Local and regional governments have developed climate action plans with significant implications for forests and wildlife. The effectiveness of climate mitigation through forest carbon sequestration depends on understanding the spatial and temporal dynamics of land-cover and land-use change (LCLUC). Few studies project future LCLUC effects on forest carbon sequestration, and even fewer examine the resulting consequences for forest connectivity and wildlife habitat.

Modern global temperature and land cover and projected future temperatures suggest that tropical forest species will be particularly sensitive to global warming. Given a moderate greenhouse gas emissions scenario, fully 75% of the tropical forests present in 2000 will experience mean annual temperatures in 2100 that are greater than the highest mean annual temperature that supports closed-canopy forest today. Temperature-sensitive species might extend their ranges to cool refuges, defined here as areas where temperatures projected for 2100 match 1960s temperatures in the modern range.

Most species face multiple anthropogenic disruptions. Few studies have quantified the cumulative influence of multiple threats on species of conservation concern, and far fewer have quantified the potential relative value of multiple conservation interventions in light of these threats.

When net deforestation declines in the tropics, attention will be drawn to the composition and structure of the retained, restored, invaded, and created forests. At that point, the seemingly inexorable trends toward increased intensities of exploitation and management will be recognized as having taken their tolls of biodiversity and other forest values.

The paper presents the use of indicators in a site-specific assessment method for strategic environmental assessment in regional land use planning (here: SEA-REP). It is explained with the example of the state of environment indicator ‘LUCCA 4—Urban Areas at Risk of Flooding’, how SEA as a decision-aiding instrument can contribute to the prevention of conflicts with policy for adaptation to climate change. The method begins with the determination of impact factors for SEA.

Land-use emissions accompanying biomass loss, change in soil organic carbon (ΔSOC) and decomposing wood-products, were comparable with fossil fuel emissions in the late 20th century. We examine the rates, magnitudes and uncertainties for major carbon (C) fluxes for rangelands due to commercial grazing and climate change in Australia. Total net C emission from biomass over 369Mha of rangeland to-date was 0.73 (±0.40)Pg, with 83% of that from the potentially forested 53% of the rangelands. A higher emission estimate is likely from a higher resolution analysis.

Minimising the spread and impact of alien plants is a crucial component of land management for biodiversity conservation. Alien plant management typically focuses on either controlling selected alien species (‘species-led’), or on minimizing invasions within selected biodiversity or cultural assets (‘asset-led’). Here, we compare and combine species- and asset-led approaches to prioritise alien plant management activities in the world’s largest Mediterranean-climate woodland, located in south-western Australia.

Urban planners are increasingly interested in agriculture around cities and have to decide whether to maintain or not areas of agricultural land use within and close to growing cities. There is therefore a need for researchers to design tools to guide public decision-making on land use. Various approaches, originating from different disciplines, may be adopted in this respect. We designed an interdisciplinary research program in order to test two related concepts: the “sustainability” and the “multi-functionality” of agriculture.

Climate change has the potential to influence avian population dynamics through nest-fate sensitivity to temperatures during the breeding season. Nest fate also varies across spatially heterogeneous habitat, and changing land uses may independently introduce stressors on reproductive outcome. Identifying the individual and synergistic effects of climate change and land-use change is necessary for understanding the impact of global change on native species. We studied the nest fate of 3 sympatric species breeding in urban habitat in an arid region of the western United States.

Experimental forests and ranges are living laboratories that provide opportunities for conducting scientific research and transferring research results to partners and stakeholders. They are invaluable for their long-term data and capacity to foster collaborative, interdisciplinary research. The San Joaquin Experimental Range (SJER) was established to develop appropriate land management practices on foothill rangelands in California. SJER has a long and rich history of avian research.

Bracken is often perceived as a widespread and increasing land management problem. The pollen record of a wide range of sites in Great Britain suggests that the current abundance of bracken is less than or, at worst, equivalent to maximum historical levels. Recently gathered data also suggest that bracken cover is declining. Results of risk assessments of land use change, and experimental and modelling investigations into the effects of climate change are synthesized.

Long-term monitoring of surface water quality has shown increasing concentrations of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) across a large part of the Northern Hemisphere. Several drivers have been implicated including climate change, land management change, nitrogen and sulphur deposition and CO2 enrichment.