Seeds of Change for Restoration Ecology
FORESTS PROVIDE A WIDE VARIETY OF ECOSYSTEM SERVICES, INCLUDING PROVISIONS SUCH AS
food and fuel and services that affect climate and water quality (1). In light of the increasing
global population pressure, we must not only conserve, but also restore forests to meet the
increasing demands for ecosystem services and goods
that they provide (2). Ecological restoration has recently
adopted insights from the biodiversity-ecosystem function
(BEF) perspective (3). This emphasis on functional
rather than taxonomic diversity (3, 4), combined with
increasing acceptance of perennial, global-scale effects
on the environment (5, 6) and the associated species
gains and losses (“Terrestrial ecosystem responses to
species gains and losses,” D. A. Wardle et al., Review,
10 June, p. 1273), may be the beginning of a paradigm
shift in forest conservation and restoration ecology. As
a result, we may see increased tolerance toward and the
use of nonnative tree species in forests worldwide
8 JULY 2011 VOL 333 SCIENCE
Publication Date: 2011
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