Description

Functional ecosystems are vital for human wellbeing. There is a high variety of benefits that humans receive from ecosystems such as clean air and water, timber and non-timber products and food supply. However, ecosystems are threatened around the world. Especially tropical forests, which are rich in biodiversity, are endangered by forest degradation. Land use intensification is causing loss of natural forest cover and is leading to a loss in ecosystem services. At the same time the interactions between ecosystems are poorly understood and are often not considered in decisions regarding future land use. Especially human induced changes are effecting the provision of ecosystem goods and services. This is including the extensive establishment of plantations and intensification of agricultural production.

This project aims to address part of these uncertainties by looking specifically at plantations as an example oif human induced changes in ecosystems. This project is assessing the environmental benefits and impacts of plantation development in Lao PDR and Vietnam, as well as the potential trade-offs between the production of different goods and services.