PARENT SESSION
Symposium 11: Global land science: Dynamics of the coupled human-environment system
Organized by: DS Ojima and EF Moran
Wednesday, August 10, 8:00 AM - 11:30 AM, Meeting Room 517 B, Level 5, Palais des congrès de Montréal

Land change as foundational science: An example from southern YUCATN.

Turner, B.^*,,

ABSTRACT- Land change science undertaken for its own sake constitutes a major message emanating from various integrated environmental science agendas and programs addressing such themes as global change and sustainability. It seeks to understand the dynamics of coupled human-environment systems as they play out on the terrestrial surface of the earth, seeking both the general principles behind and place-specific outcomes of these dynamics. Either goal invariably engages the GISciences, as spatio-temporal scales fundamentally shape the analytical results. An example of land change science is provided by way of the Southern Yucatán Peninsular Region project which addresses the coupled system dynamics within the area that includes the Cakamul Biosphere Reserve.

Key words: land change science, Yucatán, Calakmul Biosphere Reserve