The Urbanization and Global Environmental Change Project (UGEC) is one of the core research projects of the
International Human Dimensions Programme on Global Environmental Change (IHDP). UGEC aims to understand the bi-directional interactions between
urbanization
Urbanization (or urbanisation) refers to the population shift from rural to urban areas, the corresponding decrease in the proportion of people living in rural areas, and the ways in which societies adapt to this change. It is predominantly t ...
and global
environmental change Environmental change is a change or disturbance of the environment most often caused by human influences and natural ecological processes. Environmental changes include various factors, such as natural disasters, human interferences, or animal in ...
. The UGEC International Project Office is located at
Arizona State University
Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the ...
.
According to its Science Plan, UGEC aims to provide a better understanding of the interactions and feedbacks between global environmental change and urbanization at the local, regional, and global scales. UGEC pursues four areas of research:
# Processes within urban systems that contribute to global environmental change (e.g., the impact of urbanization on
carbon emissions
Greenhouse gas emissions from human activities strengthen the greenhouse effect, contributing to climate change. Most is carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels: coal, oil, and natural gas. The largest emitters include coal in China and larg ...
; the effects of urban land cover change on
biodiversity
Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic (''genetic variability''), species (''species diversity''), and ecosystem (''ecosystem diversity'') l ...
and
habitat
In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...
).
# Pathways through which specific global environmental changes affect urban systems (e.g.,
climate change impacts on urban areas; decline in
ecosystem services
Ecosystem services are the many and varied benefits to humans provided by the natural environment and healthy ecosystems. Such ecosystems include, for example, agroecosystems, forest ecosystem, grassland ecosystems, and aquatic ecosystems. Th ...
on
urban climate The climate in urban areas differs from that in neighboring rural areas, as a result of urban development. Urbanization greatly changes the form of the landscape, and also produces changes in an area's air. The study of urban climate is urban clima ...
regulation).
#Urban responses to global environmental change (e.g., urban strategies for
climate change mitigation
Climate change mitigation is action to limit climate change by reducing Greenhouse gas emissions, emissions of greenhouse gases or Carbon sink, removing those gases from the atmosphere. The recent rise in global average temperature is mostly caus ...
and adaptation).
# Consequences of urban responses to global environmental change.
Additionally, the goals of UGEC include:
* creating multidimensional integrative perspectives;
* promoting parallel and comparative analysis across regions and themes;
* utilizing cross-temporal and cross-spatial scale approaches; and
* outreaching and communicating UGEC-related scientific information to policy makers and the public.
Funding
UGEC's financial sponsors include IHDP, Arizona State University, and the
National Science Foundation
The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent agency of the United States government that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National I ...
.
References
{{reflist
Climate change organizations
Urbanization