This book invites us to reflect on the restoration of terrestrial ecosystems in the context of a region whose identity is still under construction, Latin America and the Caribbean, immersed in a social, economic, ecological and political crisis, whose roots originate historically and politically in colonialism and in the prevailing model of capital accumulation. For the first time, insights and practical experiences on restoration are gathered from most Latin-American and Caribbean countries. Furthermore, this book offers a social approach to restoration, which will likely become preponderant in this field and in this region. The authors claim that a Latin-American knowledge of restoration is under construction and that this discipline can be a significant tool to empower local populations, which might, in turn, lead to a collective action of change. Case studies from 11 countries of the region were compiled, involving multiple voices that emerge beyond generalist principles and with a bottom-up approach. The main idea of the book is to open a debate about the identity of ecological and social restoration in this region. This book is targeted to restoration specialists, volunteers, environmental managers, researchers, politicians and NGOs working on the complexity of socioecological restoration in a region with unavoidable social problems. It is intended for people with similar concerns to those of the chapters' authors. This work tries to integrate a movement on the rise, almost silent, born with its own narratives of successes and failures that do not hinder its development. Finally, the determination and commitment of Latin-American and Caribbean social actors to restore not only natural values but also social, ethical and cultural ones is remarkable.

Many countries experience lack of harmony among economic development, environmental management and human health. As a consequence, public health, the integrity of ecosystems, and the efforts to reach environmental sustainability, have been adversely affected. The complexity, frequency and magnitude of those impacts is increasingly parallel to the t

This book demonstrates the social, historical, and environmental framework within which humans have developed a relationship with the forest and its resources. Starting from the biological basis that permits the existence of forests to the use of forest resources in a modern human context, this book summarizes the interaction between humans and forest ecosystems. Designed for readers from a broad range of disciplines and interests including those from environmental sciences, environmental economics, sociology, anthropology, biology, forestry and human ecology and other related disciplines, the book evokes interest in the development of an integrated approach towards forest ecosystems and natural resources in the context of sustainability.

A book focused solely on Andean Cloud Forests (ACF) has never been published. ACF are high biodiversity ecosystems in the Neotropics with a large proportion of endemic species, and are important for the hydrology of entire regions. They provide water for large parts of the Amazon basin, for example. Here I take advantage of my many years working in ACF in Ecuador, to edit this book that contains the following sections: (1) ACF over space and time, (2) Hydrology, (3) Light and the Carbon cycle, (4) Soil, litter, fungi and nutrient cycling, (5) Plants, (6) Animals, and (7) Human impacts and management. Under this premise, international experts contributed chapters that consist of reviews of what is known about their topic, of what research they have done, and of what needs to be done in the future. This work is suitable for graduate students, professors, scientists, and researcher-oriented managers.