Population, Land Use, and Environment: Research Directions

As seen from space, land cover change is far and away the signature imprint of human habitation on the surface of the Earth. What is driving changes in land use and the environment? What is the role of population? In addressing these questions, Population, Land Use, and Environment presents the goals and research directions of the National Research Council’s (NRC) Panel on New Research on Population and the Environment along with state-of-the-art case studies. The three sections of this volume, edited by Barbara Entwistle and Paul C. Stern, focus on land use or land cover change where population is a prominent driving force.