Application of the Ecosystem Service in Landscape Planning: From Cognition to Decision-Making

Dear Colleagues,

Landscape planning aims to meet diverse human demands by managing the landscape structure and pattern and emphasizes the importance of nature-based solutions for sustainable development. The ecosystem service (ES) provides straightforward insights for different stakeholders to understand the benefits provided by landscapes to humans. One of the ultimate goals of landscape planning is to improve human wellbeing, which depends on the sustainable ES supply. In recent years, scientists and decision-makers have devoted great efforts to integrating ES science into landscape planning. The systematic ES classification framework helps planners understand how landscape planning can contribute to human wellbeing from different aspects and can further be used to identify opportunities to synergistically improve multiple benefits provided by landscapes. Moreover, well-developed ES quantification and mapping can synthesize and interpret multiple existing information related to human wellbeing. Complex socio-ecological information such as land use and soil characteristics can be transferred into information on ESs, which have clear implications for planning decision-making. Integrating ES knowledge into landscape planning can not only provide instrumental tools for existing planning but can also enrich planners’ understanding of human–environmental interactions to develop innovative planning strategies. Today, landscape planning has become an important science–policy interface for the ES. However, it should be noticed that the application of the ES in landscape planning is still in the early stage.

This Special Issue aims to bridge ES science and landscape planning practice and calls for theoretical and empirical studies illustrating how to integrate ES knowledge into the different phases of landscape planning, e.g., determining planning objectives, scenario setting, and assessment and monitoring. We particularly welcome submissions on the following topics:

1. The conceptual framework linking landscape planning with the ES;
2. Landscape planning and management decision-making based on the ES;
3. Evaluating the impacts of existing and potential landscape planning on the ES; 
4. ES trade-offs/synergies in landscape planning;
5. Developing ES assessment technologies oriented with landscape planning.

We invite researchers worldwide to submit original research articles, review articles, and case studies to jointly explore the application of ecosystem services in landscape planning. Through the publication of this Special Issue, we hope to provide new perspectives and methods for strengthening the linkage between the ES and landscape planning, which can contribute to the improvement of human wellbeing. We look forward to receiving your original research articles and reviews.

Prof. Dr. Xi Li
Dr. Kai Li
Dr. Yuejing Rong
Dr. Hao Xia
Dr. Ruhong Xin
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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• ecosystem service
• landscape planning and design
• ecosystem management decision-making
• trade-off and synergy
• human wellbeing
• green infrastructure
• socio-ecological interaction
• landscape conservation and restoration
• nature-based solutions