This book is the result of three symposia of the Dutch Society for Landscape Ecology (Werkgemeenschap voor Landschapsecologisch Onderzoek) about • the Dutch National Ecological Network • urban ecology • and civil infrastructure. The three topics - among others - show important contexts in which landscape ecologists do their research and apply their knowledge and skills. The book focuses on urbanisation, intensive land use and water management as characteristic features of the Netherlands and therefore presents an important view on landscape ecology in the Dutch context.

Landscape is one of the most fascinating assets of Europe. The great diversity in landscapes reflects a multitude of historical layers. This book presents the story of some of the most expressive European landscapes. It explores how engagement may safeguard and improve landscape identity for the future.

The urban environment – buildings, cities and infrastructure – represents one of the most important contributors to climate change, while at the same time holding the key to a more sustainable way of living. The transformation from traditional to sustainable systems requires interdisciplinary knowledge of the re-design, construction, operation and maintenance of the built environment. Sustainable Urban Environments: An Ecosystem Approach presents fundamental knowledge of the built environment. Approaching the topic from an ecosystems perspective, it shows the reader how to combine diverse practical elements into sustainable solutions for future buildings and cities. You’ll learn to connect problems and solutions at different spatial scales, from urban ecology to material, water and energy use, from urban transport to livability and health. The authors introduce and explore a variety of governance tools that support the transformation process, and show how they can help overcome institutional barriers. The book concludes with an account of promising perspectives for achieving a sustainable built environment in industrialized countries. Offering a unique overview and understanding of the most pressing challenges in the built environment, Sustainable Urban Environments helps the reader grasp opportunities for integration of knowledge and technologies in the design, construction and management of the built environment. Students and practitioners who are eager to look beyond their own fields of interest will appreciate this book because of its depth and breadth of coverage.

Climate change and the pressures of escalating human demands on the environment have had increasing impacts on landscapes across the world. In this book, world-class scholars discuss current and pressing issues regarding the landscape, landscape ecology, social and economic development, and adaptive management. Topics include the interaction between landscapes and ecological processes, landscape modeling, the application of landscape ecology in understanding cultural landscapes, biodiversity, climate change, landscape services, landscape planning, and adaptive management to provide a comprehensive view that allows readers to form their own opinions. Professor Bojie Fu is an Academician of Chinese Academy of Sciences and Chair of scientific committee at the Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China. Professor K. Bruce Jones is the Executive Director for Earth and Ecosystem Sciences Division at Desert Research Institute, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, USA.

This book provides an introduction to a fairly new approach to natural resources management practice entitled ecohydrology-based landscape restoration. Ecohydrology-based landscape restoration integrates landscape restoration practices with ecohydrology science and principles in order to help address the limitations of current management practices in developing countries. Focusing on both the theory and practice of implementing new management practices, the book includes conceptual designs and practical demonstrations for a variety of sites, including hillsides, farmlands, gullies, riparian buffers and wetlands, while also drawing on field research conducted in Ethiopia. The book puts forward principles for improving current practices, which include the better integration of hydrological and ecological concerns, the greater involvement of local communities, the adoption of indigenous practices, the establishment of green and semi-grey infrastructure as an ecohydrological systemic solution and the necessity of taking an adaptive approach to managing landscapes. This book will be of great interest to students and scholars of water resource management, ecohydrology and landscape restoration as well as professionals involved in the restoration of landscapes in developing countries.

In this book Zonneveld notes what he heard himself telling his students during the last quarter of a century, and what he, his collaborators and students learned working together in the field on all continents and in all climates, from the marshes to the mountains, from the Arctic to the tropics, from the deserts to the rain forests, in empty areas and overcrowded ones. Zonneveld emphasizes an approach embracing the horizontal pattern as well as the systemic character of the land, from the limited site up to the scale of "Gaia". The binding element is the application of management and conservation of land as a "home range"; thus, land evaluation methodology and large area survey techniques based on sound landscape ecological principles, especially applicable in developing countries, are well represented in this book.