The increasing frequency and intensity of droughts threaten forests and their climate change mitigation potential. Mixed-species forests are promoted to increase forest productivity and stability compared to monospecific forests, but we still lack a mechanistic understanding of the strength, nature and drivers of tree diversity effects on productivity and stability under drought. Here, I studied the stress hotter droughts inflict on trees and examined whether diversification in tree species, structures and drought-tolerance traits is a potential solution to this threat. In study 1, I found that the hotter drought years 2018–2019, the severest droughts since records, induced unprecedented tree productivity and physiological stress responses (reduced growth and increased δ13C) in a Central European floodplain forest. Hotter droughts thus constitute a novel threat. In studies 2–4, I examined diversity-productivity and diversity-stability relationships across spatiotemporal scales in a tropical (study 2) and a subtropical (studies 3, 4) tree diversity experiment specifically designed to examine biodiversity-ecosystem functioning relationships. Tree species richness consistently increased productivity and stability, and this effect was strongest at the highest levels of diversity. Structural diversity increased productivity but was unrelated to stability, while diversity in drought-tolerance traits increased stability but not productivity. Assessing drought-tolerance traits was essential for understanding the role of tree diversity during drought. Positive diversity effects on productivity scaled up from the tree neighbourhood to the community level, but effects on stability emerged only at the community level. Community stability increased with species richness due to asynchronous species responses to dry and wet years driven by species’ drought-tolerance traits. I showed that diversity but not identity in drought-tolerance traits increases community stability. Overall, promoting structurally and functionally diverse mixed-species forests may enable high productivity and stability under intensifying climate change.:1. General introduction 1.1. Mixed-species forests 1.2. Diversity-productivity relationships 1.3. Diversity-productivity relationships during drought 1.4. Diversity-stability relationships 1.5. Diversity facets 1.6. Drought-tolerance traits 1.7. Linkages between the four studies 2. Methodological features 2.1. Study sites and approaches 2.2. Productivity, stability and physiological water stress 2.3. The quantification of diversity 2.4. Spatiotemporal analyses 3. Original contributions Study 1: Cumulative growth and stress responses to the 2018–2019 drought in a European floodplain forest Study 2: Drivers of productivity and its temporal stability in a tropical tree diversity experiment Study 3: Neighbourhood species richness and drought-tolerance traits modulate tree growth and δ13C responses to drought Study 4: Species richness stabilizes productivity via asynchrony and drought- tolerance diversity in a large-scale tree biodiversity experiment 4. General discussion 4.1. Summary of main findings 4.2. Hotter droughts and forest functioning 4.3. Diversity signals across spatial scales 4.4. Diversity signals across temporal scales 4.5. Diversity facets 4.6. Context dependency and transferability 4.7. Implications for forest management in the 21st century 5. Outlook and future research 5.1. Observation and experimentation under hotter droughts 5.2. Response variables 5.3. Diversity facets 5.4. Drought-tolerance traits 5.5. Zooming in 5.6. Zooming out 5.7. From understanding to use of BEF relationships 6. Conclusion 7. Summary 8. Zusammenfassung 9. References Acknowledgements Author contribution statements Curriculum vitae List of publications Selbstständigkeitserklärung

No description available.

Die großflächige Umwandlung von tropischen Wäldern hat zu dramatischen Verlusten von Biodiversität und assoziierten Ökosystemdienstleistungen und –funktionen geführt. Indonesien ist ein besonders schwerwiegendes Beispiel für den Verlust von Waldflächen und Biodiversität. Landumnutzungen, in starkem Maße durch den Anbau von Ölpalmen vorangetrieben, stellen eine erhebliche Bedrohung für die außergewöhnlich hohe Biodiversität des Landes dar. Landwirtschaftssysteme, wie Agroforstsysteme, können hingegen genutzt werden, um die Biodiversität und Ökosystemfunktionen in von Ölpalmen dominierten Landschaften zu erhöhen. In Regionen, in denen Ölpalmplantagen bereits die Landschaft dominieren, kann diese Erhöhung nur durch systematische Renaturierung erfolgen. Die zugrunde liegenden ökologischen und soziökonomischen Prozesse und damit verbundene Beschränkungen und Kompromisse von Renaturierungsmaßnahmen in von Ölpalmen dominierten Landschaften sind jedoch weitgehend unbekannt. Um diese Wissenslücke zu schließen, habe ich mit Kollegen aus Deutschland und Indonesien ein Langzeitexperiment zur Erhöhung der Biodiversität aufgebaut. Wir haben experimentell Bäume in Form von „Inseln“ in eine konventionelle Ölpalmplantage gepflanzt und hierbei systematisch die Flächengröße, das Diversitätslevel und die Artzusammensetzung variiert. Wir haben hierfür sechs multifunktionale heimische Baumarten ausgewählt. Auf der Fläche der Bauminseln haben wir einen Teil der Ölpalmen gefällt, um die Lichtverfügbarkeit für die gepflanzten Bäume durch eine reduzierte Ölpalmdichte zu erhöhen. In dieser Doktorarbeit stelle ich den Aufbau des Experiments vor und gebe einen breiten Einblick in anfängliche Auswirkungen des Experiments, indem ich ökologische Aspekte in Betracht ziehe, sowie Veränderungen hinsichtlich des Ernteertrags. Da die Zeit kurz nach der Pflanzung ein Nadelöhr für die Langzeitetablierung der Bäume darstellt, ist sie sehr kritisch, um die erwünschten Renaturierungserfolge in der Zukunft zu erzielen. Des Weiteren kann die Anfangszeit auch aus der Sicht der Landwirte eine entscheidende Hürde darstellen, da der Nutzen der Bauminseln erst lange Zeit nach ihrer Pflanzung entsteht. Zuerst beschreibe ich Umweltvariablen und biotische Charakteristika der den experimentellen Flächen assoziierten Vegetation, Invertebraten und Vögel vor der Errichtung des Experiments, sowie anfängliche Auswirkungen des Experiments auf die Fauna. Ein Jahr nach der Errichtung des Experiments hatten die Baumpflanzungen einen insgesamt positiven Effekt auf die Artengemeinschaften von Vögeln und Invertebraten in der Plantage. Die Größe der Bauminseln wirkte sich lediglich auf die Diversität und Abundanz von Invertebraten positiv aus, die somit auf kleinskalige Veränderungen reagierten. Ausgehend von diesen Ergebnissen erwarte ich einen weiteren Anstieg der Biodiversität und Ökosystemfunktionen in der Zukunft. Danach berichte ich über den Anwuchserfolg der Bäume und ermittle die wichtigsten Determinanten für den Wuchs und das Überleben der Bäume. Insgesamt sind die Bäume gut angewachsen, jedoch gab es große Unterschiede zwischen den Baumarten hinsichtlich relativer Höhenwachstums-, Dickenwachstums- sowie Überlebensraten. Arten mit hohen Wachstumsraten wiesen vorwiegend auch hohe Überlebensraten auf. Auf Versuchsflächenebene hatten Standortbedingungen, Flächengröße und Diversitätslevel der gepflanzten Bäume lediglich einen geringen Einfluss auf das mittlere Baumwachstum und die Überlebensrate. Auf Individuenebene habe ich signifikante Nachbarschaftseffekte festgestellt. Hohe benachbarte Bäume und die Distanz zu verbleibenden Ölpalmen begünstigten die Entwicklung der Bäume. Noch ist es zu früh zu entscheiden, welche der Baumarten sich generell am besten eignen, um Renaturierungsziele zu erreichen. Unterschiede in der anfänglichen Entwicklung liefern jedoch wichtige Informationen für eine zukünftige Bewertung der Arten. Zuletzt präsentiere ich Auswirkungen des Experiments auf den Ölpalmertrag. Nach zwei Jahren waren die Erträge pro Ölpalmindividuum erhöht, sowohl auf als auch direkt neben den Versuchsflächen. Die geschätzten Ertragsänderungen für die verschiedenen Flächengrößen unter Einbezug von Ernteverlusten durch gefällte Ölpalmen sowie Effekte auf benachbarte Ölpalmen deuten darauf hin, dass die erhöhten Ernteerträge insbesondere in großen Bauminseln mindestens das Fällen von Ölpalmen kompensiert haben. Diese Ergebnisse, die in der frühen Phase der Bauminseletablierung erzielt wurden, sind vielversprechend für die Erarbeitung nachhaltiger Managementoptionen für Ölpalmplantagen, die ökologische und ökonomische Funktionen in Einklang bringen. Die anfänglichen Auswirkungen waren stärker und insbesondere aus ökonomischer Perspektive profitabler als ich erwartet habe. Die Nachbarschaftseffekte und die Auswirkungen der experimentell veränderten Variablen waren bislang jedoch überwiegend schwach. Ich erwarte, dass diese Auswirkungen mit der Zeit stärker ausgeprägt sein werden. Durch Erkenntnisse, die aus zukünftigen Langzeitbeobachtungen des Experiments, das ich in dieser Doktorarbeit vorstelle, gewonnen werden, können Wissenslücken geschlossen werden. Somit kann die Ausarbeitung von Managementrichlinien für von Ölpalmen dominierten Landschaften ermöglicht werden, die sowohl ökologisch verbessert als auch ökonomisch lohnenswert sind. Diese Doktorarbeit stellt einen wesentlichen Beitrag zur generellen Beurteilung des Experiments dar, wodurch darüber hinaus auch neue Erkenntnisse für die Renaturierungswissenschaft gewonnen werden können.

Diversos estudos teóricos, experimentais e observacionais têm demonstrado que as relações entre a biodiversidade e as funções ecossistêmicas (BEF) são determinadas pela estrutura funcional da comunidade (ou seja, pela distribuição dos atributos das suas espécies constituintes). Isso pode ocorrer por meio de dois mecanismos mutuamente não exclusivos: (1) a hipótese de dominância (também denominada de efeito de relação de massa), na qual os processos ecossistêmicos são influenciados pela média ponderada na comunidade de um dado atributo funcional (CWM) considerado relevante; (2) a hipótese de complementaridade, na qual a maior variabilidade de um atributo funcional na comunidade (FD) é uma expressão da complementariedade de nicho, o que beneficia o desempenho dos processos ecossistêmicos. Embora ambos os mecanismos já tenham sido amplamente estudados em comunidades de plantas em pequenas escalas espaciais, análises globais considerando distintos biomas ainda são necessárias. Neste estudo, a relação entre biodiversidade e funcionamento dos ecossistemas foi avaliada com base na integração entre uma base de dados global de parcelas de vegetação (sPlot), uma base de dados de atributos de espécies de plantas (TRY) e dados do Índice de Vegetação por Diferença Normalizada (NDVI) obtidos por sensoriamento remoto. O objetivo foi verificar, simultaneamente, os efeitos de dominância e de complementaridade sobre a produção de biomassa vegetal em ecossistemas campestres em todo o mundo. Os dados sobre a estrutura funcional das comunidades (CWM e FD) foram obtidos a partir da base de dados sPLOT e TRY, utilizando para isso atributos funcionais de plantas ecologicamente relevantes. O NDVI, considerado como aproximação da produtividade da vegetação, representa uma medida do funcionamento do ecossistema e foi obtido a partir do produto MOD13Q do sensor MODIS, com resolução espacial de 250m. Para garantir que as medidas de NDVI fossem derivadas apenas de ecossistemas campestres, sem a interferência de outras fisionomias vegetais, foram descartadas as parcelas do sPlot com presença de paisagens heterogêneas no seu entorno mediante consulta a um mapa global de cobertura e uso da terra (Globcover2009). Para quantificar os efeitos independentes da dominância e da complementariedade sobre as variações no NDVI , com controle das variáveis climáticas, foi utilizada uma análise de regressão múltipla do tipo commonality. Os resultados demonstraram que o principal preditor da variação no NDVI correspondeu a um conjunto de atributos funcionais das espécies dominantes relacionados com o espectro de economia da comunidade vegetal (atributos fast-slow), indicando a prevalência da hipótese de dominância (R2 ajustado = 0,65). Os efeitos evidentes da dominância e os efeitos potenciais da complementariedade são discutidos no contexto da sua relação com os fatores abióticos, sendo que a precipitação pluviométrica, em particular, parece ter maior influência tanto sobre a composição de atributos quanto sobre a produtividade. Apesar de algumas limitações metodológicas, a abordagem inovadora utilizada neste trabalho pode ajudar a esclarecer as relações entre biodiversidade e funções ecossistêmicas em escala global, dentro de uma perspectiva integradora e baseada em dados. / Theoretical, experimental and observational studies show that biodiversity ecosystem functioning (BEF) relationships are determined by functional community structure (i.e. trait distributions in a community) through two mutually non-exclusive mechanisms: (1) The dominance hypothesis (a.k.a. mass ratio effect) links ecosystem processes to the community weighted mean (CWM) of a relevant effect trait. (2) The complementarity hypothesis states that higher variability of a trait value within a community (FD) reflects niche complementarity enhancing ecosystem processes. While both mechanisms have been extensively studied in plant communities at small spatial scales, there is a need for global analyses across biomes. Here, a data driven approach to the BEF question is presented integrating a global vegetation plot database with a trait database and remotely sensed NDVI. The objective of this study was to simultaneously evaluate dominance and complementarity effects in grassland systems worldwide. Data on functional community structure (CWM and FD) were obtained from the global vegetation plot database sPlot in combination with the plant trait database TRY using 18 ecologically relevant plant traits. Ecosystem functioning at the selected sPlot sites (n = 2941) was measured as NDVI at a spatial resolution of 250m using the MODIS product MOD13Q (annual peak NDVI being a proxy of productivity). The landcover map Globcover2009 was used for characterization of landscape heterogeneity and landcover at each site, and plots in heterogeneous non-grassland pixels were discarded. Multiple regression commonality analysis was used to disentangle the contributions of complementarity and dominance effects to the variation in NDVI, while controlling for climate variables (adjusted R2 = 0.65). The results show that a plant community economics spectrum referring to the “fast-slow traits” of the dominant species in the community was the strongest predictor of the NDVI values in the grassland systems (dominance effect). Both, evident dominance and potential complementarity effects are discussed against the background of their interplay with abiotic factors and it is noted that especially precipitation seems to drive trait composition and productivity. Despite methodological shortcomings, the novel approach presented in this paper is considered a step towards a more integrative data-driven BEF debate at the global scale

Theory suggests that plant interactions at the neighbourhood scale play a fundamental role in regulating biodiversity–productivity relationships (BPRs) in tree communities. However, empirical evidence of this prediction is rare, as little is known about how neighbourhood interactions scale up to influence community BPRs. Here, using a biodiversity–ecosystem functioning experiment, we provide insights into processes underlying BPRs by demonstrating that diversity-mediated interactions among local neighbours are a strong regulator of productivity in species mixtures. Our results show that local neighbourhood interactions explain over half of the variation in observed community productivity along a diversity gradient. Overall, individual tree growth increased with neighbourhood species richness, leading to a positive BPR at the community scale. The importance of local-scale neighbourhood effects for regulating community productivity, however, distinctly increased with increasing community species richness. Preserving tree species diversity at the local neighbourhood scale, thus seems to be a promising way for promoting forest productivity.

Diversos estudos teóricos, experimentais e observacionais têm demonstrado que as relações entre a biodiversidade e as funções ecossistêmicas (BEF) são determinadas pela estrutura funcional da comunidade (ou seja, pela distribuição dos atributos das suas espécies constituintes). Isso pode ocorrer por meio de dois mecanismos mutuamente não exclusivos: (1) a hipótese de dominância (também denominada de efeito de relação de massa), na qual os processos ecossistêmicos são influenciados pela média ponderada na comunidade de um dado atributo funcional (CWM) considerado relevante; (2) a hipótese de complementaridade, na qual a maior variabilidade de um atributo funcional na comunidade (FD) é uma expressão da complementariedade de nicho, o que beneficia o desempenho dos processos ecossistêmicos. Embora ambos os mecanismos já tenham sido amplamente estudados em comunidades de plantas em pequenas escalas espaciais, análises globais considerando distintos biomas ainda são necessárias. Neste estudo, a relação entre biodiversidade e funcionamento dos ecossistemas foi avaliada com base na integração entre uma base de dados global de parcelas de vegetação (sPlot), uma base de dados de atributos de espécies de plantas (TRY) e dados do Índice de Vegetação por Diferença Normalizada (NDVI) obtidos por sensoriamento remoto. O objetivo foi verificar, simultaneamente, os efeitos de dominância e de complementaridade sobre a produção de biomassa vegetal em ecossistemas campestres em todo o mundo. Os dados sobre a estrutura funcional das comunidades (CWM e FD) foram obtidos a partir da base de dados sPLOT e TRY, utilizando para isso atributos funcionais de plantas ecologicamente relevantes. O NDVI, considerado como aproximação da produtividade da vegetação, representa uma medida do funcionamento do ecossistema e foi obtido a partir do produto MOD13Q do sensor MODIS, com resolução espacial de 250m. Para garantir que as medidas de NDVI fossem derivadas apenas de ecossistemas campestres, sem a interferência de outras fisionomias vegetais, foram descartadas as parcelas do sPlot com presença de paisagens heterogêneas no seu entorno mediante consulta a um mapa global de cobertura e uso da terra (Globcover2009). Para quantificar os efeitos independentes da dominância e da complementariedade sobre as variações no NDVI , com controle das variáveis climáticas, foi utilizada uma análise de regressão múltipla do tipo commonality. Os resultados demonstraram que o principal preditor da variação no NDVI correspondeu a um conjunto de atributos funcionais das espécies dominantes relacionados com o espectro de economia da comunidade vegetal (atributos fast-slow), indicando a prevalência da hipótese de dominância (R2 ajustado = 0,65). Os efeitos evidentes da dominância e os efeitos potenciais da complementariedade são discutidos no contexto da sua relação com os fatores abióticos, sendo que a precipitação pluviométrica, em particular, parece ter maior influência tanto sobre a composição de atributos quanto sobre a produtividade. Apesar de algumas limitações metodológicas, a abordagem inovadora utilizada neste trabalho pode ajudar a esclarecer as relações entre biodiversidade e funções ecossistêmicas em escala global, dentro de uma perspectiva integradora e baseada em dados. / Theoretical, experimental and observational studies show that biodiversity ecosystem functioning (BEF) relationships are determined by functional community structure (i.e. trait distributions in a community) through two mutually non-exclusive mechanisms: (1) The dominance hypothesis (a.k.a. mass ratio effect) links ecosystem processes to the community weighted mean (CWM) of a relevant effect trait. (2) The complementarity hypothesis states that higher variability of a trait value within a community (FD) reflects niche complementarity enhancing ecosystem processes. While both mechanisms have been extensively studied in plant communities at small spatial scales, there is a need for global analyses across biomes. Here, a data driven approach to the BEF question is presented integrating a global vegetation plot database with a trait database and remotely sensed NDVI. The objective of this study was to simultaneously evaluate dominance and complementarity effects in grassland systems worldwide. Data on functional community structure (CWM and FD) were obtained from the global vegetation plot database sPlot in combination with the plant trait database TRY using 18 ecologically relevant plant traits. Ecosystem functioning at the selected sPlot sites (n = 2941) was measured as NDVI at a spatial resolution of 250m using the MODIS product MOD13Q (annual peak NDVI being a proxy of productivity). The landcover map Globcover2009 was used for characterization of landscape heterogeneity and landcover at each site, and plots in heterogeneous non-grassland pixels were discarded. Multiple regression commonality analysis was used to disentangle the contributions of complementarity and dominance effects to the variation in NDVI, while controlling for climate variables (adjusted R2 = 0.65). The results show that a plant community economics spectrum referring to the “fast-slow traits” of the dominant species in the community was the strongest predictor of the NDVI values in the grassland systems (dominance effect). Both, evident dominance and potential complementarity effects are discussed against the background of their interplay with abiotic factors and it is noted that especially precipitation seems to drive trait composition and productivity. Despite methodological shortcomings, the novel approach presented in this paper is considered a step towards a more integrative data-driven BEF debate at the global scale

Diversos estudos teóricos, experimentais e observacionais têm demonstrado que as relações entre a biodiversidade e as funções ecossistêmicas (BEF) são determinadas pela estrutura funcional da comunidade (ou seja, pela distribuição dos atributos das suas espécies constituintes). Isso pode ocorrer por meio de dois mecanismos mutuamente não exclusivos: (1) a hipótese de dominância (também denominada de efeito de relação de massa), na qual os processos ecossistêmicos são influenciados pela média ponderada na comunidade de um dado atributo funcional (CWM) considerado relevante; (2) a hipótese de complementaridade, na qual a maior variabilidade de um atributo funcional na comunidade (FD) é uma expressão da complementariedade de nicho, o que beneficia o desempenho dos processos ecossistêmicos. Embora ambos os mecanismos já tenham sido amplamente estudados em comunidades de plantas em pequenas escalas espaciais, análises globais considerando distintos biomas ainda são necessárias. Neste estudo, a relação entre biodiversidade e funcionamento dos ecossistemas foi avaliada com base na integração entre uma base de dados global de parcelas de vegetação (sPlot), uma base de dados de atributos de espécies de plantas (TRY) e dados do Índice de Vegetação por Diferença Normalizada (NDVI) obtidos por sensoriamento remoto. O objetivo foi verificar, simultaneamente, os efeitos de dominância e de complementaridade sobre a produção de biomassa vegetal em ecossistemas campestres em todo o mundo. Os dados sobre a estrutura funcional das comunidades (CWM e FD) foram obtidos a partir da base de dados sPLOT e TRY, utilizando para isso atributos funcionais de plantas ecologicamente relevantes. O NDVI, considerado como aproximação da produtividade da vegetação, representa uma medida do funcionamento do ecossistema e foi obtido a partir do produto MOD13Q do sensor MODIS, com resolução espacial de 250m. Para garantir que as medidas de NDVI fossem derivadas apenas de ecossistemas campestres, sem a interferência de outras fisionomias vegetais, foram descartadas as parcelas do sPlot com presença de paisagens heterogêneas no seu entorno mediante consulta a um mapa global de cobertura e uso da terra (Globcover2009). Para quantificar os efeitos independentes da dominância e da complementariedade sobre as variações no NDVI , com controle das variáveis climáticas, foi utilizada uma análise de regressão múltipla do tipo commonality. Os resultados demonstraram que o principal preditor da variação no NDVI correspondeu a um conjunto de atributos funcionais das espécies dominantes relacionados com o espectro de economia da comunidade vegetal (atributos fast-slow), indicando a prevalência da hipótese de dominância (R2 ajustado = 0,65). Os efeitos evidentes da dominância e os efeitos potenciais da complementariedade são discutidos no contexto da sua relação com os fatores abióticos, sendo que a precipitação pluviométrica, em particular, parece ter maior influência tanto sobre a composição de atributos quanto sobre a produtividade. Apesar de algumas limitações metodológicas, a abordagem inovadora utilizada neste trabalho pode ajudar a esclarecer as relações entre biodiversidade e funções ecossistêmicas em escala global, dentro de uma perspectiva integradora e baseada em dados. / Theoretical, experimental and observational studies show that biodiversity ecosystem functioning (BEF) relationships are determined by functional community structure (i.e. trait distributions in a community) through two mutually non-exclusive mechanisms: (1) The dominance hypothesis (a.k.a. mass ratio effect) links ecosystem processes to the community weighted mean (CWM) of a relevant effect trait. (2) The complementarity hypothesis states that higher variability of a trait value within a community (FD) reflects niche complementarity enhancing ecosystem processes. While both mechanisms have been extensively studied in plant communities at small spatial scales, there is a need for global analyses across biomes. Here, a data driven approach to the BEF question is presented integrating a global vegetation plot database with a trait database and remotely sensed NDVI. The objective of this study was to simultaneously evaluate dominance and complementarity effects in grassland systems worldwide. Data on functional community structure (CWM and FD) were obtained from the global vegetation plot database sPlot in combination with the plant trait database TRY using 18 ecologically relevant plant traits. Ecosystem functioning at the selected sPlot sites (n = 2941) was measured as NDVI at a spatial resolution of 250m using the MODIS product MOD13Q (annual peak NDVI being a proxy of productivity). The landcover map Globcover2009 was used for characterization of landscape heterogeneity and landcover at each site, and plots in heterogeneous non-grassland pixels were discarded. Multiple regression commonality analysis was used to disentangle the contributions of complementarity and dominance effects to the variation in NDVI, while controlling for climate variables (adjusted R2 = 0.65). The results show that a plant community economics spectrum referring to the “fast-slow traits” of the dominant species in the community was the strongest predictor of the NDVI values in the grassland systems (dominance effect). Both, evident dominance and potential complementarity effects are discussed against the background of their interplay with abiotic factors and it is noted that especially precipitation seems to drive trait composition and productivity. Despite methodological shortcomings, the novel approach presented in this paper is considered a step towards a more integrative data-driven BEF debate at the global scale

This extended summary introduces the TEEB Russia projects and sketches the main outlines of the comprehensive reports TEEB Russia Vols. 1 and 2. Commissioned by the German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation (BfN), the TEEB Russia projects were funded by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU). They were supported by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of the Russian Federation (MNR) with the active participation of experts from the Biodiversity Conservation Center (Moscow), Leibniz Institute of Ecological Urban and Regional Development (Dresden), Russian Academy of Sciences (A. N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, the Institute of Geography, Center for Forest Ecology and Productivity, and the Institute for Systems Analysis), Lomonosov Moscow State University (the faculties of Biology, Geography, Economics and Zoological Museum), the Russian State Agrarian University - Moscow Timiryazev Agricultural Academy, and limited liability company «NextGIS».:1 The story of TEEB Russia 2 Ecosystem services of Russia: Why are they important? 3 Key findings of TEEB Russia 1 4 Objectives and key findings of TEEB Russia 2 4.1 Indicators of ecosystem assets 4.2 Refined estimate of ecosystem services for European Russia 5 Basic structure of ecosystem accounting in Russia 6 Main products of TEEB Russia (2013-2020) 7 Outlook – next steps

Climate change has created potential major threats to global biodiversity. The multiple components of climate change are projected to affect all pillars of biodiversity, from genes over species to biome level. Of particular concerns are "tipping points" where the exceedance of ecosystem thresholds will possibly lead to irreversible shifts of ecosystems and their functioning. As biodiversity underlies all goods and services provided by ecosystems that are crucial for human survival and wellbeing, this paper presents potential effects of climate change on biodiversity, its plausible impacts on human society as well as the setting in addressing a global crisis. Species affected by climate change may respond in three ways: change, move or die. Local species extinctions or a rapidly affected ecosystem as a whole respectively might move toward its particular "tipping point", thereby probably depriving its services to human society and ending up in a global crisis. Urgent and appropriate actions within various scenarios of climate change impacts on biodiversity, especially in tropical regions, are needed to be considered. Foremost a multisectoral approach on biodiversity issues with broader policies, stringent strategies and programs at international, national and local levels is essential to meet the challenges of climate change impacts on biodiversity.

No description available.