Population, biodiversity, and human well-being

Biodiversity Loss Threatens Human Well-Being

T he diversity of life on Earth is dramatically affected by human alterations of ecosystems [1]. Compelling evidence now shows that the reverse is also true: biodiversity in the broad sense affects the properties of ecosystems and, therefore, the benefi ts that humans obtain from them. In this article, we provide a synthesis of the most crucial messages emerging from the latest scientifi c lite...

Consequences of residential development for biodiversity and human well-being

www.frontiersinecology.org © The Ecological Society of America R development is a leading driver of land-use change and has transformed human and natural communities around the world (McMichael 2000; Alberti 2005; Hansen et al. 2005). The density and extent of housing is a strong predictor of atmospheric carbon emissions from the combustion of fossil fuels (MacKellar et al. 1995) and of the dec...

Biodiversity and Social Well-being: the Case of South America

1.Current Ecological and Social Problems in South America 1.1. Antagonism between Conservation and Development 1.2. The Blindness of Macroeconomic Parameters 2.Diversity and Homogenization in Southern South America since European Colonization 2.1. Three Waves of Eco-Cultural Homogenization: The Case of Southern Chile 2.1.1. European Conquerors (1500–1800) 2.1.2. Independence and Modernization (...

Understanding Human Well - being

Population well-being and electoral shifts

Population wellbeing, an aggregate measure of positive mental, physical, and emotional health, has previously been used as a marker of community thriving. We examined whether several community measures of wellbeing, and their change since 2012, could be used to understand electoral changes that led to the outcome of the 2016 United States presidential election. We found that areas of the US whi...