sustainability in a telecoupled world2).pdf10% of wild pandas (~150) ... wolong nature reserve....
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Sustainability in a Telecoupled World
Jianguo (Jack) LiuCenter for Systems Integration and Sustainability
Michigan State University
http://csis.msu.edu
Outline
• Background information
• Telecoupling framework
• Example applications of the framework
• Future research on sustainability in the context of telecoupling
Background Information
Traditional Sustainability Research
• Usually in a specific place (“place-based” research)
• Has not adequately considered interactions between distant places
In Reality
Numerous distant interactions
Flows of Virtual Water Related to Trade of Agricultural and Industrial Products (1996-2005)
Liu et al. 2015 Science
Global Shipping Network
http://www.technologyreview.com/view/417128/the-global-shipping-network-is-finally-revealed
Dynamics of International Tourism
Steffen et al. 2015 The Anthropocene Review
Animal Migration
Bird migration routes. 1-Northern Wheatear, 2-Bluethroat, 3-Eastern Yellow Wagtail, 4-Dunlin, 5-Wandering Tattler, 6-Bartailed Godwit, 7-Arctic Tern, 8-Sandhill Crane, 9-Brant, 10-Smith's Longspur, 11-American Golden Plover, 12-Tundra Swan, 13-Semipalmated Sandpiper.
http://www.scienceminusdetails.com/2011/02/why-animals-migrate.htm
Seed Dispersal by Flying (2009)
http://www.fsd2010.org/miscellaneous/frugivores_of_the_month/HB.htm
Need for Integrated Framework of Research on Distant Interactions
• Most studies on distant interactions consider only some components, e.g., take environmental perspective OR socioeconomic perspective (rather than environmental AND socioeconomic perspectives)
• Most studies focus on the sending and/or receiving places but ignore other places
• Most studies do not consider feedbacks among distant places
Telecoupling Framework
Telecoupling: Socioeconomic AND Environmental Interactions
over distances
Liu et al 2013 Ecology and Society
Major Componentsof the Telecoupling Framework
Sending System
Agents
Causes
Effects
Spillover System
Agents
Effects
Causes
Receiving System
Agents
Causes
Effects
Telecoupling as an Umbrella Exapnded Concept of Distant Interactions (examples)
• Migration (e.g., animals, people)• Tourism• Trade of goods and products• Seed dispersal • Species invasion• Disease spread• Atmospheric circulation• Waste (pollutant) transfer• Water transfer• Knowledge transfer• Technology transfer• Foreign direct investment • Payment for ecosystem services
Example Applications of the Telecoupling Framework
Example #1
Multiple Telecouplings between a Nature Reserve for Giant Pandas and
the Rest of the World
Wolong Nature Reserve
• “Flagship” reserve• Established in 1975• One of the largest (200,000 ha)• 10% of wild pandas (~150)
• Local residents (> 4,500)
Examples of Telecouplingbetween Wolong and the World
Wolong Nature Reserve
Pandas
The World
Panda Loans
Flows: Number of Pandas Living outside Wolong
less than 2022
85
0
20
40
60
80
100
by 1998 by 2004 by 2010
Num
ber o
f Pan
das
Year
Sending, Receiving, and Spillover Systems related to Panda Loans in 2010
Edinburgh, UK
Wolong (Chengdu),
China
Traditional View of Panda Loans (Pandas from Wolong to Edinburgh: Sending and Receiving Systems only)
Memphis, Tennessee,
USA
Anchorage, USA
Wolong (Chengdu)
China
Edinburgh, UK
Telecoupling Perspective on Panda Loans (Spillover systems; Spillover CO2 emissions > those between sending and receiving systems)
AgentsPeople and organizations that make panda loans possible
• China Society for Wildlife Conservation and the State Forestry Administration thatdevelop policies and agreements
• Wolong Nature Reserve Administration Bureau that implements the policies (e.g., selects which pandas for loans)
• People and organizations that lobby, negotiate and find resources for panda loans
CausesReasons behind the panda loans
• Cultural: Cultural affinity and fascination with the panda worldwide
• Technological: Improvements in captive management tripled the captive panda population from 1970 to 2000
No.
of P
anda
s
http://nationalzoo.si.edu/
Causes (continued)
• Economic -Receiving systems (zoos) increase their visitation rates, which translates into financial gains
• Political: Political will for panda loans by top leaders
Taipei Times
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/
Effects of Panda Loans: Socioeconomic Effects
• Costs of keeping pandas in zoos– Construction of new
facilities alone can cost over $10 million
– High operating costs• Visitors pay for entrance
fees, souvenirs and travel costs
• Improve social networks for scientific collaboration
http://www.giantpandazoo.com/
Tripadvisor.com/au
Effects of Panda Loans:Environmental Effects
Awareness of panda conservation in sending, receiving, and spillover systems.
CO2 emissions of transporting pandas and bamboo
http://www.jenniferpickens.com/blog/panda-diplomacy/; Euractive.com
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
pair of pandas pandas and bamboo
CO
2 em
issi
ons (
tonn
es)
Feedback Effects
• Revenues from loans ($ 1 million/pair) have been used for conservation in the sending system and spillover systems in other parts of panda habitat.
• Receiving systems have also undertaken capacity building endeavors in Wolong, sending experts to both train and learn from Wolong's scientists.
Nationalzoo.si.edu
Other Examples of Telecouplingbetween Wolong and the World
Wolong Nature Reserve Tourists
The World
Tourism
Wolong Nature Reserve
Agricultural Products
The World
Trade of Agricultural Products
Wolong Nature Reserve
Industrial Products
The World
Trade of Industrial Products
Photo: http://melamine-fertilizer.en.made-in-china.com/product/uXUJScyrAkVK/China-China-s-Largest-Nitro-Compound-NPK-Fertilizer-Manufacturer.html
Wolong Nature Reserve
Information about Wolong
The World
Information Dissemination
Wolong Nature Reserve
Conservation Subsidies
The World
Conservation Subsidies
Photo: Chinatoday.com
Combined Impacts of Multiple Telecouplings on Panda Habitat Sustainability
Degradation and Recovery of Panda Habitat in Wolong
8000
10000
12000
14000
16000
1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010
Year
Hig
hly
Sui
tabl
e H
abita
t (ha
)
Liu et al. 2001 Science, Vina et al. 2007 Ecological Applications
Example #2
Application of the Telecoupling Framework to Global Food Security, Land Use, and
Environmental Sustainability
Issues related to Global Food Security, Land Use, and the Environment
Global food needs were met by local producers in the past, but are now increasingly met through global trade.
Increasingly, land use is shaped by powerful new forces such as food demand and import from distant places.
However, impacts of food trade on land use and the environment in distant places among and beyond trade partners are poorly understood.
Telecoupling ConsortiumInternational Consortium on Food Security, Land
Use, and Environment in a Telecoupled World
Brazil
China
UK
USA
InternationalOrganizations
Telecouplings through Trade of Food (e.g., Rice, Wheat, Corn, Potato, Soybean and Livestock) at Multiple Scales
Interrelationships among Five Tasks, Model Structure, Inputs and Outputs
Soybeans Exported from Brazil to China
Examples of the Main Components of the Telecoupling Framework via Soybean Trade between Brazil and China
Heilongjiang Province of China
Soybean Hometown
Crop Cover Data (Resolution: 250 m; General accuracy: >90%)
a. 2005 b. 2010
Type 2005 (km^2) 2010 (km^2)Soybean 43722 35384Rice 19655 23656Corn 32105 46674
Change in Crop Cover (2005 vs 2010)
Average Amount of Fertilizers and Pesticides Used in 2013 (from household survey)
Soybean Rice Corn
Fertilizer (kg/ha)
12.7 19.9 690.9
Pesticide(yuan/ha)
4.7 15.0 143.9
Future Research on Sustainability in the Context of Telecouplings
Effects of Telecoupling on Sustainability of Different Systems
Sending System
+ - + + - - - +Receiving System
+ - + - + + - -Spillover System
+ - - - + - + +Global + - ? ? ? ? ? ?
More Topics of Telecoupling Researh
• Understand socioeconomic and environmental trade-offs and synergies among different systems
• Facilitate studies on the interrelationships among multiple types of telecouplings.
• Help develop more effective policies by explicitly considering socioeconomic and environmental impacts on and feedbacks among multiple systems.
Barriers for Telecoupling Research
• More complex
• Need for more resources (e.g., time, money, expertise)
• Need for more coordination among different systems
Opportunities
International Interests
• Global Land Project
• Belmont Forum
• NASA-MSU Program
Media Coverage
http://science.time.com/2011/02/23/the-new-science-of-telecoupling-shows-just-how-connected-the-world-is%E2%80%94for-better-and-for-worse/
Summary
While place-based sustainability research is important, more attention is needed to study telecouplings
The telecoupling framework can help understand different components and interrelationships of telecouplings among distant places
Quantification of the framework can provide useful information for sustainability across local to global scales.
Acknowledgments• Funding Agencies
• Bill Clark• Numerous collaboratorsMateus Batistella, Ruth DeFries, Thomas Dietz, Tara Garnett, Peter Gleick, Charles Godfray, Thomas Hertel, Harold Mooney, Vanessa Hull, César Izaurralde, Eric Lambin, Jane Lubchenco, Luiz Antonio Martinelli, William McConnell, James Millington, Emilio Moran, Rosamond Naylor, HariniNagendra, Zhiyun Ouyang, Karen Polenske, Jiaguo Qi, Anette Reenberg, Gilberto de Miranda Rocha, Karen Seto, Cynthia Simmons, Huajun Tang, Billie Turner, Peter Verburg, Andres Vina, Peter Vitousek, Christine Vogt, Jeremy Woods, Wu Yang, Steve Yearley, Fusuo Zhang
• Liu et al. 2015 Science
• Liu et al. 2015 & 2013 Ecology and Society
• Liu and Yang 2013 PNAS
• Liu et al. (in press) Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment
• Liu et al. (in press) Pandas and People: Coupling Human and Natural Systems for Sustainability (Oxford University Press)
• http://telecoupling.org