ILTER and JaLTER: Their Missions and Linkage to Database Development in the Asia-Pacific Region

Abstract

A Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) program was originally established in 1980 by the National Science Foundation to support research on long-term ecology in the United States. The LTER network was founded with the recognition that long- term and broad-scale research is necessary to understand various environmental phe- nomena. This necessity has become increasingly pressing with the increased human effects on populations, communities, ecosystems, and the biosphere (US Long Term