Challenges Towards Ecological Sustainability in China: An Interdisciplinary Perspective

This book includes a selection of the best papers presented at the Jinan Forum on Geography and Ecological Sustainability held in Guangzhou, China, from 17 to 19 February 2017, as well as several invited papers. It discusses concepts, methods, and applications in geography and ecology with an emphasis on various issues challenging ecological sustainability in China. Chapters are written by leading scholars and researchers from a variety of disciplines including geography, ecology, environmental science and policy, and economics. Case studies are predominantly drawn from Southern China, where nearly four decades of dramatic urbanization has caused economic and ecological strains on land and people.

This book will appeal to a wide readership including researchers, upper-division undergraduate and graduate students, and professionals in the fields of sustainability science, geography, ecology, and environmental science and policy.

Dr. Xiaojun Yang is a tenured Full Professor of Geography in the College of Social Sciences and Public Policy at Florida State University (FSU). He completed his higher education in China, the Netherlands, and the USA. His research interests include the development of remote sensing and geospatial information techniques to support geographic inquiries in the urban and environmental domains. He has done research for NASA and has received competitive grants from US National Science Foundation (NSF) and US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Yang has authored or co-authored more than 100 publications including six books; his book "Urban Remote Sensing: Monitoring, Synthesis, and Modelling in the Urban Environment" was translated into Chinese and was selected to receive one of the Best Imported Book Awards by China Press Association in 2016. In addition to his own publications, Yang was guest editor for six SCI journals. He also served as a Director of Cartography and Geographic Information Society (CaGIS) and Chair of the Commission on Mapping from Remote Sensor Imagery of the International Cartographic Association (ICA). 

Dr. Shijun Jiang is a Full Professor of Paleoecology at Jinan University, Guangzhou, China. He followed higher education in China and the USA. He uses fossil community and geochemical means to study the biotic responses to environmental change and the dynamic processes of aquatic ecosystems over a range of timescales. His research has gained competitive funding from US Consortium for Ocean Leadership, Chinese National Science Foundation, Chinese National Key Basic Research Program, and China National Offshore Oil Corporation. Jiang has authored or co-authored more than 40 journal articles and has been a reviewer for more than 10 high profile international journals. He currently serves in the Fossil Algae Committee of Paleontological Society of China, the Freshwater Ecology Committee of the Ecological Society of Guangdong Province, the editorial boards of Marine Micropaleontology and Advances in Oceanography & Marine Biology, and the Urban Environmental and Resources Protection Committee of the Guangzhou Municipal People's Congress.