Looking forward through the past: Identification of 50 priority research questions in palaeoecology

A.W.R. Seddon; A.W. Mackay; A.G. Baker; H.J.B. Birks; E. Breman; C.E. Buck; E.C. Ellis; C.A. Froyd; J.L. Gill; L. Gillson; E.A. Johnson; V.J. Jones; S. Juggins; M. Macias-Fauria; K. Mills; J.L. Morris; D. Nogués-Bravo; S.W. Punyasena; T.P. Roland; A.J. Tanentzap; K.J. Willis; M. Aberhan; E.N. van Asperen; W.E.N. Austin; R.W. Battarbee; S. Bhagwat; C.L. Belanger; K.D. Bennett; H.H. Birks; C. Bronk Ramsey; S.J. Brooks; M. de Bruyn; P.G. Butler; F.M. Chambers; S.J. Clarke; A.L. Davies; J.A. Dearing; T.H.G. Ezard; A. Feurdean; R.J. Flower; P. Gell; S. Hausmann; E.J. Hogan; M.J. Hopkins; E.S. Jeffers; A.A. Korhola; R. Marchant; T. Kiefer; M. Lamentowicz; I. Larocque-Tobler; L. López-Merino; L.H. Liow; S. Mcgowan; J.H. Miller; E. Montoya; O. Morton; S. Nogué; C. Onoufriou; L.P. Boush; F. Rodriguez-Sanchez; N.L. Rose; C.D. Sayer; H.E. Shaw; R. Payne; G. Simpson; K. Sohar; N.J. Whitehouse; J.W. Williams; A. Witkowski

doi:10.1111/1365-2745.12195

Looking forward through the past: Identification of 50 priority research questions in palaeoecology

A.W.R. Seddon (Corresponding author), A.W. Mackay, A.G. Baker, H.J.B. Birks, E. Breman, C.E. Buck, E.C. Ellis, C.A. Froyd, J.L. Gill, L. Gillson, E.A. Johnson, V.J. Jones, S. Juggins, M. Macias-Fauria, K. Mills, J.L. Morris, D. Nogués-Bravo, S.W. Punyasena, T.P. Roland, A.J. TanentzapK.J. Willis, M. Aberhan, E.N. van Asperen, W.E.N. Austin, R.W. Battarbee, S. Bhagwat, C.L. Belanger, K.D. Bennett, H.H. Birks, C. Bronk Ramsey, S.J. Brooks, M. de Bruyn, P.G. Butler, F.M. Chambers, S.J. Clarke, A.L. Davies, J.A. Dearing, T.H.G. Ezard, A. Feurdean, R.J. Flower, P. Gell, S. Hausmann, E.J. Hogan, M.J. Hopkins, E.S. Jeffers, A.A. Korhola, R. Marchant, T. Kiefer, M. Lamentowicz, I. Larocque-Tobler, L. López-Merino, L.H. Liow, S. Mcgowan, J.H. Miller, E. Montoya, O. Morton, S. Nogué, C. Onoufriou, L.P. Boush, F. Rodriguez-Sanchez, N.L. Rose, C.D. Sayer, H.E. Shaw, R. Payne, G. Simpson, K. Sohar, N.J. Whitehouse, J.W. Williams, A. Witkowski

Research output: Contribution to journal/periodical › Article › Scientific › peer-review

Abstract

Priority question exercises are becoming an increasingly common tool to frame future agendas in conservation and ecological science. They are an effective way to identify research foci that advance the field and that also have high policy and conservation relevance. To date, there has been no coherent synthesis of key questions and priority research areas for palaeoecology, which combines biological, geochemical and molecular techniques in order to reconstruct past ecological and environmental systems on time-scales from decades to millions of years. We adapted a well-established methodology to identify 50 priority research questions in palaeoecology. Using a set of criteria designed to identify realistic and achievable research goals, we selected questions from a pool submitted by the international palaeoecology research community and relevant policy practitioners. The integration of online participation, both before and during the workshop, increased international engagement in question selection. The questions selected are structured around six themes: human-environment interactions in the Anthropocene; biodiversity, conservation and novel ecosystems; biodiversity over long time-scales; ecosystem processes and biogeochemical cycling; comparing, combining and synthesizing information from multiple records; and new developments in palaeoecology. Future opportunities in palaeoecology are related to improved incorporation of uncertainty into reconstructions, an enhanced understanding of ecological and evolutionary dynamics and processes and the continued application of long-term data for better-informed landscape management.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	256-267
Number of pages	12
Journal	Journal of Ecology
Volume	102
Issue number	1
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.12195
Publication status	Published - 2014
Externally published	Yes

Keywords

Anthropocene
Biodiversity
Conservation
Ecology and evolution
Human-environment interactions
Long-term ecology
Palaeo50
Palaeoecology
Palaeoecology and land-use history
Research priorities

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10.1111/1365-2745.12195Licence: CC BY

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Seddon, A. W. R., Mackay, A. W., Baker, A. G., Birks, H. J. B., Breman, E., Buck, C. E., Ellis, E. C., Froyd, C. A., Gill, J. L., Gillson, L., Johnson, E. A., Jones, V. J., Juggins, S., Macias-Fauria, M., Mills, K., Morris, J. L., Nogués-Bravo, D., Punyasena, S. W., Roland, T. P., ... Witkowski, A. (2014). Looking forward through the past: Identification of 50 priority research questions in palaeoecology. Journal of Ecology, 102(1), 256-267. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.12195

Seddon, A.W.R. ; Mackay, A.W. ; Baker, A.G. ; Birks, H.J.B. ; Breman, E. ; Buck, C.E. ; Ellis, E.C. ; Froyd, C.A. ; Gill, J.L. ; Gillson, L. ; Johnson, E.A. ; Jones, V.J. ; Juggins, S. ; Macias-Fauria, M. ; Mills, K. ; Morris, J.L. ; Nogués-Bravo, D. ; Punyasena, S.W. ; Roland, T.P. ; Tanentzap, A.J. ; Willis, K.J. ; Aberhan, M. ; van Asperen, E.N. ; Austin, W.E.N. ; Battarbee, R.W. ; Bhagwat, S. ; Belanger, C.L. ; Bennett, K.D. ; Birks, H.H. ; Bronk Ramsey, C. ; Brooks, S.J. ; de Bruyn, M. ; Butler, P.G. ; Chambers, F.M. ; Clarke, S.J. ; Davies, A.L. ; Dearing, J.A. ; Ezard, T.H.G. ; Feurdean, A. ; Flower, R.J. ; Gell, P. ; Hausmann, S. ; Hogan, E.J. ; Hopkins, M.J. ; Jeffers, E.S. ; Korhola, A.A. ; Marchant, R. ; Kiefer, T. ; Lamentowicz, M. ; Larocque-Tobler, I. ; López-Merino, L. ; Liow, L.H. ; Mcgowan, S. ; Miller, J.H. ; Montoya, E. ; Morton, O. ; Nogué, S. ; Onoufriou, C. ; Boush, L.P. ; Rodriguez-Sanchez, F. ; Rose, N.L. ; Sayer, C.D. ; Shaw, H.E. ; Payne, R. ; Simpson, G. ; Sohar, K. ; Whitehouse, N.J. ; Williams, J.W. ; Witkowski, A. / Looking forward through the past: Identification of 50 priority research questions in palaeoecology. In: Journal of Ecology. 2014 ; Vol. 102, No. 1. pp. 256-267.

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title = "Looking forward through the past: Identification of 50 priority research questions in palaeoecology",

abstract = "Priority question exercises are becoming an increasingly common tool to frame future agendas in conservation and ecological science. They are an effective way to identify research foci that advance the field and that also have high policy and conservation relevance. To date, there has been no coherent synthesis of key questions and priority research areas for palaeoecology, which combines biological, geochemical and molecular techniques in order to reconstruct past ecological and environmental systems on time-scales from decades to millions of years. We adapted a well-established methodology to identify 50 priority research questions in palaeoecology. Using a set of criteria designed to identify realistic and achievable research goals, we selected questions from a pool submitted by the international palaeoecology research community and relevant policy practitioners. The integration of online participation, both before and during the workshop, increased international engagement in question selection. The questions selected are structured around six themes: human-environment interactions in the Anthropocene; biodiversity, conservation and novel ecosystems; biodiversity over long time-scales; ecosystem processes and biogeochemical cycling; comparing, combining and synthesizing information from multiple records; and new developments in palaeoecology. Future opportunities in palaeoecology are related to improved incorporation of uncertainty into reconstructions, an enhanced understanding of ecological and evolutionary dynamics and processes and the continued application of long-term data for better-informed landscape management.",

keywords = "Anthropocene, Biodiversity, Conservation, Ecology and evolution, Human-environment interactions, Long-term ecology, Palaeo50, Palaeoecology, Palaeoecology and land-use history, Research priorities",

author = "A.W.R. Seddon and A.W. Mackay and A.G. Baker and H.J.B. Birks and E. Breman and C.E. Buck and E.C. Ellis and C.A. Froyd and J.L. Gill and L. Gillson and E.A. Johnson and V.J. Jones and S. Juggins and M. Macias-Fauria and K. Mills and J.L. Morris and D. Nogu{\'e}s-Bravo and S.W. Punyasena and T.P. Roland and A.J. Tanentzap and K.J. Willis and M. Aberhan and {van Asperen}, E.N. and W.E.N. Austin and R.W. Battarbee and S. Bhagwat and C.L. Belanger and K.D. Bennett and H.H. Birks and {Bronk Ramsey}, C. and S.J. Brooks and {de Bruyn}, M. and P.G. Butler and F.M. Chambers and S.J. Clarke and A.L. Davies and J.A. Dearing and T.H.G. Ezard and A. Feurdean and R.J. Flower and P. Gell and S. Hausmann and E.J. Hogan and M.J. Hopkins and E.S. Jeffers and A.A. Korhola and R. Marchant and T. Kiefer and M. Lamentowicz and I. Larocque-Tobler and L. L{\'o}pez-Merino and L.H. Liow and S. Mcgowan and J.H. Miller and E. Montoya and O. Morton and S. Nogu{\'e} and C. Onoufriou and L.P. Boush and F. Rodriguez-Sanchez and N.L. Rose and C.D. Sayer and H.E. Shaw and R. Payne and G. Simpson and K. Sohar and N.J. Whitehouse and J.W. Williams and A. Witkowski",

note = "CODEN: JECOA Funding details: National Science Foundation, NSF, 1023724 Funding details: Natural Environment Research Council, NERC, NE/J018163/1, NE/J018562/1, NRCF010002 Funding details: Schweizerischer Nationalfonds zur Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung, SNF, 147395",

year = "2014",

doi = "10.1111/1365-2745.12195",

language = "English",

volume = "102",

pages = "256--267",

number = "1",

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Seddon, AWR, Mackay, AW, Baker, AG, Birks, HJB, Breman, E, Buck, CE, Ellis, EC, Froyd, CA, Gill, JL, Gillson, L, Johnson, EA, Jones, VJ, Juggins, S, Macias-Fauria, M, Mills, K, Morris, JL, Nogués-Bravo, D, Punyasena, SW, Roland, TP, Tanentzap, AJ, Willis, KJ, Aberhan, M, van Asperen, EN, Austin, WEN, Battarbee, RW, Bhagwat, S, Belanger, CL, Bennett, KD, Birks, HH, Bronk Ramsey, C, Brooks, SJ, de Bruyn, M, Butler, PG, Chambers, FM, Clarke, SJ, Davies, AL, Dearing, JA, Ezard, THG, Feurdean, A, Flower, RJ, Gell, P, Hausmann, S, Hogan, EJ, Hopkins, MJ, Jeffers, ES, Korhola, AA, Marchant, R, Kiefer, T, Lamentowicz, M, Larocque-Tobler, I, López-Merino, L, Liow, LH, Mcgowan, S, Miller, JH, Montoya, E, Morton, O, Nogué, S, Onoufriou, C, Boush, LP, Rodriguez-Sanchez, F, Rose, NL, Sayer, CD, Shaw, HE, Payne, R, Simpson, G, Sohar, K, Whitehouse, NJ, Williams, JW & Witkowski, A 2014, 'Looking forward through the past: Identification of 50 priority research questions in palaeoecology', Journal of Ecology, vol. 102, no. 1, pp. 256-267. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.12195

Looking forward through the past: Identification of 50 priority research questions in palaeoecology. / Seddon, A.W.R. (Corresponding author); Mackay, A.W.; Baker, A.G.; Birks, H.J.B.; Breman, E.; Buck, C.E.; Ellis, E.C.; Froyd, C.A.; Gill, J.L.; Gillson, L.; Johnson, E.A.; Jones, V.J.; Juggins, S.; Macias-Fauria, M.; Mills, K.; Morris, J.L.; Nogués-Bravo, D.; Punyasena, S.W.; Roland, T.P.; Tanentzap, A.J.; Willis, K.J.; Aberhan, M.; van Asperen, E.N.; Austin, W.E.N.; Battarbee, R.W.; Bhagwat, S.; Belanger, C.L.; Bennett, K.D.; Birks, H.H.; Bronk Ramsey, C.; Brooks, S.J.; de Bruyn, M.; Butler, P.G.; Chambers, F.M.; Clarke, S.J.; Davies, A.L.; Dearing, J.A.; Ezard, T.H.G.; Feurdean, A.; Flower, R.J.; Gell, P.; Hausmann, S.; Hogan, E.J.; Hopkins, M.J.; Jeffers, E.S.; Korhola, A.A.; Marchant, R.; Kiefer, T.; Lamentowicz, M.; Larocque-Tobler, I.; López-Merino, L.; Liow, L.H.; Mcgowan, S.; Miller, J.H.; Montoya, E.; Morton, O.; Nogué, S.; Onoufriou, C.; Boush, L.P.; Rodriguez-Sanchez, F.; Rose, N.L.; Sayer, C.D.; Shaw, H.E.; Payne, R.; Simpson, G.; Sohar, K.; Whitehouse, N.J.; Williams, J.W.; Witkowski, A.

In: Journal of Ecology, Vol. 102, No. 1, 2014, p. 256-267.

Research output: Contribution to journal/periodical › Article › Scientific › peer-review

TY - JOUR

T1 - Looking forward through the past: Identification of 50 priority research questions in palaeoecology

AU - Seddon, A.W.R.

AU - Mackay, A.W.

AU - Baker, A.G.

AU - Birks, H.J.B.

AU - Breman, E.

AU - Buck, C.E.

AU - Ellis, E.C.

AU - Froyd, C.A.

AU - Gill, J.L.

AU - Gillson, L.

AU - Johnson, E.A.

AU - Jones, V.J.

AU - Juggins, S.

AU - Macias-Fauria, M.

AU - Mills, K.

AU - Morris, J.L.

AU - Nogués-Bravo, D.

AU - Punyasena, S.W.

AU - Roland, T.P.

AU - Tanentzap, A.J.

AU - Willis, K.J.

AU - Aberhan, M.

AU - van Asperen, E.N.

AU - Austin, W.E.N.

AU - Battarbee, R.W.

AU - Bhagwat, S.

AU - Belanger, C.L.

AU - Bennett, K.D.

AU - Birks, H.H.

AU - Bronk Ramsey, C.

AU - Brooks, S.J.

AU - de Bruyn, M.

AU - Butler, P.G.

AU - Chambers, F.M.

AU - Clarke, S.J.

AU - Davies, A.L.

AU - Dearing, J.A.

AU - Ezard, T.H.G.

AU - Feurdean, A.

AU - Flower, R.J.

AU - Gell, P.

AU - Hausmann, S.

AU - Hogan, E.J.

AU - Hopkins, M.J.

AU - Jeffers, E.S.

AU - Korhola, A.A.

AU - Marchant, R.

AU - Kiefer, T.

AU - Lamentowicz, M.

AU - Larocque-Tobler, I.

AU - López-Merino, L.

AU - Liow, L.H.

AU - Mcgowan, S.

AU - Miller, J.H.

AU - Montoya, E.

AU - Morton, O.

AU - Nogué, S.

AU - Onoufriou, C.

AU - Boush, L.P.

AU - Rodriguez-Sanchez, F.

AU - Rose, N.L.

AU - Sayer, C.D.

AU - Shaw, H.E.

AU - Payne, R.

AU - Simpson, G.

AU - Sohar, K.

AU - Whitehouse, N.J.

AU - Williams, J.W.

AU - Witkowski, A.

N1 - CODEN: JECOA Funding details: National Science Foundation, NSF, 1023724 Funding details: Natural Environment Research Council, NERC, NE/J018163/1, NE/J018562/1, NRCF010002 Funding details: Schweizerischer Nationalfonds zur Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung, SNF, 147395

PY - 2014

Y1 - 2014

N2 - Priority question exercises are becoming an increasingly common tool to frame future agendas in conservation and ecological science. They are an effective way to identify research foci that advance the field and that also have high policy and conservation relevance. To date, there has been no coherent synthesis of key questions and priority research areas for palaeoecology, which combines biological, geochemical and molecular techniques in order to reconstruct past ecological and environmental systems on time-scales from decades to millions of years. We adapted a well-established methodology to identify 50 priority research questions in palaeoecology. Using a set of criteria designed to identify realistic and achievable research goals, we selected questions from a pool submitted by the international palaeoecology research community and relevant policy practitioners. The integration of online participation, both before and during the workshop, increased international engagement in question selection. The questions selected are structured around six themes: human-environment interactions in the Anthropocene; biodiversity, conservation and novel ecosystems; biodiversity over long time-scales; ecosystem processes and biogeochemical cycling; comparing, combining and synthesizing information from multiple records; and new developments in palaeoecology. Future opportunities in palaeoecology are related to improved incorporation of uncertainty into reconstructions, an enhanced understanding of ecological and evolutionary dynamics and processes and the continued application of long-term data for better-informed landscape management.

AB - Priority question exercises are becoming an increasingly common tool to frame future agendas in conservation and ecological science. They are an effective way to identify research foci that advance the field and that also have high policy and conservation relevance. To date, there has been no coherent synthesis of key questions and priority research areas for palaeoecology, which combines biological, geochemical and molecular techniques in order to reconstruct past ecological and environmental systems on time-scales from decades to millions of years. We adapted a well-established methodology to identify 50 priority research questions in palaeoecology. Using a set of criteria designed to identify realistic and achievable research goals, we selected questions from a pool submitted by the international palaeoecology research community and relevant policy practitioners. The integration of online participation, both before and during the workshop, increased international engagement in question selection. The questions selected are structured around six themes: human-environment interactions in the Anthropocene; biodiversity, conservation and novel ecosystems; biodiversity over long time-scales; ecosystem processes and biogeochemical cycling; comparing, combining and synthesizing information from multiple records; and new developments in palaeoecology. Future opportunities in palaeoecology are related to improved incorporation of uncertainty into reconstructions, an enhanced understanding of ecological and evolutionary dynamics and processes and the continued application of long-term data for better-informed landscape management.

KW - Anthropocene

KW - Biodiversity

KW - Conservation

KW - Ecology and evolution

KW - Human-environment interactions

KW - Long-term ecology

KW - Palaeo50

KW - Palaeoecology

KW - Palaeoecology and land-use history

KW - Research priorities

U2 - 10.1111/1365-2745.12195

DO - 10.1111/1365-2745.12195

M3 - Article

VL - 102

SP - 256

EP - 267

IS - 1

ER -

Looking forward through the past: Identification of 50 priority research questions in palaeoecology

Abstract

Keywords

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