Land | 2024 Annual Recommended Articles (I)

As all of the articles published in our journal Land (ISSN: 2073-445X) are presented in an open access format, everyone has free and unlimited access to the full texts. We welcome you to read our annual recommended articles included in the issues released in 2024, listed below:

1. “Toward Evidence-Based Local Food Policy: An Agroecological Assessment of Urban Agriculture in Rome”
by Davide Marino, Francesca Curcio, Francesca Benedetta Felici and Giampiero Mazzocchi
Land 2024, 13(1), 30; https://doi.org/10.3390/land13010030
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/13/1/30

Highlights:

• Research objective: The aim of this research is to explore potential relationships between local food policies and agroecology by applying an agroecological assessment methodology to a city region context;
• Policy recommendations: This study recommends enhancing support for agroecology in urban agriculture through targeted local food policies, promoting both social and economic drivers of sustainability;
• Future implications: The results highlight the potential of agroecological practices and their integration into urban planning and policy frameworks.

2. “Participatory Design of Urban Green Spaces to Improve Residents’ Health”
by Bram Oosterbroek, Joop de Kraker, Sandra Akkermans, Paola Esser and Pim Martens
Land 2024, 13(1), 88; https://doi.org/10.3390/land13010088
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/13/1/88

Highlights:

• Spatial model assessment with a participatory process were combined in one approach;
• Both ecosystem services and disservices for human health were considered;
• Participant-generated green space designs result in a considerable self-assessed increase in use;
• Model-assessed positive and negative health effects of green space designs are limited;
• The combined approach produces clear outcomes regarding health benefits and use of designs.

3. “Soil Loss Estimation by Water Erosion in Agricultural Areas Introducing Artificial Intelligence Geospatial Layers into the RUSLE Model”
by Nikiforos Samarinas, Nikolaos L. Tsakiridis, Eleni Kalopesa and George C. Zalidis
Land 2024, 13(2), 174; https://doi.org/10.3390/land13020174
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/13/2/174

Highlights:

• The implementation of a Digital Soil Mapping (DSM) approach for the prediction of topsoil SOC and soil texture via Sentinel-2 satellite imagery data and AI architectures;
• Innovative integration of Artificial Intelligence into the RUSLE model for the generation of finer spatial resolution maps;
• Utilization of the Soil Data Cube self-hosted custom tool to process and handle a large volume of EO data.

4. “Potential Interactions between Climate Change and Land Use for Forest Issues in the Eastern United States”
by Brice B. Hanberry, Marc D. Abrams and Gregory J. Nowacki
Land 2024, 13(3), 398; https://doi.org/10.3390/land13030398
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/13/3/398

Highlights:

• We examined climate change and land use and disturbance changes in the eastern U.S.;
• Climate has not warmed but precipitation has increased;
• Climate and land use have interacted to reduce wildfire frequency and increase tree growth;
• Human activities facilitated the expansion of native tree species distribution, non-native species invasion, and damaging native species outbreaks;
• Recent climate change and land use have not influenced deer herbivory levels;
• A warmer and drier climate may reverse interactions with land use, varying by species;
• Management can correct non-climate stressors and support ecosystems against climate change.

5. “Structure and Carbon Capture of a Temperate Mixed Forest across Altitudinal Gradients in Northern Mexico”
by Luis U. Castruita-Esparza, Raúl Narváez-Flores, Mélida Gutiérrez, Aldo S. Mojica-Guerrero, Gerónimo Quiñones-Barraza and Javier Hernández-Salas
Land 2024, 13(4), 461; https://doi.org/10.3390/land13040461
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/13/4/461

Highlights:

• This research examined floristic diversity and biomass in a vast mixed pine-oak forest in Chihuahua, Mexico, at various altitudes;
• In a mixed pine-oak forest in Chihuahua, Mexico, species richness and diversity were greatest at lower altitudes, and lower at higher altitudes;
• At 2601-2850 m, forest carbon storage peaked. Pine trees held more carbon generally, yet at higher altitudes;
• Social protections and carbon credit sales aid carbon storage in shifting climates. Reforestation, genetic enhancements, and mixed stands may boost carbon storage.