Introduction

Abstract

This introductive chapter is an overview about the importance of climate impact assessment for ecosystems and the services they provide. It is also highlighted how, in the global change perspective, not only climate but also socio-economic trends affect the vulnerability of ecosystem services and their adaptive capacity. A multidisciplinary research line in CIRCE project was devoted to the evaluation of the vulnerability of ecosystem services in the Mediterranean region to climate change and other forcings, and to the investigation of feedbacks among ecosystems, climate, water and carbon cycle, including consideration of extreme events and disturbances as fires.