Encyclopedia of Global Environmental Change, The Earth System

Volume 2 of the <i>Encyclopedia of Global Environmental Change</i> deals with the fundamental science that underpins the understanding of quantities and processes that control the basic biogeochemical cycles, and the associated changes in ecosystem physiology and structure under current and predicted human-driven global environmental change. <p>These changes also include the dramatic loss of species, and the world’s reorganization of biota towards higher homogenization.</p> <p>Main themes covered includes:</p> <ul> <li>spatial scales of the biosphere including species, populations, communities, ecosystems, biomes, and the Earth system as a whole</li> <li>a description of the most important efforts of a number of international programs, fundamental in the development of thinking in this new field of science</li> </ul> <p>The new understanding provided in this volume forms the basic building blocks allowing:</p> <ul> <li>integration of the biospheric processes and quantities with the Earth’s physical system into one single Earth system</li> <li>detection of changes in the world’s ecosystems’ function and structure, both as already visible impacts of global change and also as indicators of change</li> <li>development of the capability to predict impacts on the biosphere brought about by global environmental changes over the next few decades to century.</li> </ul> <p>The information within this volume will enable scientists to develop the technical capabilities and policy tools to mitigate and adapt to undesirable changes.</p>