Abstract
The Ecological Society of America (ESA) has responded to the growing commitment among ecologists to make their science relevant to society through a series of concerted efforts, including the Sustainable Biosphere Initiative (1991), scientific assessment of ecosystem management (1996), ESA’s vision for the future (2003), Rapid Response Teams that respond to environmental crises (2005), and the Earth Stewardship Initiative (2009). During the past 25 years, ESA launched five new journals, largely reflecting the expansion of scholarship linking ecology with broader societal issues. The goal of the Earth Stewardship Initiative is to raise awareness and to explore ways for ecologists and other scientists to contribute more effectively to the sustainability of our planet. This has occurred through four approaches: (1) articulation of the stewardship concept in ESA publications and Website, (2) selection of meeting themes and symposia, (3) engagement of ESA sections in implementing the initiative, and (4) outreach beyond ecology through collaborations and demonstration projects. Collaborations include societies and groups of Earth and social scientists, practitioners and policy makers, religious and business leaders, federal agencies, and artists and writers. The Earth Stewardship Initiative is a work in progress, so next steps likely include continued nurturing of these emerging collaborations, advancing the development of sustainability and stewardship theory, improving communication of stewardship science, and identifying opportunities for scientists and civil society to take actions that move the Earth toward a more sustainable trajectory.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
AGU (2013) Helping audiences receive climate-science information: a message framework for scientists. Unpublished report
Bonilla NO, Scholl J, Armstrong M et al (2012) Ecological science and public policy: an intersection of action ecology. Bull Ecol Soc Am 93:340–345
Callicott JB (2015) The centennial return of stewardship to the Ecological Society of America. In: Rozzi R, Chapin FS III, Callicott JB et al (eds) Earth stewardship: linking ecology and ethics in theory and practice. Springer, Dordrecht, pp 161–171
Chapin FS III, Fernandez E (2013) Proactive ecology for the Anthropocene. Elementa. doi:10.12952/journal.elementa.000013
Chapin FS III, Power ME, Pickett STA et al (2011) Earth stewardship: science for action to sustain the human-earth system. Ecosphere 2(8):art89 doi:10.1890/ES11-00166.1
Chapin FS III, Kofinas GP, Folke C (eds) (2009) Principles of ecosystem stewardship: resilience-based natural resource management in a changing World. Springer, New York
Christensen NL, Bartuska AM, Brown JH et al (1996) The report of the Ecological Society of America committee on the scientific basis for ecosystem management. Ecol Appl 6:665–691
Clark WC, Dickson NM (2003) Sustainability science: the emerging research program. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 100(14):8059–8061
Clark WC, Levin SA (2010) Toward a science of sustainability. Princeton Environmental Institute, Princeton
Collins SL, Carpenter SR, Swinton SM et al (2011) An integrated conceptual framework for long-term social-ecological research. Front Ecol Environ 9:351–357
Colón-Rivera RJ, Marshall K, Soto-Santiago FJ et al (2013) Moving forward: fostering the next generation of Earth stewards in the STEM disciplines. Front Ecol Environ 11:383–391
Conradie E (2006) Christianity and ecological theology: resources for further research. Sun Press, Stellenbosch
DeFries R, Ellis E, Chapin FS III et al (2012) Plantetary opportunities: a social contract for global change science to contribute to a sustainable future. BioScience 62(6):603–606
Ellis EC, Ramankutty N (2008) Putting people on the map: anthropogenic biomes of the world. Front Ecol Environ 6(8):439–447
Felson AJ, Pickett STA (2005) Designed experiments: new approaches to studying urban ecosystems. Front Ecol Environ 3:549–556
Felson AJ, Bradford MA, Terway TM (2013) Promoting Earth stewardship through urban design experiments. Front Ecol Environ 11:362–367
Foley JA, DeFries R, Asner GP et al (2005) Global consequences of land use. Science 309:570–574
Goralnik L, Nelson MP, Ryan L et al (2015) Arts and humanities efforts in the US Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) network: understanding perceived values and challenges. In: Rozzi R, Chapin FS III, Callicott JB et al (eds) Earth stewardship: linking ecology and ethics in theory and practice. Springer, Dordrecht, pp 249–268
Hargrove E (2015) Stewardship versus citizenship. In: Rozzi R, Chapin FS III, Callicott JB et al (eds) Earth stewardship: linking ecology and ethics in theory and practice. Springer, Dordrecht, pp 315–323
IPCC (2014) Climate change 2014: impacts, adaptation, and vulnerability. Working group II contribution to the IPCC 5th assessment report. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge
Kates RW, Clark WC, Corell RW et al (2001) Sustainability science. Science 292(5517):641–642
Kearns L, Keller C (2007) Eco-spirit: religions and philosophy for the Earth. Fordham University Press, New York
Kierulff MCM, Ruiz-Miranda CR, de Oliveira PP et al (2012) The Golden lion tamarin Leontopithecus rosalia: a conservation success story. Int Zoo Yearb 46(1):36–45
Kingsland SE (2015) Ecological science and practice: dialogues across cultures and disciplines. In: Rozzi R, Chapin FS III, Callicott JB et al (eds) Earth stewardship: linking ecology and ethics in theory and practice. Springer, Dordrecht, pp 17–26
Lubchenco J (2012) Reflections on the sustainable biosphere initiative. Bull Ecol Soc Am 93:260–267
Lubchenco J, Olson AM, Brubaker LB et al (1991) The sustainable biosphere initiative: an ecological research agenda. Ecology 72:371–412
Marshall K, Hamlin J, Armstrong M et al (2011) Science for a social revolution: ecologists entering the realm of action. Bull Ecol Soc Am 92:241–243
Matson PA (2009) The sustainability transition. Issues Sci Technol 25(4):39–42
May Jr RH (2015) Andean llamas and earth stewardship. In: Rozzi R, Chapin FS III, Callicott JB (eds) Earth stewardship: linking ecology and ethics in theory and practice. Springer, Dordrecht, pp 77–86
MEA (2005) Ecosystems and human well-being: current status and trends, vol 1. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK
Melillo JM, Richmond TC, Yohe GW (eds) (2014) Climate change impacts in the United States: the third National Climate Assessment. U.S. Global Change Research Program, Washington, DC
Muñoz-Erickson T, Aguilar-Gonzáles B, Loeser MR et al (2009) A framework to evaluate ecological and social outcomes of collaborative management: lessons from implementation with a northern Arizona collaborative group. Environ Manage 45:132–144
NRC (1999) Our common journey: a transition toward sustainability. National Academies Press, Washington, DC
NRC (2010) America’s climate choices: adapting to the impacts of climate change. National Academies Press, Washington, DC
Odum EP (1989) Ecology and our endangered life-support systems. Sinauer Associates, Sunderland
Palmer M, Bernhardt E, Chornesky E et al (2004) Ecology for a crowded planet. Science 304:1251–1252
Palmer MA, Bernhardt ES, Chornesky EA et al (2005) Ecological science and sustainability for the 21st century. Front Ecol Environ 3:4–11
Pickett STA, Cadenasso ML, McGrath M (eds) (2013) Resilience in ecology and urban design: linking theory and practice for sustainable cities. Springer, New York
Power ME, Bouma-Gregson K, Higgins P, Carlson SM (2015) The thirsty eel: summer and winter flow thresholds that tilt the eel river of northwestern California from salmon-supporting to cyanobacterially degraded states. Copeia 103(1) (in press)
Power ME, Chapin FS III (2009) Planetary stewardship. Front Ecol Environ 7(8):399
Ramos J, Lymn N, Salguero-Gomez R et al (2012) Ecological Society of America’s initiatives and contributions during the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Bull Ecol Soc Am 93:115–116
Rivera N, Calderon-Ayala J, Calle L et al (2010) Multidisciplinary and multimedia approaches to action-oriented ecology. Bull Ecol Soc Am 91:313–316
Rockström J, Steffen W, Noone K et al (2009) A safe operating space for humanity. Nature 461:472–475
Rozzi R, Pickett STA, Palmer C et al (eds) (2013) Linking ecology and ethics for a changing World: values, philosophy, and action. Springer, Dordrecht/Heidelberg/New York/London
Sayre N (2005) Working wilderness: the Malpai Borderlands Group and the future of the western range. Rio Nuevo Press, Tucson
Sayre NF, Kelty R, Simmons M et al (2013) Invitation to earth stewardship. Front Ecol Environ 11:339
Silbert S, Chandler G, Nabhan GP (eds) (2007) Five ways to value working landscapes of the West. Center for Sustainable Environments, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff
Sisk TD (2010) Ranching, local ecological knowledge, and the stewardship of public lands. In: Power ME, Chapin FS III (eds) Planetary stewardship in a changing world: paths toward resilience and sustainability. Bull Ecol Soc Am 91(2):150–152
Sisk TD, Albano CM, Aumack EA et al (2010) Integrating restoration and conservation objectives at the landscape scale: the Kane and Two-mile Ranch project. In: van Riper C III, Wakeling BW, Sisk TD (eds) The Colorado Plateau IV: shaping conservation through science and management. University of Arizona Press, Tucson, pp 45–66
Steffen WL, Sanderson A, Tyson PD et al (2004) Global change and the Earth system: a planet under pressure. Springer, New York
Steffen W, Jansson Å, Deutsch L et al (2011) The Anthropocene: from global change to planetary stewardship. Ambio. doi:10.1007/s13280-011-0185-x
Steiner F, Simmons M, Gallagher M et al (2013) The ecological imperative for environmental design and planning. Front Ecol Environ 11(7):355–361
Stern N (2007) The economics of climate change: the Stern review. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK
Szaro RC, Johnson ND, Sexton WT et al (eds) (1999) Ecological stewardship: a common reference for ecosystem management. Elsevier, Oxford
Turner BL II, Kasperson RE, Matson PA et al (2003) A framework for vulnerability analysis in sustainability science. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 100(14):8074–8079
UN (2010) The millennium development goals report 2010. United Nations, New York
WCED (World Commission on Environment and Development) (1987) Our common future. Oxford University Press, Oxford
Yoshiyama RM, Moyle P (2010) Historical review of Eel River Anadromous Salmonids, with emphasis on Chinook salmon, Coho salmon and steelhead. Report for California Trout. 1–107, Center for Watershed Sciences, University of California, Davis
Acknowledgments
We thank the staff, governing board, and members of the Ecological Society of America, especially Executive Director Katherine McCarter, for their engagement in crafting and implementing ESA’s Earth Stewardship Initiative. We also thank Baird Callicott, Cliff Duke, Katherine McCarter, and Teresa Mourad for their careful review of this chapter.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2015 Springer International Publishing Switzerland
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Chapin, F.S. et al. (2015). Earth Stewardship: An Initiative by the Ecological Society of America to Foster Engagement to Sustain Planet Earth. In: Rozzi, R., et al. Earth Stewardship. Ecology and Ethics, vol 2. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-12133-8_12
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-12133-8_12
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-12132-1
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-12133-8
eBook Packages: Biomedical and Life SciencesBiomedical and Life Sciences (R0)