19 November 2019
Natural History Museum, Vienna
Public Symposium on Land Use Ecology
Symposium on Land Use Ecology is a public event which aims at presenting current trends in ecology, with a focus on anthropogenic pressure on ecosystems and their services that sustain human well-being.
An important strategy is to declare that interdisciplinary approaches are needed in science and that creative solutions are needed to tackle problems associated with land use and management of natural resources.
Integrated long-term ecology, global use of natural resources, mountain ecology, land degradation and rural poverty in Africa are among main topics to be discussed.
The event is organized on the occasion of the 80th birthday of Professor Gerhard Glatzel, professor emeritus of forest ecology at the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, member of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, and member of Austrian IIASA Committee.
Due to the maximum capacity the registration for this event is closed.
Program
- Natural History Museum Vienna
- SCIENTIFIC PART
14:00–14:15 Welcome addresses of the organizing institutions
Christian Köberl | Director General, Natural History Museum, Austria
Hubert Hasenauer |Rector, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Austria
14:15–14:45 Gene Likens | Founding Director and President Emeritus, Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies, USA
Hubbard Brook: Lessons learned from long-term ecosystem studies
14:45–15:15 Marina Fischer-Kowalski | Founder and long-term director of the Institute of Social Ecology, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Austria
Global use of natural resources
15:15–15:45 Christian Körner | Professor Emeritus, Department of Environmental Sciences,
Plant Ecology and Evolution, University of Basel, Switzerland
Trees at the limit
15:45–16:15 Phemo Karen Kgomotso | Regional Team Leader for Africa, Global Environmental Finance Unit, United Nations Development Programme, Africa Regional Hub, Ethiopia
Land degradation and rural poverty in Africa
16:15–16:45 COFFEE BREAK
FESTIVE PART
16:45–17:15 Opening of the ceremonial part of the symposium- Anton Zeilinger | President, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Austria
Albert van Jaarsveld | Director General and CEO, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, Austria - Pavel Kabat | Chief Scientist and Research Director, World Meteorological Organization, Switzerland
17:15–17:45 Laudatio
Reinhard Hüttl |Scientific Executive Director, GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences, Germany
18:00–18:15 Gerhard Glatzel | Professor Emeritus, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences and Austrian Academy of Sciences, Austria
Reflections of an octogenarian
RECEPTION
Abstract
Our lives are closely embedded in natural ecosystem processes. Humans have always interfered with ecosystem dynamics, but rising human population growth and unprecedented technical progress over the past decades have turned many ecosystems into manmade systems, for instance by converting woodland into farmland on a large scale, or, more dramatically, into shopping centres and parking lots. Many systems have been changed beyond the tipping point, where system restoration is practically impossible. This is alarming, given the fact that we still do not entirely understand how ecosystems work and how they are embedded in global cycles. We accept only reluctantly scientific knowledge on how much our lives and the lives of our children depend on linked global natural processes and functioning ecosystems. The festive symposium on Land Use Ecology will focus on anthropogenic pressure on ecosystems and the ways in which they sustain human wellbeing, and will highlight the connections between these systems and various current societal challenges. Renowned international experts will discuss the need for systems-based and interdisciplinary scientific approaches to provide solutions for sustainable land use.
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