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The causes of land-use and land-cover change: moving beyond the myths

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Title The causes of land-use and land-cover change: moving beyond the myths
 
Creator Lambin, E.F.
Turner, B.L.
Geist, H.J.
Agbola, S.J.
Angelsen, A.
Bruce, J.W.
Coomes, O.T.
Dirzo, R.
Fischer, Gundula
Folke, C.
 
Subject land use
case studies
causes
economic situation
markets
land policy
 
Description Common understanding of the causes of land-use and land-cover change is dominated by simplifications which, in turn, underlie many environment-development policies. This article tracks some of the major myths on driving forces of land-cover change and proposes alternative pathways of change that are better supported by case study evidence. Cases reviewed support the conclusion that neither population nor poverty alone constitute the sole and major underlying causes of land-cover change worldwide. Rather, peoples' responses to economic opportunities, as mediated by institutional factors, drive land-cover changes. Opportunities and constraints for new land uses are created by local as well as national markets and policies. Global forces become the main determinants of land-use change, as they amplify or attenuate local factors.
 
Date 2003
2012-06-04T09:08:50Z
2012-06-04T09:08:50Z
 
Type Journal Article
 
Identifier Lambin, E.F., Turner, B.L., Geist, H.J., Agbola, S.J., Angelsen, A., Bruce, J.W., Coomes, O.T., Dirzo, R., Fischer, G., Folke, C. 2003. The causes of land-use and land-cover change: moving beyond the myths . Global Environmental Change 11 (4) :261-269.
https://hdl.handle.net/10568/18796
https://www.cifor.org/knowledge/publication/1329
 
Language en
 
Source Global Environmental Change