The emergence of land change science for global environmental change and sustainability

• DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0704119104
• Publication Date: 2007-12-20T01:54:01Z
• Authors: B. L. Turner; Eric F. Lambin; Anette Reenberg
• Keywords: Conservation of Natural Resources; Ecology; Geography; Science; Biophysics; Environment; Models, Theoretical; 15. Life on land; sustainability science; 01 natural sciences; Biophysical Phenomena; 12. Responsible consumption; 13. Climate action; Land use; 11. Sustainability; Faculty of Science; Geographic Information Systems; Humans; Environment Design; /dk/atira/pure/core/keywords/TheFacultyOfScience; Ecosystem; Environmental Monitoring; 0105 earth and related environmental sciences

Land change science has emerged as a fundamental component of global environmental change and sustainability research. This interdisciplinary field seeks to understand the dynamics of land cover and land use as a coupled human–environment system to address theory, concepts, models, and applications relevant to environmental and societal problems, including the intersection of the two. The major components and advances in land change are addressed: observation and monitoring; understanding the coupled system—causes, impacts, and consequences; modeling; and synthesis issues. The six articles of the special feature are introduced and situated within these components of study.