The United Nations University Institute for the Advanced Study of Sustainability (UNU-IAS) and the Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES) are pleased to announce a call for papers for the seventh volume of the series “Satoyama Initiative Thematic Review”. The seventh volume will feature the theme “Nexus among biodiversity, health, and sustainable development in managing socio-ecological production landscapes and seascapes (SEPLS)”. Authors from IPSI member organizations who have case studies relevant to this theme are highly encouraged to submit a manuscript following the guidance provided in this call for papers.
About the “Satoyama Initiative Thematic Review”:
The Satoyama Initiative Thematic Review is a compilation of case studies providing useful knowledge and lessons focusing on a specific theme related to “socio-ecological production landscapes and seascapes (SEPLS)”. The overall aim is to collect practical experiences and relevant knowledge, taking advantage of on-the-ground activities by practitioners while contributing to policy recommendations. Each volume also includes a synthesis chapter clarifying its relevance to policy and academic discussion to encourage the application of lessons learned in the field.
See the past six volumes from the link below.
Vol.1: “Enhancing knowledge for better management of SEPLS”
Vol.2: “Mainstreaming concepts and approaches of SEPLS into policy and decision-making”
Vol.3: “Sustainable livelihoods in SEPLS”
Vol.5: “Understanding the multiple values associated with sustainable use in SEPLS”
Vol.6: “Transformative change through the multiple benefits of SEPLS” (pending publication)
Theme
“Nexus among biodiversity, health, and sustainable development in managing socio-ecological production landscapes and seascapes (SEPLS)”
In this volume we seek to highlight how the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity through SEPLS management can ensure and enhance both human and ecosystem health, contributing to sustainable development and other benefits. The concept of SEPLS includes the idea that landscape approaches – integrative area-based multi-stakeholder strategies to balance conservation and development objectives – can have multiple benefits for biodiversity and human well-being, including health. This volume will look at the interlinkages between biodiversity and multiple dimensions of health (e.g., physical, mental, and spiritual) to show how multiple benefits derived through SEPLS management extend beyond biodiversity conservation to human and ecosystem health, helping to provide a safe environment for humans and contributing to sustainable development goals. Specific benefits covered may include improved health infrastructure, food and water security, affordable and clean energy, climate change mitigation and adaptation, cultural benefits, responsible production and consumption, poverty alleviation and livelihoods, social equity and rights, and others.
Background
It is well-known and obvious that nature is needed for humans to secure basic needs – including food and health security, access to clean air and water, and livelihoods – and generally contributes to good quality of life, serving as a source of goods and services for human well-being including mental well-being.[1] The COVID-19 pandemic has further demonstrated the cascading effects of complex human-nature interactions on human health and well-being. Anthropogenic ecosystem changes, including deforestation, agricultural intensification, wildlife exploitation, mining, and infrastructure development, have created a “perfect storm” for the spillover of zoonotic diseases like COVID-19.[2] The continuing expansion of human activities, such as the international movement of people and goods and unregulated rise in wildlife trade compounded by loss of habitat, significantly increases the risk of zoonotic infections and other health disorders, impacting human lives, economies, and well-being.
Human health, ecosystem health, and animal health are all interrelated, and it is imperative to encourage mechanisms ensuring that the links between them are strengthened. From a heuristic analysis of SEPLS cases collected from IPSI partners, we understand that an integrated approach, what is popularly referred to as the “One Health” approach, is highly compatible with SEPLS management. Despite continued challenges, the COVID-19 pandemic has also shed light on the inherent resilience of SEPLS, in that they can take advantage of natural resources and knowledge to adapt to environmental and societal changes. For example, some people have turned to home gardens as a nutrient source during times of lockdown. As the frequency and economic impact of emerging infectious diseases are likely to be exponential,[3] strategies to build and strengthen resilience against systemic threats will be increasingly important and relevant in the coming decades. Such strategies may include a number of interventions ranging from enhancing nutritional security, increasing species diversity, enhancing access to medicinal resources for physical and mental health, and engaging in sustainable production and consumption.
In recognition of the important interlinkages between various factors required for a more sustainable and healthier future, the Intergovernmental Science Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) is preparing to start a four-year thematic assessment of “the interlinkages among biodiversity, water, food and health in the context of climate change” (the so-called “nexus assessment”) to be launched at the eighth session of the IPBES Plenary.[4] This assessment aims to advance the understanding of biodiversity-related impacts, dependencies, synergies, and trade-offs across the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and of options for integrated and cross-sectoral approaches to achieving the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and attaining good health for all. Furthermore, in response to the extraordinary situation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, IPBES organized a virtual workshop on the links between biodiversity and pandemics on 27-31 July 2020.[5] The report from this workshop will inform the work to be delivered through the nexus assessment.
The Satoyama Initiative promotes landscape approaches to biodiversity conservation and human well-being. The experiences of many of our partners demonstrate how landscape approaches help to ensure and improve human and ecosystem health, while building resilience in SEPLS to address systemic challenges. These experiences provide practical insights in understanding and dealing with the interlinkages among biodiversity, health, and sustainable development, and have strong policy significance for the achievement of the SDGs, the 2050 Vision for Biodiversity aiming at “living in harmony with nature”, and other relevant global goals.
The Satoyama Initiative Thematic Review Vol. 7
This volume is expected to provide insights on how SEPLS approaches on the ground can contribute to more sustainable management of natural resources, achievement of global biodiversity and sustainable development goals, and good health for all. It is also expected to offer useful knowledge and information for the upcoming IPBES nexus assessment.
Cases included in the volume may highlight the roles, attitudes and actions of multiple stakeholders, including smallholders, indigenous peoples and local communities, and others in conserving biodiversity and ensuring human health through their actions in SEPLS. Issues related to good health could include nutritional security, infectious diseases, non-communicable diseases such as mental health, cardio-vascular, respiratory or other lifestyle-related ailments.
IPSI partners are invited to contribute case studies related to this theme, demonstrating experiences and insights on, among others:
- What and how multiple benefits derived through conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity in SEPLS have helped to ensure and enhance aspects of human health?
- Are there any trade-offs and synergies among efforts to attain ecosystem health, human health, and sustainability in managing SEPLS?
- How effectively can SEPLS management achieve ecosystem health, human health, and sustainability? How can you measure the effectiveness of SEPLS management in regard to securing and improving ecosystem and human health?
- What are challenges and opportunities in managing SEPLS to achieve biodiversity conservation and sustainable development while ensuring and enhancing both ecosystem and human health?
How to submit a manuscript and what happens after submission:
Eligibility:
Authors are invited to submit a paper if at least one of the authors belongs to an IPSI member organization. (See http://satoyama-initiative.org/en/partnership/ipsi_members/)
Procedure:
Authors are requested to submit an abstract (400 words) to the IPSI Secretariat by email (sitr@unu.edu) by 1 December 2020. Submission of a full manuscript should be made before 10 February 2021, after receiving confirmation from the editorial team. Authors are requested to follow the Authors’ Guide and the reference style, and are encouraged to use the Template for Manuscripts. After screening, selected authors will be informed in March 2021 and then invited to a Case Study Workshop planned to be held virtually or in person in May 2021. This Case Study Workshop will offer an opportunity for getting feedback on manuscripts and discussion among participants for development of a synthesis paper to be included in the volume.
Timeline (dates are subject to change):
1 December 2020: Deadline for submission of abstracts (400 words)
10 February 2021: Deadline for submission of full manuscripts
March 2021: Notification of selected authors
May 2021: Selected authors participate in Case Study Workshop (virtual or in-person)
July 2021: Submission of revised manuscripts
February 2022: Publication
Related documents:
For inquiries, please contact… Dr. Maiko Nishi at the IPSI Secretariat (sitr@unu.edu).
[1] IPBES (2019): Summary for policymakers of the global assessment report on biodiversity and ecosystem services of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services. S. Díaz, J. Settele, E. S. Brondízio E.S., H. T. Ngo, M. Guèze, J. Agard, A. Arneth, P. Balvanera, K. A. Brauman, S. H. M. Butchart, K. M. A. Chan, L. A. Garibaldi, K. Ichii, J. Liu, S. M. Subramanian, G. F. Midgley, P. Miloslavich, Z. Molnár, D. Obura, A. Pfaff, S. Polasky, A. Purvis, J. Razzaque, B. Reyers, R. Roy Chowdhury, Y. J. Shin, I. J. Visseren-Hamakers, K. J. Willis, and C. N. Zayas (eds.). IPBES secretariat, Bonn, Germany. 56 pages.
[2] https://ipbes.net/covid19stimulus
[3] Allen, T., Murray, K.A., Zambrana-Torrelio, C. et al. Global hotspots and correlates of emerging zoonotic diseases. Nat Commun 8, 1124 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-017-00923-8
[4] https://ipbes.net/sites/default/files/decision_ipbes-7_1_en.pdf