In April, 1993, a conference of academic biologists, agency staff members, activists. and other experts critically explored the value of ecological restoration as a conservation strategy. Restoring Diversity examines and expands on the issues set forth at that gathering, including strategy, case studies, the biology of restoration and the use of mitigation in rare plant conservation.

The reintroduction of rare and endangered species to their natural habitat is one of emerging tools of ecosystem management. Yet despite hundreds of ongoing projects, the biological underpinnings of such activity are poorly understood, and important questions remain. Restoring Diversity provides biological, policy, and regulatory foundations for successful restoration of rare plants. Topics considered include the strategic and legal context for rare plant restoration, the biology of restoration, use (and misuse) of mitigation in rare plant conservation, and case studies from across the United States. Restoring Diversity presents model guidelines for the reintroduction of endangered plants - guidelines that incorporate ideas contained in the book's chapters with the wide-ranging experience of experts in the field. It is a pathbreaking work that not only unifies concepts in the field of restoration, but also fills significant technical and policy gaps and provides operational tools for successful restorations.

Embark on an enriching odyssey through the ebook version of "Exploring Life's Diversity." This captivating digital book is not just a scientific exploration; it's an invitation to witness the intricate dance of life on our planet. Unravel the secrets encoded in DNA, confront the perils threatening biodiversity, and be inspired by the relentless efforts to conserve and restore Earth's ecological marvels. Whether you're a seasoned enthusiast or new to the subject, this narrative, rich with captivating stories and a clarion call for action, will deepen your connection with the intricate and awe-inspiring web of life. Join us in celebrating and safeguarding Earth's biological diversity.

The discussion of ideas, methods, scientific results, empirical practices and perspectives on the restoration of high diversity tropical and subtropical forest formations is the objective of this book; however, principles here proposed may be used in other less complex forest formations. Special attention is given to the role of the ecological processes on the restoration of functional forest communities, once the composition and structure of these natural or even restored communities change in space and time.

Agro-Ecosystem Diversity: Impact on Food Security and Environmental Quality presents cutting-edge exploration of developing novel farming systems and introduces landscape ecology to agronomy. It encompasses the broad range of links between agricultural development and ecological impact and how to limit the potential negative results. Presented in seven sections, each focusing on a specific challenge to sustaining diversity, the book provides insights toward the argument that by re-introducing diversity, it should be possible to maintain a high level of productivity of agro-ecosystems while also maintaining and/or restoring a satisfactory level of environment quality and biodiversity. Demonstrates that diversified agro-ecosystems can be intensified with environmental quality preserved, restored and enhanced Includes analysis of economic constraints leading to specialization of farms and regions and the social locking forces resisting to diversification of agro-ecosystems Presents a global vision of world agriculture and the tradeoff between a necessary increase in food production and restoring environment quality

The field of biocultural diversity is emerging as a dynamic, integrative approach to understanding the links between nature and culture and the interrelationships between humans and the environment at scales from the global to the local. Its multifaceted contributions have ranged from theoretical elaborations, to mappings of the overlapping distributions of biological and cultural diversity, to the development of indicators as tools to measure, assess, and monitor the state and trends of biocultural diversity, to on-the-ground implementation in field projects. This book is a unique compendium and analysis of projects from all around the world that take an integrated biocultural approach to sustaining cultures and biodiversity. The 45 projects reviewed exemplify a new focus in conservation: this is based on the emerging realization that protecting and restoring biodiversity and maintaining and revitalizing cultural diversity and cultural vitality are intimately, indeed inextricably, interrelated. Published with Terralingua and IUCN

Biodiversity can provide a series of important ecosystem functions and ecosystem services, which meet the needs of human beings. Plants are the biological group with the highest carbon content on earth, their diversity has attracted increased attention. The interpretation of plant diversity patterns and drivers is crucial for the conservation and utilization of plant resources and is also one of the hot topics in plant science and ecology. There are already many studies on the patterns and drivers of plant diversity, including different diversity dimensions (e.g., taxonomic, phylogenetic, and functional diversity) and spatial scales (different plots/sites, watershed, country, continent, and globe). The mechanisms underlying plant diversity patterns are also quite complex. For example, many hypotheses are related to contemporary climate and soil conditions, with temperature, precipitation, and soil nutrient being the most discussed drivers. In addition, paleoclimate and geological events may also have a strong legacy on current plant diversity patterns. Except for these natural factors, many anthropogenic activities, including agriculture, deforestation, grazing, urbanization, and coal mining, are also important drivers of plant diversity. These anthropogenic activities can affect plant diversity patterns not only directly, but also indirectly through their effects on habitat loss and habitat fragmentation. Therefore, the current plant diversity patterns are the result of many interacting factors and need to be interpreted from a more comprehensive perspective. This Research Topic will therefore provide a platform for sufficient communication, aiming to integrate the research from different fields and deepen the understanding of the patterns and drivers of plant diversity. We encourage the submission of theoretical and experimental studies on different plant groups, such as seed plants, ferns, mosses, and algae. Studies based on new methods and technology (such as genomics and drones) are also welcomed. We welcome the following specific topics: • Effects of historical factors (such as paleoclimate, geological events) on plant diversity; • Plant diversity that driven by contemporary climate and anthropogenic activities; • The effect of habitat loss and fragmentation on plant diversity; • New methods of research on the patterns and drivers of plant diversity.