Assessment of Ecosystem Services and Capabilities of Communities from different Scales and Niches - Implications on Sustainability Goals
Padhmanand Sudhakar 1 *
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1 3 Greyfriars Road, NR1 1PR, Norwich, UNITED KINGDOM* Corresponding Author

Abstract

Ecosystems are complex compendia of biotic and abiotic components and characterized by exchanges of energy and mass. Via the actions and functions of the resident components which assemble into communities, ecosystems provide both direct/indirect tangible and intangible services to human society as well as the natural world. This holds true for ecosystems which cut across various scales and niches. Various frameworks have been devised to categorize and evaluate the services provided by ecosystems and/or their components. In this study, the services elicited by three specific communities occupying different ecosystem niches and having distinct scalar resolution are assessed. Firstly, the microbial communities which reside in the mammalian gut ecosystem, the microbial communities in the soil and the indigenous/local communities who inhabit the ecosystems comprising their traditional landscapes. Further, the roles and functions of these diverse communities, separated by scale and mostly and largely contributing to the homeostasis and functionality of their corresponding ecosystems, are evaluated. The services rendered by these communities are then mapped to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Finally, the importance of these communities in maximizing social, economic and ecological capital is pointed out.

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This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Article Type: Research Article

EUR J SUSTAIN DEV RES, Volume 4, Issue 3, 2020, Article No: em0122

https://doi.org/10.29333/ejosdr/7843

Publication date: 21 Mar 2020

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