Abstract
This chapter considers how economists model biodiversity in coupled social ecological systems, taking two polar cases along with a more general problem. Economists assume that all human decisions are purposive: people are assumed to optimize some objective function subject to some set of initial conditions, to some set of resource constraints, and to the dynamics of the system being used. The chapter considers two polar cases and one intermediate case. One polar case involves the preservation of wilderness areas or protected parks in 'close to natural' states. A second involves the exploitation of ecosystems to produce foods, fuels and fibers. The intermediate case involves the management of ecosystems to achieve a balance between non-consumptive cultural services with consumptive provisioning services. While the constrained optimization technique applied in all three cases may be unfamiliar, the chapter tries to give the intuition behind it. It also provides a verbal description of each of the three model structures developed. In all cases the social and biogeophysical components of the coupled system are interdependent - connected through a series of feedback loops. Economists refer to such systems as 'general equilibrium systems'. That is, the dynamics of the system in some state are driven by a tendency towards the equilibrium corresponding to that state, and any perturbation has the potential to stimulate responses across the system.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Biodiversity, Ecosystem Functioning, and Human Wellbeing: An Ecological and Economic Perspective |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press |
| ISBN (Print) | 9780191720345, 9780199547951 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jul 30 2009 |
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Keywords
- Exploitation
- General equilibrium
- Human decisions
- Modeling coupled systems
- Optimal control
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Agricultural and Biological Sciences(all)
Cite this
Modelling biodiversity and ecosystem services in coupled ecological-economic systems. / Brock, William A.; Finnoff, David; Kinzig, Ann; Pascual, Unai; Perrings, Charles; Tschirhart, John; Xepapadeas, Anastasios.
Biodiversity, Ecosystem Functioning, and Human Wellbeing: An Ecological and Economic Perspective. Oxford University Press, 2009.Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter
}
TY - CHAP
T1 - Modelling biodiversity and ecosystem services in coupled ecological-economic systems
AU - Brock, William A.
AU - Finnoff, David
AU - Kinzig, Ann
AU - Pascual, Unai
AU - Perrings, Charles
AU - Tschirhart, John
AU - Xepapadeas, Anastasios
PY - 2009/7/30
Y1 - 2009/7/30
N2 - This chapter considers how economists model biodiversity in coupled social ecological systems, taking two polar cases along with a more general problem. Economists assume that all human decisions are purposive: people are assumed to optimize some objective function subject to some set of initial conditions, to some set of resource constraints, and to the dynamics of the system being used. The chapter considers two polar cases and one intermediate case. One polar case involves the preservation of wilderness areas or protected parks in 'close to natural' states. A second involves the exploitation of ecosystems to produce foods, fuels and fibers. The intermediate case involves the management of ecosystems to achieve a balance between non-consumptive cultural services with consumptive provisioning services. While the constrained optimization technique applied in all three cases may be unfamiliar, the chapter tries to give the intuition behind it. It also provides a verbal description of each of the three model structures developed. In all cases the social and biogeophysical components of the coupled system are interdependent - connected through a series of feedback loops. Economists refer to such systems as 'general equilibrium systems'. That is, the dynamics of the system in some state are driven by a tendency towards the equilibrium corresponding to that state, and any perturbation has the potential to stimulate responses across the system.
AB - This chapter considers how economists model biodiversity in coupled social ecological systems, taking two polar cases along with a more general problem. Economists assume that all human decisions are purposive: people are assumed to optimize some objective function subject to some set of initial conditions, to some set of resource constraints, and to the dynamics of the system being used. The chapter considers two polar cases and one intermediate case. One polar case involves the preservation of wilderness areas or protected parks in 'close to natural' states. A second involves the exploitation of ecosystems to produce foods, fuels and fibers. The intermediate case involves the management of ecosystems to achieve a balance between non-consumptive cultural services with consumptive provisioning services. While the constrained optimization technique applied in all three cases may be unfamiliar, the chapter tries to give the intuition behind it. It also provides a verbal description of each of the three model structures developed. In all cases the social and biogeophysical components of the coupled system are interdependent - connected through a series of feedback loops. Economists refer to such systems as 'general equilibrium systems'. That is, the dynamics of the system in some state are driven by a tendency towards the equilibrium corresponding to that state, and any perturbation has the potential to stimulate responses across the system.
KW - Exploitation
KW - General equilibrium
KW - Human decisions
KW - Modeling coupled systems
KW - Optimal control
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84872605848&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84872605848&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199547951.003.0019
DO - 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199547951.003.0019
M3 - Chapter
SN - 9780191720345
SN - 9780199547951
BT - Biodiversity, Ecosystem Functioning, and Human Wellbeing: An Ecological and Economic Perspective
PB - Oxford University Press
ER -