Urbanization and human-nature relationships: a comparison of urban and rural dwellers' perceptions of ecosystem services in the Solomon Islands

Marie Lapointe investigated how urbanization transforms people's relationships with nature in the Solomon Islands. She found that because of limited availability and access, fewer urban than rural dwellers perceived benefiting from ecosystem services, affecting their wellbeing. Findings can inform management aimed at enhancing nature’s contributions to people in cities

Alien Registration- Lapointe, Fernande Marie L. (Auburn, Androscoggin County)

https://digitalmaine.com/alien_docs/30939/thumbnail.jp

Les facteurs écologiques influençant la dynamique d'une espèce exotique envahissante, Acer platanoides, et d'un congénère indigène, A. saccharum, dans une forêt urbaine du sud du Québec

Mémoire numérisé par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal

Comparing Ecosystem Service preferences between urban and rural dwellers

Urbanization can profoundly alter socioecological relationships, but its influence on how people perceive and value ecosystem services (ES) is poorly understood. We reviewed an emerging literature in which sociocultural valuation of ES is compared among urban and rural dwellers. This research suggests that, although regulating and cultural ES were highly valued by both rural and urban dwellers, urban dwellers tended to value provisioning ES less than rural dwellers did. Differences in ES valuation could result from different experiences, uses, and needs for ES of urban and rural dwellers. We also identified two key gaps in the literature that relate to understanding how diverse ES contribute differently to the well-being of rural and urban populations (and the relevance of these differences for environmental education and policy) and the changing roles of ES in developing countries and vulnerable ecosystems, such as small islands, that face pressing environmental, social, and economic challenges

Urbanization affects how people perceive and benefit from ecosystem service bundles in coastal communities of the Global South

Urbanization profoundly transforms ecosystems and the bundles of services they provide to people. The relationship between urbanization and how ecosystem services are produced together to form bundles has received increased research interest. However, there is limited understanding of how people’s perceptions of the benefits they receive from ecosystem service bundles change with urbanization, particularly in the Global South. Addressing this research gap is critical given perceptions influence how people relate to, use and manage their environment. We used a paired sampling design to contrast urban and rural dwellers’ perceptions of ecosystem service bundles associated with local ecosystems in the Solomon Islands, a rapidly urbanizing Small Island Developing State. Interviews from 200 households revealed that urbanization simplified the composition of perceived ecosystem service bundles. Contributions of provisioning and some cultural ecosystem services were reduced in bundles in urban areas, indicating a decrease in the diversity of experiences of nature and ecosystems providing those experiences. Examining changes in perceived ecosystem service bundles offers a valuable perspective on the implications of social-ecological change for ecosystem service demand and human wellbeing. Our approach presents a novel and simple way to identify and analyse bundles, providing insights into how and where people benefit from nature