Gregory B. Greenwood

Mountains of Our Future Earth: Defining Priorities for Mountain Research: A Synthesis from the 2015 Perth III Conference

The Perth conferences, held every 5 years in Perth, Scotland, bring together people who identify as mountain researchers and who are interested in issues related to global change in mountain social-ecological systems. These conferences provide an opportunity to evaluate the evolution of research directions within the mountain research community, as well as to identify research priorities. The Future Earth Strategic Research Agenda provides a useful framework for evaluating the mountain research communitys progress toward addressing global change and sustainability challenges. Using a process originally set up to analyze contributions to the 2010 conference, the abstracts accepted for the 2015 conference in the context of the Future Earth framework were analyzed. This revealed a continued geographic underrepresentation in mountain research of Africa, Latin America, and South and Southeast Asia but a more even treatment of biophysical and social science themes than in 2010. It also showed that the Perth conference research community strongly focused on understanding system processes (the Dynamic Planet theme of the Future Earth research agenda). Despite the continued bias of conference contributions toward traditional observation- and conservation-oriented research, survey results indicate that conference participants clearly believe that transdisciplinary, transformative research is relevant to mountains. Of the 8 Future Earth focal challenges, those related to safeguarding natural assets, promoting sustainable land use, increasing resilience and understanding the water-energy-food nexus received considerable attention. The challenges related to sustainable consumption, decarbonizing socioeconomic systems, cities, and health were considerably less well represented, despite their relevance to mountain socioeconomic systems. Based on these findings, we outline a proposal for the future directions of mountain research.

Mountain Research Initiative Seeks to Break New Ground in Second Decade

Abstract The Mountain Research Initiative (MRI), an international networking project for global change research in mountain regions, funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation and founded under the auspices of the International Geosphere–Biosphere and International Human Dimensions Projects (IGBP and IHDP), has worked assiduously for more than 10 years to develop a community of researchers and to synthesize and publicize knowledge about global change in mountain regions. The Initiative is now developing campaigns by which this stronger network can produce new research infrastructure and knowledge.

Introduction: Mountains of Our Future Earth—Perth 2015

From 5 to 8 October 2015, 400 people from 52 countries on 6 continents attended the international conference “Mountains of Our Future Earth” in Perth, Scotland. The event was organized by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Chair in sustainable development at the Centre for Mountain Studies (CMS) at Perth College, University of the Highlands and Islands, together with 2 global organizations: the Mountain Research Initiative (MRI) and the Global Mountain Biodiversity Assessment (GMBA). This editorial introduces the conference and the papers in this special issue, which are based on presentations given during the conference. The present issue of MRD concludes with an evaluation of the conference and consequent recommendations for future research.

Big Data Are All the Rage—For Mountains, Too

Abstract Big data. For some, it is a vaguely apocalyptic term; for others, it represents a new era of understanding our environment and ourselves. Today, big data are being harnessed in ever more innovative ways that simply were not possible when we only had small sets of data to work with. Although mountain system research does not yet produce the vast quantities of data that are now common to other fields, there are nevertheless many data that, if pooled, could provide new insights into how mountain socioecological systems function. As the Mountain Research Initiatives Concerted Efforts progress, it becomes clear that it is time for the mountain research community to harness the lessons and power of at least “medium data” to develop a stronger, evidence-based understanding of both the generalities and the specificities of mountain systems.

The Mountain Research Initiative (MRI): What Comes Next?

Abstract MRI continually explores new avenues to promote global change research in mountains. Since the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) renewed its funding for the initiative in 2010, MRI has pursued its program of global and regional networking activities, synthesis workshops, and new communication modes, but is now going beyond them to investigate more sustained efforts.

Diversified Long-term Growth: A Winning Portfolio for Mountain Research

The diversity of membership in the Mountain Research Initiative (MRI) is one of its principal assets. This diversity is now exemplified in MRIs Science Leadership Council, composed of active mountain researchers from around the world and charged with leading the MRI. The first major task of the Science Leadership Council was the development of MRIs Strategic Plan, a document that makes explicit what has been implicit for years in MRIs activities. The Strategic Plan provides a common vision, a focused mission, a set of guiding principles, long-term goals, and more specific and measurable objectives. It provides the framework for MRIs most recent grant application to the Swiss National Science Foundation and similarly guides the progress of the MRI toward its vision.

The Mountain Research Initiative Reaches Outward and Climbs Upward

Abstract Mountain regions provide a multitude of goods and services for much of humanity (Price and Butt 2000; Becker and Bugmann 2001), especially in the realms of water supply, biodiversity, and other ecosystem services (Schimel et al 2002; Körner et al 2005; Viviroli et al 2007; Viviroli et al 2011). However, the future ability of mountain regions to provide goods and services to both highland and lowland residents is seriously threatened by climatic changes, environmental pollution, unsustainable management of natural resources, and serious gaps in understanding of mountain systems (Huber et al 2005). Disciplinary, interdisciplinary, and transdisciplinary research is required to maintain these goods and services in the face of these forces. The global mountain research community, however, has historically operated at a suboptimal level because of insufficient communication across geographic and linguistic barriers, less than desirable coordination of research frameworks, and a lack of funding.

Making Global Change Science Matter in Mountains: An Interview with Greg Greenwood, Executive Director, Mountain Research Initiative (MRI)

Greg Greenwood: I suspect that I am MRI’s Executive Director exactly because my professional objectives coincide precisely with those of MRI. Making science matter to management and policy has always been my professional interest. When I worked for the California Department of Forestry, it was within the Fire and Resource Assessment Program that produced a periodic assessment of California’s wildlands and forests, which are principally mountainous, for use by state government. This assessment was developed around a list of policy-relevant questions. The Assessment was widely quoted and referenced in wildland and forest management debates. Later, when I worked as Science Advisor to the California Resources Secretary, the goal was similarly to ensure by all means available that science informed budget and legislative proposals by the Administration.