About this Research Topic
The common definition of ecosystem services is outputs, conditions, or processes of natural systems that directly or indirectly benefit humans or enhance welfare in societies. Ecosystem services can benefit people in many ways, either directly or as inputs into the production of other goods and services. While the importance of biodiversity for ecosystem services is generally well understood, (for example, the importance of insect pollination of crops for food production), the importance of geodiversity in ecosystems receives far less attention
Geodiversity fundamentally underpins all ecosystems, and together with biodiversity, provides the basis for societies’ economic, social, cultural and environmental benefits. For example, geodiversity provides the mineral need for our daily use, variations in soil to support vegetation and crops and nutrients to feed freshwater and marine food chains. Knowledge of geodiversity is therefore essential for the effective management of the resources we need for our daily life, and to support future technological innovations.
The aim of the proposed Research Topic is to present a series of contributions that highlight the importance of geoscience and geodiversity in the preservation and development of ecosystem services. This includes both terrestrial and marine ecosystems and embraces specific geodiversity initiatives such as natural heritage and geoparks and wider management strategies such as restoration of damaged ecosystems utilizing geological knowledge.
Potential topics include but are not limited to the following:
1) New scientific discoveries on the geodiversity-biodiversity interactions;
2) Geodiversity as a predictor of ecosystem diversity;
3) Ecosystem analyses based on the interactions between geodiversity and biodiversity;
4) Geodiversity and natural resources (local, regional, global);
5) Monitoring changes in environments and geo-biodiversity;
6) Management of geodiversity in ecosystem services;
7) Geodiversity and geoheritage;
8) Environmental and ecological changes in the pre-historic geological record;
9) Development of methods and techniques for assessing Ecosystem Services provided by geodiversity.
Geodiversity fundamentally underpins all ecosystems, and together with biodiversity, provides the basis for societies’ economic, social, cultural and environmental benefits. For example, geodiversity provides the mineral need for our daily use, variations in soil to support vegetation and crops and nutrients to feed freshwater and marine food chains. Knowledge of geodiversity is therefore essential for the effective management of the resources we need for our daily life, and to support future technological innovations.
The aim of the proposed Research Topic is to present a series of contributions that highlight the importance of geoscience and geodiversity in the preservation and development of ecosystem services. This includes both terrestrial and marine ecosystems and embraces specific geodiversity initiatives such as natural heritage and geoparks and wider management strategies such as restoration of damaged ecosystems utilizing geological knowledge.
Potential topics include but are not limited to the following:
1) New scientific discoveries on the geodiversity-biodiversity interactions;
2) Geodiversity as a predictor of ecosystem diversity;
3) Ecosystem analyses based on the interactions between geodiversity and biodiversity;
4) Geodiversity and natural resources (local, regional, global);
5) Monitoring changes in environments and geo-biodiversity;
6) Management of geodiversity in ecosystem services;
7) Geodiversity and geoheritage;
8) Environmental and ecological changes in the pre-historic geological record;
9) Development of methods and techniques for assessing Ecosystem Services provided by geodiversity.
Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
