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Special Issue Editor

Dr. Liubov Volkova

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Guest Editor

School of Ecosystem and Forest Sciences, Faculty of Science, The University of Melbourne, Creswick, VIC 3363, Australia
Interests: forest carbon cycling; temperate and tropical forests; forest and peat fires and greenhouse gas emissions; biogeochemical cycles; physiological plant ecology

Special Issue Information

Sustainability, according to the Oxford dictionary is ‘avoidance of the depletion of natural resources in order to maintain an ecological balance’.

Over the last twenty years, the global population has grown by more than 30% and it is estimated that by 2050 it will reach above 9 billion people. This population growth, combined with an increasing preference for animal-based and processed food, has been a key driver of forest clearance for agriculture and infrastructure, posing a risk for our sustainable future. Anthropogenic climate change and land degradation are increasing pressure on land and water resources, threatening the biodiversity and stability of terrestrial ecosystems. Meeting this growing demand for food and energy in a sustainable way is a major global challenge.

Forests play a significant role in climate change mitigation. To keep global warming below 2 °C, we need to reduce our reliance on fossil fuels, maintain and increase forest carbon stocks, introduce sustainable living, improve the efficiency of agricultural production, and reduce food waste. These changes will directly reduce anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions and will free up land for climate change mitigation activities such as reforestation and agroforestry.

This Special Issue calls for papers that promote sustainable living and focus on aspects of sustainability as they relate to forests, emission reduction, biodiversity, and the maintenance of the health and vitality of terrestrial ecosystems.

Dr. Liubov Volkova
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

Carbon dioxide
Biodiversity
Climate change
Carbon balance
Terrestrial ecosystems

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

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37 pages, 14585 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Modeling the Underlying Drivers of Natural Vegetation Occurrence in West Africa with Binary Logistic Regression Method

by Beatrice Asenso Barnieh, Li Jia, Massimo Menenti, Min Jiang, Jie Zhou, Yelong Zeng and Ali Bennour

Sustainability 2021, 13(9), 4673; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su13094673 - 22 Apr 2021

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 3023

Abstract

The occurrence of natural vegetation at a given time is determined by interplay of multiple drivers. The effects of several drivers, e.g., geomorphology, topography, climate variability, accessibility, demographic indicators, and changes in human activities on the occurrence of natural vegetation in the severe drought periods and, prior to the year 2000, have been analyzed in West Africa. A binary logistic regression (BLR) model was developed to better understand whether the variability in these drivers over the past years was statistically significant in explaining the occurrence of natural vegetation in the year 2000. Our results showed that multiple drivers explained the occurrence of natural vegetation in West Africa at p < 0.05. The dominant drivers, however, were site-specific. Overall, human influence indicators were the dominant drivers in explaining the occurrence of natural vegetation in the selected hotspots. Human appropriation of net primary productivity (HANPP), which is an indicator of human socio-economic activities, explained the decreased likelihood of natural vegetation occurrence at all the study sites. However, the impacts of the remaining significant drivers on natural vegetation were either positive (increased the probability of occurrence) or negative (decreased the probability of occurrence), depending on the unique environmental and socio-economic conditions of the areas under consideration. The study highlights the significant role human activities play in altering the normal functioning of the ecosystem by means of a statistical model. The research contributes to a better understanding of the relationships and the interactions between multiple drivers and the response of natural vegetation in West Africa. The results are likely to be useful for planning climate change adaptation and sustainable development programs in West Africa. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Use of Natural Resources in a Changing Climate)

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Graphical abstract

Review

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20 pages, 927 KiB

Open AccessReview

Potential for Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) Applications in Biodiversity Conservation, Managing Forests, and Related Services in India

by Kadukothanahally Nagaraju Shivaprakash, Niraj Swami, Sagar Mysorekar, Roshni Arora, Aditya Gangadharan, Karishma Vohra, Madegowda Jadeyegowda and Joseph M. Kiesecker

Sustainability 2022, 14(12), 7154; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su14127154 - 10 Jun 2022

Cited by 29 | Viewed by 13884

Abstract

The recent advancement in data science coupled with the revolution in digital and satellite technology has improved the potential for artificial intelligence (AI) applications in the forestry and wildlife sectors. India shares 7% of global forest cover and is the 8th most biodiverse region in the world. However, rapid expansion of developmental projects, agriculture, and urban areas threaten the country’s rich biodiversity. Therefore, the adoption of new technologies like AI in Indian forests and biodiversity sectors can help in effective monitoring, management, and conservation of biodiversity and forest resources. We conducted a systematic search of literature related to the application of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning algorithms (ML) in the forestry sector and biodiversity conservation across globe and in India (using ISI Web of Science and Google Scholar). Additionally, we also collected data on AI-based startups and non-profits in forest and wildlife sectors to understand the growth and adoption of AI technology in biodiversity conservation, forest management, and related services. Here, we first provide a global overview of AI research and application in forestry and biodiversity conservation. Next, we discuss adoption challenges of AI technologies in the Indian forestry and biodiversity sectors. Overall, we find that adoption of AI technology in Indian forestry and biodiversity sectors has been slow compared to developed, and to other developing countries. However, improving access to big data related to forest and biodiversity, cloud computing, and digital and satellite technology can help improve adoption of AI technology in India. We hope that this synthesis will motivate forest officials, scientists, and conservationists in India to explore AI technology for biodiversity conservation and forest management. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Use of Natural Resources in a Changing Climate)

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