Lecture/Seminar: Land Use Policies, Markets, and Ecosystems (C7a) (74046)

WS 2022/2023
Tu.: 16:00-18:00, S 25 (GEO)

Thomas Schmitt, Maria Hänsel

L/S 3 ECTS  (MSc-Geoöko: MUI4/FM3.7)

Starting date: on 18 October, 2022 online/ from 25 October, 2022 on campus

Learning Objectives:

As an outcome of this module, students are able to:

• Evaluate different policies and market options in their effect on land use and ecosystem services
• Interpret land use model results and put them in the context of real-world policies and markets
• Identify feedback mechanisms and trade-offs in human environment systems

Course Content: 

Politics as well as national and international markets generally have a major impact on regional land use decisions and thus on the provision of ecosystem services. Individual land users (e.g., farmers, foresters, conservationists) are key actors in human environment systems, since they are the ones reacting to policies and market changes with their land use decisions.

The lecture “Land Use Policies, Markets, and Ecosystems” addresses causes of changes in land use, in particular by using regional case studies to focus on the influence of markets and politics. In addition, various methods for quantifying land use change and its influence on ecosystem services are introduced and discussed.