Harmonizing Biodiversity Conservation and Productivity in the Context of Increasing Demands on Landscapes

Abstract

Biodiversity conservation and agricultural production are often seen as mutually exclusive objectives. Strategies for reconciling them are intensely debated. We argue that harmonization between biodiversity conservation and crop production can be improved by increasing our understanding of the underlying relationships between them. We provide a general conceptual framework that links biodiversity and agricultural production through the separate relationships between land use and biodiversity and between land use and production. Hypothesized relationships are derived by synthesizing existing empirical and theoretical ecological knowledge. The framework suggests nonlinear relationships caused by the multifaceted impacts of land use (composition, configuration, and intensity). We propose solutions for overcoming the apparently dichotomous aims of maximizing either biodiversity conservation or agricultural production and suggest new hypotheses that emerge from our proposed framework.

Publication Type
Journal Article
Authors
Ralf Seppelt, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research - UFZ
Michael Beckmann, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research - UFZ
Silvia Ceauşu
Anna F. Cord
Katharina Gerstner, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research - UFZ
Jessica Gurevitch, Stony Brook University
Stephan Kambach, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research - UFZ
Stefan Klotz, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research - UFZ
Chase Mendenhall, Stanford University
Helen R.P. Phillips
Kristin Powell, SESYNC
Peter H. Verburg
Willem Verhagen, IVM Institute for Environmental Studies
Marten Winter, iDiv
Tim Newbold, University College London
Date
Journal
BioScience
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