Endangered Species Research (Jun 2024)
Global research priorities for historical ecology to inform conservation
- L McClenachan,
- T Rick,
- RH Thurstan,
- A Trant,
- PS Alagona,
- HK Alleway,
- C Armstrong,
- R Bliege Bird,
- NT Rubio-Cisneros,
- M Clavero,
- AC Colonese,
- K Cramer,
- AO Davis,
- J Drew,
- MM Early-Capistrán,
- G Gil-Romera,
- M Grace,
- MBA Hatch,
- E Higgs,
- K Hoffman,
- JBC Jackson,
- A Jerardino,
- MJ LeFebvre,
- HK Lotze,
- RS Mohammed,
- N Morueta-Holme,
- C Munteanu,
- AM Mychajliw,
- B Newsom,
- A O’Dea,
- D Pauly,
- P Szabó,
- J Torres,
- J Waldman,
- C West,
- L Xu,
- H Yasuoka,
- PSE zu Ermgassen,
- KS Van Houtan
Affiliations
- L McClenachan
- Department of History, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC V8W 2Y2, Canada
- T Rick
- Department of Anthropology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC 20560, USA
- RH Thurstan
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn TR10 9FE, UK
- A Trant
- School of Environment, Resources and Sustainability, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON N2L 3G1, Canada
- PS Alagona
- Environmental Studies Program, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA
- HK Alleway
- The Nature Conservancy, Arlington, VA 22203, USA
- C Armstrong
- Indigenous Studies, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC V5A 1S6, Canada
- R Bliege Bird
- Department of Anthropology, Pennsylvania State University, State College, PA 16801, USA
- NT Rubio-Cisneros
- Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León, San Nicolás de los Garza 66450, Mexico
- M Clavero
- Estación Biológica de Doñana, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Sevilla 41092, Spain
- AC Colonese
- Department of Prehistory and Institute of Environmental Science and Technology, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona 08193, Spain
- K Cramer
- Center for Biodiversity Outcomes, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287, USA
- AO Davis
- The Bahamas National Trust, Nassau, The Bahamas
- J Drew
- Department of Environmental Biology, State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Syracuse, NY 13210, USA
- MM Early-Capistrán
- Hopkins Marine Station, Stanford University, Pacific Grove, CA 93950, USA
- G Gil-Romera
- Instituto Pirenaico de Ecología, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Zaragoza 50059, Spain
- M Grace
- Department of Biology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3RB, UK
- MBA Hatch
- Environmental Sciences, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA 98225, USA
- E Higgs
- School of Environmental Studies, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC V8W 2Y2, Canada
- K Hoffman
- Faculty of Forestry, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada
- JBC Jackson
- Division of Paleontology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY 10024, USA
- A Jerardino
- Department of Anthropology & Archaeology, University of South Africa, Pretoria 0028, South Africa
- MJ LeFebvre
- Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA
- HK Lotze
- Department of Biology, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS B3H 4R2, Canada
- RS Mohammed
- Department of Biological Sciences, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849, USA
- N Morueta-Holme
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, Globe Institute, University of Copenhagen, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
- C Munteanu
- Faculty of Environment and Natural Resources, University of Freiburg, 79106 Freiburg, Germany
- AM Mychajliw
- Department of Biology and Program in Environmental Studies, Middlebury College, Middlebury, VT 05753, USA
- B Newsom
- Department of Anthropology, University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469, USA
- A O’Dea
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Balboa 0843-03092, Republic of Panamá
- D Pauly
- Sea Around Us, Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada
- P Szabó
- Department of Vegetation Ecology, Institute of Botany, Czech Academy of Sciences, 252 43 Průhonice, Czech Republic
- J Torres
- Cape Horn International Center, Universidad de Magallanes, Cabo de Hornos, Chile
- J Waldman
- Queens College and Graduate School, City University of New York, Flushing, NY 11367, USA
- C West
- Department of Anthropology and Archaeology Program, Boston University, Boston, MA 02215, USA
- L Xu
- School of Resources and Environmental Engineering, Hefei University of Technology, Anhui 230036, PR China
- H Yasuoka
- Center for African Area Studies, Kyoto University, Sakyo, Kyoto 606-8304, Japan
- PSE zu Ermgassen
- Changing Oceans Group, School of Geosciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH8 9XP, UK
- KS Van Houtan
- Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Durham, NC 27710, USA
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.3354/esr01338
- Journal volume & issue
-
Vol. 54
pp. 285 – 310
Abstract
Historical ecology draws on a broad range of information sources and methods to provide insight into ecological and social change, especially over the past ∼12000 yr. While its results are often relevant to conservation and restoration, insights from its diverse disciplines, environments, and geographies have frequently remained siloed or underrepresented, restricting their full potential. Here, scholars and practitioners working in marine, freshwater, and terrestrial environments on 6 continents and various archipelagoes synthesize knowledge from the fields of history, anthropology, paleontology, and ecology with the goal of describing global research priorities for historical ecology to influence conservation. We used a structured decision-making process to identify and address questions in 4 key priority areas: (1) methods and concepts, (2) knowledge co-production and community engagement, (3) policy and management, and (4) climate change impacts. This work highlights the ways that historical ecology has developed and matured in its use of novel information sources, efforts to move beyond extractive research practices and toward knowledge co-production, and application to management challenges including climate change. We demonstrate the ways that this field has brought together researchers across disciplines, connected academics to practitioners, and engaged communities to create and apply knowledge of the past to address the challenges of our shared future.
