Interactions of Forests, Climate, Water Resources, and Humans in a Changing Environment: Research Needs

Abstract

The aim of the special issue “Interactions of Forests, Climate, Water Resources, and Humans in a Changing Environment” is to present case studies on the influences of natural and human disturbances on forest water resources under a changing climate. Studies in this collection of six papers cover a wide range of geographic regions from Australia to Nigeria with spatial research scale spanning from a tree leaf, to a segment of forest road, and large basins with mixed land uses. These studies clearly show the strong interactions among forests, global climate change, water quantity and quality, and human activities at multiple scales. Understanding the underlying processes of response of natural ecosystems and society to global climate change is essential for developing actionable science-based climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies and methodologies. Future research should focus on feedbacks among forests, climate, water, and disturbances, and interactions of ecohydrologic systems, economics and policies using an integrated approach.