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The Human Impact on the Environment in Three European Regions
Type of Session
Full Presentation Panel
Abstract
Global environmental changes are widely documented and are often considered due to the impact of humans—e.g., as the result of agriculture, tourism, industrialization, introduction of potentially invasive species, increased water usage, and construction of dams and places for living and working.
Social concerns colored by cultural or political considerations affect how individuals view the human impact on the environment but also have the power to influence the way we view the legitimacy of our empirically-based results. Some, for example, value biodiversity more than others, and others interpret data measuring human influences with greater or lesser concern. A tension exists between the view that essentially all environmental changes we see and those we believe we face in the future are ecologically destructive and degrading versus the view that those changes may sometimes represent a value-neutral or positive challenge to adaptability and ultimately enhance resiliency.
In this panel discussion, environmentalists from France, Germany, and Spain present their research and/or views on the framing topic with a goal of illustrating balanced perspectives and engendering a discussion of future planning. European research and strategies for best practices in sustainability provide potential models for those thinking of their own specific ecosystems of interest or regions of the world or of the world overall.