School of Agriculture, Food and Ecosystem Sciences - Research Publications
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ItemEquilibrium Modeling for Environmental Science: Exploring the Nexus of Economic Systems and Environmental Change(AMER GEOPHYSICAL UNION, 2021-09)Abstract Equilibrium models (EMs) are frequently employed to examine the potential impacts of economic, energy, and trade policies as well as form the foundation of most integrated assessment models. Despite their central role coupling economic and environmental systems, environmental scientists are largely unfamiliar with the structure and methodology underpinning EMs, which serves as a barrier to interdisciplinary collaboration and model improvement. In this study we systematically extract data from 10 years of published EMs with a focus on how these models have been extended beyond their economic origins to encompass environmentally relevant sectors of interest. The results indicate that there is far greater spatial coverage of high income countries compared to low income countries, with notable gaps in Central America, Africa, the Middle East, and Central Asia. We also find a high degree of aggregation within production inputs and sectoral outputs, particularly within the context of global socioeconomic scenarios. For example, we were unable to identify a single temporally dynamic study that distinguished between products arising from managed versus natural forest, or pastures relative to natural grasslands. Due to the necessary breadth and associated knowledge gaps within a model of the entire global economy, we see considerable potential for cross‐disciplinary innovation as natural scientists gain familiarity into the role these models play in bridging the nexus between socioeconomic systems and environmental change.
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ItemUsing decision science to evaluate global biodiversity indices(WILEY, 2021-04)Global biodiversity indices are used to measure environmental change and progress toward conservation goals, yet few indices have been evaluated comprehensively for their capacity to detect trends of interest, such as declines in threatened species or ecosystem function. Using a structured approach based on decision science, we qualitatively evaluated 9 indices commonly used to track biodiversity at global and regional scales against 5 criteria relating to objectives, design, behavior, incorporation of uncertainty, and constraints (e.g., costs and data availability). Evaluation was based on reference literature for indices available at the time of assessment. We identified 4 key gaps in indices assessed: pathways to achieving goals (means objectives) were not always clear or relevant to desired outcomes (fundamental objectives); index testing and understanding of expected behavior was often lacking; uncertainty was seldom acknowledged or accounted for; and costs of implementation were seldom considered. These gaps may render indices inadequate in certain decision-making contexts and are problematic for indices linked with biodiversity targets and sustainability goals. Ensuring that index objectives are clear and their design is underpinned by a model of relevant processes are crucial in addressing the gaps identified by our assessment. Uptake and productive use of indices will be improved if index performance is tested rigorously and assumptions and uncertainties are clearly communicated to end users. This will increase index accuracy and value in tracking biodiversity change and supporting national and global policy decisions, such as the post-2020 global biodiversity framework of the Convention on Biological Diversity.
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ItemAssessing biophysical and socio-economic impacts of climate change on regional avian biodiversity(NATURE PORTFOLIO, 2021-02-08)Climate change threatens biodiversity directly by influencing biophysical variables that drive species' geographic distributions and indirectly through socio-economic changes that influence land use patterns, driven by global consumption, production and climate. To date, no detailed analyses have been produced that assess the relative importance of, or interaction between, these direct and indirect climate change impacts on biodiversity at large scales. Here, we apply a new integrated modelling framework to quantify the relative influence of biophysical and socio-economically mediated impacts on avian species in Vietnam and Australia and we find that socio-economically mediated impacts on suitable ranges are largely outweighed by biophysical impacts. However, by translating economic futures and shocks into spatially explicit predictions of biodiversity change, we now have the power to analyse in a consistent way outcomes for nature and people of any change to policy, regulation, trading conditions or consumption trend at any scale from sub-national to global.