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ARS Home » Plains Area » Las Cruces, New Mexico » Range Management Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #190939
Title: ASPECTOS SOCIOECONOMICOS Y BIOFISICOS DE LA DESERTIFICACION

Author
item REYNOLDS, J. - DUKE UNIV
item MAESTRE, F. - DUKE UNIV
item HUBER-SANWALD, E. - ICPCIYT, MEXICO
item Herrick, Jeffrey - Jeff
item KEMP, P. - DUKE UNIV

Submitted to: International Journal of Ecology and Environmental Sciences
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 9/1/2005
Publication Date: 9/30/2005
Citation: Reynolds, J.F., Maestre, F.T., Huber-Sanwald, E., Herrick, J., Kemp, P.R. 2005. Aspectos socioeconomicos y biofisicos de la desertificacion. Ecosistemas Revista Cientifica Y Tecnica de Ecologia y Medio Ambiente [serial online]. Available: http://www.revistaecosistemas.net/articulo.asp?Id=131&Id_Categoria=2&tipo=portada.

Interpretive Summary: This artcle describes a new conceptual framework that is being used to help scientists work together with sociologists and economists to identify and address the root causes of desertification. The framework includes nine assertions. By applying these assertions, and evaluating their relevance to specific case studies, interdisciplinary teams can ensure that develop more integrated solutions, identify areas in which more information is required, and those for which we have already have sufficient research.

Technical Abstract: Land degradation and desertification are among the most important environmental issues being faced by drylands. Despite its importance and the enormous research effort devoted to it in the last decades, desertification is a topic surrounded by controversy and disagreement. This controversy is rooted in the traditional separation of the biophysical and socio-economic dimensions of desertification, which have been studied separately by scientists from both the natural and the social sciences. This separation has been fueled by the lack of a conceptual and synthethic framework suited to deal with both dimensions simultaneously. In this article we review the main topics surrounding desertification, introduce a new conceptual framework designed to study the biophysical and socio-economic dimensions of desertification simultaneously, review some of the measures being carried out to manage desertified lands and discuss some of the main challenges ahead in the research and management arenas.