environmental services and meet the current objective of European agricultural policy to maintain viable food production in the context of the sustainable management of natural resources.

Randomized Trial of Telegenetics vs. In-Person Cancer Genetic Counseling: Cost, Patient Satisfaction and Attendance.

Telegenetics-genetic counseling via live videoconferencing-can improve access to cancer genetic counseling (CGC) in underserved areas, but studies on cancer telegenetics have not applied randomized methodology or assessed cost. We report cost, patient satisfaction and CGC attendance from a randomized trial comparing telegenetics with in-person CGC among individuals referred to CGC in four rural oncology clinics. Participants (n = 162) were randomized to receive CGC at their local oncology clinic in-person or via telegenetics. Cost analyses included telegenetics system; mileage; and personnel costs for genetic counselor, IT specialist, and clinic personnel. CGC attendance was tracked via study database. Patient satisfaction was assessed 1 week post-CGC via telephone survey using validated scales. Total costs were $106 per telegenetics patient and $244 per in-person patient. Patient satisfaction did not differ by group on either satisfaction scale. In-person patients were significantly more likely to attend CGC than telegenetics patients (89 vs. 79 %, p = 0.03), with bivariate analyses showing an association between lesser computer comfort and lower attendance rate (Chi-square = 5.49, p = 0.02). Our randomized trial of telegenetics vs. in-person counseling found that telegenetics cost less than in-person counseling, with high satisfaction among those who attended. This study provides support for future randomized trials comparing multiple service delivery models on longer-term psychosocial and behavioral outcomes.

The contribution of immunization: saving millions of lives, and more.

The contribution of immunization: saving millions of lives, and more.

Co‐benefits, trade‐offs, barriers and policies for greenhouse gas mitigation in the agriculture, forestry and other land use (AFOLU) sector

The agriculture, forestry and other land use (AFOLU) sector is responsible for approximately 25% of anthropogenic GHG emissions mainly from deforestation and agricultural emissions from livestock, soil and nutrient management. Mitigation from the sector is thus extremely important in meeting emission reduction targets. The sector offers a variety of cost-competitive mitigation options with most analyses indicating a decline in emissions largely due to decreasing deforestation rates. Sustainability criteria are needed to guide development and implementation of AFOLU mitigation measures with particular focus on multifunctional systems that allow the delivery of multiple services from land. It is striking that almost all of the positive and negative impacts, opportunities and barriers are context specific, precluding generic statements about which AFOLU mitigation measures have the greatest promise at a global scale. This finding underlines the importance of considering each mitigation strategy on a case-by-case basis, systemic effects when implementing mitigation options on the national scale, and suggests that policies need to be flexible enough to allow such assessments. National and international agricultural and forest (climate) policies have the potential to alter the opportunity costs of specific land uses in ways that increase opportunities or barriers for attaining climate change mitigation goals. Policies governing practices in agriculture and in forest conservation and management need to account for both effective mitigation and adaptation and can help to orient practices in agriculture and in forestry towards global sharing of innovative technologies for the efficient use of land resources. Different policy instruments, especially economic incentives and regulatory approaches, are currently being applied however, for its successful implementation it is critical to understand how land-use decisions are made and how new social, political and economic forces in the future will influence this process.

Ecosystem services along a management gradient in Michigan (USA) cropping systems

To assess tradeoffs and synergies among different services provided by major ecosystems in agricultural landscapes, we examined agricultural yield, aboveground net primary productivity, global warming impact, soil quality, water conservation, water quality, and plant diversity in eight replicated ecosystems along a management intensity gradient on the same soil type in SW Michigan, USA. Ecosystems included four annual grain systems in a maize–soybean–wheat rotation, two perennial crops (alfalfa and hybrid poplar trees), an early successional community, and a late-successional deciduous forest. The annual grain systems included tilled and no-till treatments both managed with conventional chemical inputs; and reduced input and biologically based treatments both managed with tillage for weed control and leguminous winter cover crops for nitrogen. Radar diagrams illustrated the suite of services provided by each system. We found 13 significant interactions between ecosystem service indicators, seven being positive and six negative. Numerous trade-offs with grain yield were found, suggesting that by focusing on grain yield in these systems, land managers may be neglecting other ecosystem services. Management of nitrogen fertilizer, cover crops, and tillage (no-till) were particularly important determinants for the delivery of multiple ecosystem services.

Mapping ecosystem service and biodiversity changes over 70 years in a rural English county

Summary Biodiversity and ecosystem services continue to be compromised by land‐use change, which is often focussed on enhancing agricultural production. Assessment of losses would be aided by analyses of temporal changes in the extent and spatial pattern of services and biodiversity. To date, no studies have mapped long‐term changes in ecosystem services using historical maps. We mapped changes between the 1930s – before the considerable intensification of land use in the UK starting in the 1940s – and 2000 in climate change amelioration services (carbon storage), provisioning services (agriculture and forestry) and plant species richness (biodiversity) for Dorset, a rural English county. We combined land‐use maps (1‐ha resolution) with multiple proxies of service delivery for the 10 different Broad Habitats in the region. Biodiversity was mapped using plant survey data from the two time periods. We used bootstrapping to include uncertainty due to the different proxies and Gini coefficients to quantify statistical changes in spatial pattern. Overall, we found significant increases in agricultural provisioning and large losses in biodiversity over the period, which reflect widespread conversion and intensification of land use. We found no change in Dorset's carbon store, because carbon lost through land‐use intensification was balanced by increases in woodland over the 20th century. The carbon storage and the delivery of provisioning services both became more unequally distributed, indicating a change from relatively homogeneous delivery of services to concentration into hotspots. The maps from the year 2000 showed spatial dissociation of hotspots for carbon, provisioning and biodiversity, which suggests that, compared to the 1930s, modern, intensive land use creates conflicts in delivery of multiple services and biodiversity. Synthesis and applications. Detailed maps of historical changes in location‐specific service delivery and biodiversity provide valuable information for land‐use planning, highlight trade‐offs and help to identify drivers. Furthermore, historical maps provide an important baseline to indicate the suitability and potential success of suggested actions, such as habitat restoration, and their relevance to traditional land use. Various frameworks could be informed by our approach, including the ecosystem service aims of the EU biodiversity strategy and the newly created UK Nature Improvement Areas.

River rehabilitation for the delivery of multiple ecosystem services at the river network scale

This paper presents a conceptual framework and methodology to assist with optimising the outcomes of river rehabilitation in terms of delivery of multiple ecosystem services and the benefits they represent for humans at the river network scale. The approach is applicable globally, but was initially devised in the context of a project critically examining opportunities and constraints on delivery of river rehabilitation in Scotland. The spatial-temporal approach highlighted is river rehabilitation measure, rehabilitation scale, location on the stream network, ecosystem service and timescale specific and could be used as initial scoping in the process of planning rehabilitation at the river network scale. The levels of service delivered are based on an expert-derived scoring system based on understanding how the rehabilitation measure assists in reinstating important geomorphological, hydrological and ecological processes and hence intermediate or primary ecosystem function. The framework permits a “total long-term (>25 years) ecosystem service score” to be calculated which is the cumulative result of the combined effect of the number of and level of ecosystem services delivered over time. Trajectories over time for attaining the long-term ecosystem service score for each river rehabilitation measures are also given. Scores could also be weighted according to societal values and economic valuation. These scores could assist decision making in relation to river rehabilitation at the catchment scale in terms of directing resources towards alternative scenarios. A case study is presented of applying the methodology to the Eddleston Water in Scotland using proposed river rehabilitation options for the catchment to demonstrate the value of the approach.Our overall assertion is that unless sound conceptual frameworks are developed that permit the river network scale ecosystem services of river rehabilitation to be evaluated as part of the process of river basin planning and management, the total benefit of river rehabilitation may well be reduced. River rehabilitation together with a ‘vision’ and framework within which it can be developed, is fundamental to future success in river basin management.

Exploring the ecological constraints to multiple ecosystem service delivery and biodiversity

Summary Understanding and quantifying constraints to multiple ecosystem service delivery and biodiversity is vital for developing management strategies for current and future human well‐being. A particular challenge is to reconcile demand for increased food production with provision of other ecosystem services and biodiversity. Using a spatially extensive data base (covering Great Britain) of co‐located biophysical measurements (collected in the Countryside Survey), we explore the relationships between ecosystem service indicators and biodiversity across a temperate ecosystem productivity gradient. Each service indicator has an individual response curve demonstrating that simultaneous analysis of multiple ecosystem services is essential for optimal service management. The shape of the response curve can be used to indicate whether ‘land sharing’ (provision of multiple services from the same land parcel) or ‘land sparing’ (single service prioritization) is the most appropriate option. Soil carbon storage and above‐ground net primary production indicators were found to define opposing ends of a primary gradient in service provision. Biodiversity and water quality indicators were highest at intermediate levels of both factors, consistent with a unimodal relationship along a productivity gradient. Positive relationships occurred between multiple components of biodiversity, measured as taxon richness of all plants, bee and butterfly nectar plants, soil invertebrates and freshwater macroinvertebrates, indicating potential for management measures directed at one aspect of biodiversity to deliver wider ecosystem biodiversity. We demonstrate that in temperate, human‐dominated landscapes, ecosystem services are highly constrained by a fundamental productivity gradient. There are immediate trade‐offs between productivity and soil carbon storage but potential synergies with services with different shaped relationships to production. Synthesis and applications. Using techniques such as response curves to analyse multiple service interactions can inform the development of Spatial Decision Support tools and landscape‐scale ecosystem service management options. At intermediate productivity, ‘land‐sharing’ would optimize multiple services, however, to deliver significant soil carbon storage ‘land‐sparing’ is required, that is, resources focused in low productivity areas with high carbon to maximize investment return. This study emphasizes that targets for services per unit area need to be set within the context of the national gradients reported here to ensure best use of limited resources.

Multivalent Landscape: The Salvation Army Kroc Community Center Case Study

This case study research uses quantitative methods to assess the contributions of landscape components to the delivery of multiple ecosystem services at the Salvation Army Kroc Community Center (SAKCC), a 12.4-acre former brownfield site located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The term valence is used to describe the quantitative measure of a design component’s capacity to contribute to the production of ecosystem services, such as water regulation, air quality maintenance, and pollination. The selection and use of multivalent materials in design may have direct and measurable benefits on the production of ecosystem services in multifunctional landscapes. To this end, construction waste mitigation, stormwater mitigation, carbon sequestration, and plant stewardship were calculated using site-specific calculations or online calculators.

Critical situation of child passengers: pre and post – campaign assessment, edu-car plan

BackgroundWithin the framework of studies on road mobility of children and adolescents, the FGR conducted a study on the mobility of children aged 0–14 as passengers of private vehicles and...

Measuring the degree of integration for an integrated service network.

Integration involves the coordination of services provided by autonomous agencies and improves the organization and delivery of multiple services for target patients. Current measures generally do not distinguish between agencies' perception and expectation. We propose a method for quantifying the agencies' service integration. Using the data from the Children's Treatment Network (CTN), we aimed to measure the degree of integration for the CTN agencies in York and Simcoe. We quantified the integration by the agreement between perceived and expected levels of involvement and calculated four scores from different perspectives for each agency. We used the average score to measure the global network integration and examined the sensitivity of the global score. Most agencies' integration scores were <65%. As measured by the agreement between every other agency's perception and expectation, the overall integration of CTN in Simcoe and York was 44% (95% CI: 39%-49%) and 52% (95% CI: 48%-56%), respectively. The sensitivity analysis showed that the global scores were robust. Our method extends existing measures of integration and possesses a good extent of validity. We can also apply the method in monitoring improvement and linking integration with other outcomes.

Delivering multiple ecosystem services from Enclosed Farmland in the UK

Here, we review the delivery of ecosystem services from Enclosed Farmland in the UK, and explore how the expected demands for ecosystem services might be met in the future. Most Enclosed Farmland is managed for agriculture; the UK is 60% self-sufficient in foods. Pollinators are in serious decline, but little is known of trends of predators of crop pests. Effects of agriculture on water quality and climate regulation are negative but improving; GHG emissions fell by 20% between 1990 and 2008. Recent declines in numbers of some farmland birds and in plant species richness have been halted, though not reversed. Enclosed Farmland provides considerable leisure and cultural value. Effective delivery of multiple ecosystem services requires improved understanding of how ecosystem services are generated, and of their economics and governance. Food production can be integrated with the delivery of other ecosystem services by promoting a diversity of farming systems and allocating land to different ecosystem services according to its suitability. Approaches include, minimising negative environmental impacts of food production through technology; mitigating environmental harm by managing areas for environmental benefit, from patches within fields to much larger areas; and developing markets and regulations for environmental protection.

Is Creation an Industry? A Constructive Critique of the Economics of the Cultural and Creative Industries

This paper is a mirror of the same paper published by SSRN, lodged with MPRA for completeness and for the historical record. It should be cited as: 'Freeman, Alan, Is Creation an Industry? A Constructive Critique of the Economics of the Cultural and Creative Industries (June 3, 2012). Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2074338 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2074338' It is the earliest version of this paper and the most complete, illustrating the original thinking which went into the two subsequent revisions. These are lodged with RePec as (1) 'Culture, Creativity and Innovation in the Internet Age' ( http://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/9007/) which was presented to a conference in IPR at Birkbeck University on May 23, 2008 (2) 'Creativity in the Age of the Internet' (http://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/14903/) which was presented to a seminar held at the Science Policy Research Unit (SPRU) of Sussex University on October 31st 2008 It was originally prepared for a special issue of the Journal of Management Philosophy, but was rejected. It was submitted to the Creative Industries Journal, but never arrived in print. The paper offers a suggested framework for formulating economic policy for the cultural and creative industries. It argues that both the cultural and (recently-defined) creative industries are not a recent phenomenon but historically central to the development of the modern industrial economy. It shows that, in terms of conventional economic theory, these industries are a 'proper economic sector': they have a distinctive resource, production process, and output. There are therefore sound theoretical reasons to explain their present dynamism, notably the productivity revolution brought about by remote and multiple service delivery (internet, telecomms, broadcast etc). It defines this distinctive resource, process and output. The 'product' is culturally differentiated goods and services. They are therefore central to the reproduction of culture and hence have to be the object of policy whether or not there is market failure, because culture is a legitimate area of social and political concern. The production process is 'flexible production of short life cycle goods to an abstract or imperfect specification' which reverses the paradigm of Fordism. Cities, particularly global cities, have become the decisive location for this new form of industrial organization and special attention has to be given to the the city’s cultural and creative infrastructure. The primary resource is creative human labour. This is a necessary resource and special attention has to be paid (in policy) to catering for it and creating the infrastructure it needs to function.

Spatial covariation between freshwater and terrestrial ecosystem services

To inform the design and implementation of land-use policies that consider the variety of goods and services people derive from ecosystems, it is essential to understand spatial patterns of individual services, how multiple services relate to each other, and how these relationships vary across spatial scales and localities. Despite the importance of freshwater as a determinant of regional economic and human demographic patterns, there are surprisingly few studies that map the provision of a range of services associated with the quality of the aquatic environment. Here we examine relationships between indicators of riverine water and associated habitat quality, freshwater biodiversity, three terrestrial ecosystem services, and terrestrial biodiversity across England and Wales. The results indicate strong associations between our indicators of freshwater services. However, a comparison of these indicators of freshwater services with other ecosystem services (carbon storage, agricultural production, recreation) and biodiversity of species of conservation concern in the surrounding terrestrial landscape shows no clear relationships. While there are potential policy "win-wins" for the protection of multiple services shown by associations between indicators of freshwater services and carbon storage in upland areas of Britain, the other ecosystem services showed either negative or no relationships with the indicators of freshwater services. We also consider the influence that spatial scale has on these relationships using River Basin Districts. Our results indicate that relationships between indicators of services can change dramatically depending on the societal pressures and other regional conditions. Thus, the delivery of multiple ecosystem services requires the development of regional strategies, or of national strategies that take account of regional variation.

Aging With a Severe Mental Illness: Challenges and Treatments

Severe mental illness (SMI) impacts many different facets of individuals' lives. As they age, those with SMI experience increased physical illnesses, functional impairment, cognitive deficits, and social disability. To promote more effective social work practice with this population, this article highlights the major biopsychosocial and family issues of aging with a psychiatric diagnosis. In addition, intervention approaches that have demonstrated efficacy are summarized along with ways to coordinate services across multiple service delivery sectors. Finally, future directions in practice and research are presented to develop additional methods of support for older adults with SMI and their families.

Symbiotic nitrogen fixation and the delivery of multiple ecosystem services: a global change perspective.

Abstract A key challenge facing humanity in the coming decades will be ensuring food supply to a growing human population without compromising the sustainability of many agro-ecosystems worldwide. Although agricultural soils remain firmly at the foundation of human life-support systems, human domination of terrestrial ecosystems over the last century has greatly affected their long-term sustainability as well as reducing soil biological diversity. This has mainly occurred through widespread land-use changes and through the chronic deposition of biologically available nutrients, such as nitrogen (N) and phosphorous (P). Here I argue that a better understanding of the ecological role of symbiotic N-fixers could help in developing more sustainable multifunctional agro-ecosystems. N-fixers are beneficial for the delivery of multiple ecosystem services such as greater primary productivity (i.e. increased crop yields), increased soil carbon (C) and N sequestration, and higher soil biological diversity. Understanding the ecological mechanisms responsible for the provision of these ecosystem services may also be critical for reducing the global-warming potential of many agricultural practices worldwide.