Search Results (1,891)

Urban resilience plays a critical role in sustainable regional development. This is particularly so for ecologically vulnerable urban agglomerations undergoing rapid urbanization. This study examines the spatiotemporal development and driving mechanisms of urban resilience in the Chengdu–Chongqing Urban Agglomeration (CCUA) via the perspective of ecological risk. Using panel data from 16 prefecture-level cities during 2010–2023, this study constructs ecological risk and urban resilience indices were constructed based on the entropy weight–TOPSIS method. The coupling coordination degree model was applied to analyze the interactive dynamics between the two subsystems, and a two-way fixed effects panel model was employed to identify the impact of ecological risk on urban resilience and its moderating mechanisms. The results show that urban resilience experienced a foundational stabilization phase followed by gradual improvement, while ecological risk underwent a three-stage transformation characterized by accumulation, stabilization, and decline. The coupling degree between ecological risk and urban resilience remained moderately high, indicating structural tension within the regional system. Econometric analysis indicates that ecological risk significantly suppresses urban resilience. Infrastructure development has a positive direct effect on resilience. However, it negatively moderates the marginal impact of ecological risk, indicating a nonlinear and conditional risk–resilience relationship. Full article

In the context of climate change, the hydrological processes and water resource system vulnerabilities in inland river basins of arid regions are intensifying. Understanding their evolutionary patterns and driving mechanisms is crucial for sustainable water resource management, agricultural development, and the protection of ecological security. This study focuses on the Kaidu River Basin, systematically analyzing the temporal and spatial variations in hydrological cycle elements in the basin from 1998 to 2023 based on multi-source precipitation data, the SWAT hydrological model, and the glacier degree-day model. The study also identifies the main driving factors using a geographic detector. The results show that the SWAT model performs well (calibration period R² and NSE ≥ 0.75, validation period R² and NSE of 0.75 and 0.70, respectively), indicating reliable simulation results. The surface water resources and the contribution of glacier meltwater to runoff in the basin both show a fluctuating downward trend, while potential evapotranspiration increases. The contribution of glacier meltwater during the ablation season decreased from 69.86% in 2014–2016 to 45.01% in 2017–2021. The hydrological processes exhibit a spatial pattern of “mountain areas generating runoff, non-mountain areas consuming water”. The geographic detector results indicate that precipitation is the decisive factor for the spatial differentiation of hydrological processes (influence degree q = 56.9%), with temperature, potential evapotranspiration, and altitude playing important synergistic roles. Moreover, the explanatory power of multi-factor interactions is much greater than that of individual factors. The findings of this study provide a scientific basis for the optimized allocation of watershed water resources, efficient agricultural irrigation, and the sustainable development of oasis ecosystems under changing environmental conditions, thereby supporting the goals of water security and sustainable development in inland river basins of arid regions. Full article

Coastal socio-ecological systems are increasingly exposed to the combined pressures of climate change, land-use intensification, hydrological alterations and expanding infrastructure networks. These pressures interact across the land–catchment–lagoon–sea continuum, generating complex feedbacks that challenge traditional planning instruments, which remain sectoral and fragmented. The Mar Menor (SE Spain), a semi-enclosed Mediterranean lagoon affected by intensive agriculture, urbanisation, hydrological modifications and recurrent extreme climatic events, exemplifies this systemic vulnerability. Existing planning frameworks—local urban plans, regional territorial plans, river basin management plans, maritime spatial plans and lagoon-specific strategies—operate independently, each addressing only a fragment of the system and none integrating climate change as a structuring axis. This article introduces Integrated Spatial Planning (ISP) as a novel territorial–climatic framework designed to overcome these limitations. ISP integrates climate forcing, land uses, catchment processes, lagoon dynamics, marine conditions, critical infrastructures, intermodal and energy corridors and multilevel governance into a single analytical structure. A central component of the methodology is a four-zone multilevel zoning system that connects municipal, regional, basin, marine and EEZ planning domains within a unified territorial–climatic logic. The ISP matrix is applied to the Mar Menor to produce the first holistic diagnosis of the system. Results reveal strong land–sea–catchment interactions, high climatic exposure, vulnerable infrastructures and structural governance fragmentation. The matrix exposes systemic incompatibilities and vulnerabilities that remain invisible in sectoral planning instruments. The discussion demonstrates how ISP clarifies the roles and responsibilities of each governance level, supports multilevel coherence and integrates critical infrastructures and intermodal corridors into climate-resilient planning. ISP reframes climate change as the organising principle of territorial planning and provides a replicable, scalable methodology for coastal socio-ecological systems facing accelerating climate pressures. The Mar Menor case illustrates the urgent need for integrated territorial–climatic governance and positions ISP as a scientifically robust and operationally viable pathway for long-term adaptation and resilience. Full article

Biodiversity is declining globally principally because of land degradation and more because of climate change. Its effective conservation is vital for species and habitats, but also to maintain the related ecosystem services they provide for human well-being. In this context, evaluating the ability of Protected Areas (PAs) to cover species distribution under current and future environmental conditions is highly valuable. Considering the distributions of 1692 species of plants in the cross-border region of Grand Genève, located between France and Switzerland, the effectiveness of existing PAs in preserving plant diversity through local hotspots and priority areas for rare and vulnerable species was evaluated. The results show that PAs are moderately effective in conserving plant diversity, but are not expected to lose effectiveness in future conditions because important areas for plant diversity conservation will remain at similar locations. To address this gap, a spatial conservation network combining hotspots and priority areas was identified to cover 30% of the study area. It captures a significantly higher proportion of species distributions under both current and future conditions, and covers a greater representation of rare and ecologically important habitats, such as subalpine meadows and wetlands. The proposed solution aims to inform local stakeholders about areas of high ecological value that could be used to identify the Blue-Green Infrastructure, supporting the expansion of PAs and the improvement of conservation strategies in the face of environmental change. Full article

Adolescence is a metabolically vulnerable period, during which rapid physiological maturation coincides with the dynamic remodelling of the gut microbiome. This narrative review summarises evidence from 2015 to 2025 to clarify how disturbances to the gut–liver axis driven by dysbiosis contribute to the development and progression of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in young people. Based on a systematic search of the databases PubMed, Scopus and Web of Science, we outline the basis of bidirectional communication between the gut and liver and emphasise how microbial imbalance alters the handling of lipids in the liver by enhancing de novo lipogenesis, impairing fatty acid oxidation and disrupting AMPK signalling and mitochondrial function. Consistent findings from clinical and experimental studies show that adolescents with NAFLD exhibit reduced microbial diversity, the enrichment of ethanol- and LPS-producing taxa, and altered short-chain fatty acid profiles. Each of these is associated with hepatic inflammation and metabolic reprogramming. Microbial molecules, including LPS, secondary bile acids and branched-chain amino acid metabolites, activate TLR4–NF-κB pathways, promote Kupffer cell activation and intensify oxidative stress. These mechanisms intersect with factors specific to adolescence, such as increased adiposity, hormonal shifts and diet-induced metabolic strain. Dietary patterns emerge as key modulators of these processes. Westernised diets promote dysbiosis and endotoxemia, whereas Mediterranean, fibre-rich and plant-based diets enhance SCFA production, strengthen epithelial integrity and modulate adiponectin-dependent hepatic metabolism. Micronutrient-sensitive epigenetic regulation, particularly that involving folate, choline and polyphenols, also plays a role in shaping lipid homeostasis and inflammatory tone. We also highlight emerging evidence that the activation of cytoprotective pathways, especially Nrf2, is dependent on lifestyle factors and links antioxidant-rich functional foods and physical activity to improved mitochondrial resilience and microbiome stability. We evaluate therapies targeting the microbiome, including probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics and postbiotics, which reduce endotoxemia, restore microbial balance and complement dietary strategies. Thus, these findings emphasise the importance of age-specific, mechanistically informed interventions that integrate diet quality, microbial ecology, and the molecular pathways that govern metabolic health in adolescents with NAFLD. Full article

This paper investigates the anthropological and ethical roots of the global ecological and social crisis, centered on Pope Francis’s critique of the “throwaway culture” (Laudato Si’, LS). While LS identifies this crisis in the linear “take–make–dispose” model and the technocratic paradigm—which prioritizes efficiency over moral reflection—this research argues that these macro-societal failures originate in a foundational spiritual pathology: concupiscence. Drawing upon St. John Paul II’s Theology of the Body (TOB), we analyze concupiscence as “appropriation,” the direct antithesis to the human vocation of the “sincere gift of self.” This study aligns LS’s socio-economic critique with Karol Wojtyła’s personalist anthropology, asserting that the systemic exploitation of nature and the marginalization of the vulnerable are structural extensions of the human failure to reread the “language of the body” in truth. The throwaway culture is thus revealed as an axiological reduction—a societal manifestation of lust that reduces both the body and creation to mere objects of utility. Consequently, a genuine ecological conversion (LS) necessitates embracing the “ethos of redemption” (TOB). This transformation of desire is essential to restoring the harmony between humanity and nature, recognizing that the ‘cry of the earth’ and the ‘cry of the poor’ are inextricably linked within an integral ecology. Full article

Alpine wetlands in the Qinghai Lake Basin, located on the northeastern Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau, are ecologically important but highly vulnerable to climate change and anthropogenic disturbance. Traditional field-based surveys are labor-intensive and spatially constrained, underscoring the need for automated remote sensing approaches for large-scale wetland mapping. In this study, an object-based image analysis (OBIA) framework was developed by integrating Sentinel-2 optical imagery with Sentinel-1 synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data to classify two representative plateau wetland types: marsh meadows and inland tidal flats. Seven categories of features were evaluated, including spectral features, vegetation indices, water indices, red-edge features, topographic variables, radar backscatter, and geometric-textural metrics. The Separability and Thresholds (SEaTH) algorithm was employed for feature selection and optimization prior to classification using a Random Forest model. The results indicate that the incorporating geometric and textural features significantly improved classification performance, achieving an overall accuracy (OA) of 82.53% and a Kappa coefficient of 0.74. Moreover, the SEaTH-based feature optimization scheme yielded the best performance, with an OA of 86.24% and a Kappa coefficient of 0.79. Compared with the full feature set, this approach improved producer’s accuracy by 3.96–6.11% and increased overall accuracy by 1.48%. The proposed framework provides an effective and computationally efficient approach for mapping ecologically fragile alpine wetlands and offers valuable support for wetland conservation in the Qinghai Lake Basin. Full article

Introduction: Early warning systems reduce losses when risk knowledge, forecasting, communication, and response planning operate as an end-to-end chain, yet Gulf Coast warning practice often treats hazard dynamics, ecosystem change, and social vulnerability as separate domains. This study mapped operational early warning systems for climate-relevant hazards across Louisiana, Texas, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida and examined whether ecosystem protective functions and social vulnerability were integrated into warning thresholds, dissemination design, and preparedness planning. Methods: I conducted a scoping review using the Web of Science Core Collection and Scopus for publications from 2020 through 18 January 2026 and targeted searches of NOAA/NWS/NHC, FEMA IPAWS, CDC/ATSDR SVI, IOOS/GCOOS, USGS, and state coastal agency portals between 15 September 2025 and 18 January 2026. Of 861 identified records, 440 duplicates were removed, 421 titles and abstracts were screened, 121 full texts were assessed, and 25 sources were included in the final charting and synthesis. Results: The review identified 11 operational systems and related platforms spanning the four early warning pillars, but routine socio-ecological integration remained limited. Louisiana showed the strongest documentation of ecosystem monitoring through CPRA and CRMS, while Florida and Texas showed more developed evacuation and dissemination interfaces. Mississippi and Alabama were represented by thinner monitoring and implementation records in the included sample. Across states, ecosystem loss and social vulnerability were used more often as planning context than as repeatable inputs to thresholds, message tailoring, or assistance triggers. Discussion: Gulf Coast practices can be strengthened through formal protocols that connect ecosystem condition and vulnerability indicators to impact-based briefings, multilingual and accessible alert workflows, and tract-sensitive preparedness actions. The findings indicate that implementation can advance by linking existing datasets to defined operational decisions and by evaluating warning performance through reach, accessibility, comprehension, and action feasibility, as well as technical accuracy. Full article

Water quality prediction in non-stationary environmental systems requires not only high predictive accuracy but also structural robustness under physical, ecological, and operational constraints. This study reframes multi-model fusion as a constraint-governed inference architecture and synthesizes advances in rule-based adjudication, reliability-aware aggregation, post-fusion projection, dual-track adaptation, and hierarchical backoff control. By establishing a taxonomy of boundary constraints—specifically mass conservation, reaction kinetics, hydraulic transport, and ecological tipping points—an admissible prediction manifold identifies key structural limitations in existing paradigms, particularly their vulnerability to physical inconsistency and diminished reliability during non-stationary distribution shifts. A unified end-to-end robust framework is proposed in which candidate predictions are separated from admissibility validation, uncertainty is directly coupled to aggregation logic, and degradation pathways are explicitly defined under distribution shift. Furthermore, a multidimensional robustness evaluation matrix is introduced, incorporating structural consistency, ecological compliance, calibration quality, and adaptive stability alongside conventional accuracy metrics. The study advances water quality forecasting from model-centric optimization toward architecture-level governance, demonstrating that constraint-aware designs improve structural consistency, robustness under distribution shifts, and early warning reliability, providing a systematic reference for developing resilient, transparent, and operationally deployable environmental prediction systems. Full article

Microplastics (MPs) are ubiquitous marine pollutants whose ecological impacts can be modulated by temperature. Temperature regulates copepod physiological responses in marine environments. Copepods can show stress responses at deviations from the optimal temperature range, particularly during early life stages. Naupliar stages are more sensitive to environmental stressors. This developmental stage can present population-level vulnerability. This study aimed to investigate the effects of MPs, temperature, and their interaction on the survival and development of Acartia hudsonica nauplii. This study investigated survival and development under nine experimental conditions via combining three MP concentrations (0, 100, and 10,000 μg/L) with three temperatures (15, 20, and 25 °C). The survival rate differed significantly among temperature treatments. The differences between MP exposure treatments were significant in terms of survival rate only at 15 °C. Stage-specific and cumulative developmental times were shortest at 20 °C. The final naupliar stage (NVI) attainment rate was significantly affected by both temperature and MP concentration. These results indicate that temperature is the dominant stressor for the naupliar stages of A. hudsonica. The effect of MPs was modulated by temperature, as the effect decreased under high-temperature conditions. Therefore, the ecological effects of MPs should be evaluated in terms of considering their interactions with temperature in aquatic environments. Full article

Contemporary European societies face overlapping societal challenges—ecological degradation, immigration pressures, and widening economic inequality—which generate a pervasive climate of uncertainty affecting citizens’ perceptions of their own life conditions. This study investigates how social pessimism, conceptualised as a multidimensional orientation reflecting perceived threats across environmental, migratory, and distributive domains, relates to subjective financial insecurity at the individual level. Drawing on harmonised cross-national data from the CRONOS-II panel (N = 8993), covering eleven European countries, we construct a composite pessimism index and analyse its association with perceived financial strain using multivariate and multilevel regression models. Results demonstrate that individuals who express greater societal pessimism report significantly higher levels of financial insecurity, even after controlling for income, education, employment status, and country-level heterogeneity. This relationship is moderated by socioeconomic position; specifically, the pessimism–insecurity link is strongest among lower-income and less-educated groups, suggesting that material precarity and anticipatory anxiety compound one another. Cross-national analysis reveals substantial variation in effect magnitude, with the strongest associations observed in Hungary, Portugal, and the Czech Republic, and the weakest in Slovenia and Iceland. These findings contribute to the interdisciplinary understanding of how macro-level societal concerns permeate individual wellbeing, demonstrating that subjective economic vulnerability is shaped not only by objective circumstances but also by the broader socio-political climate in which citizens interpret their life situations. The results underscore the need for policies that address both material conditions and the affective dimensions of societal uncertainty in order to strengthen social cohesion and reduce perceived economic risk. Theoretically, we frame social pessimism as a formative composite capturing perceived threat to societal stability, offering an integrative perspective on how structurally distinct societal concerns converge to shape economic subjectivities. Full article

Mountainous Mediterranean rivers provide essential ecosystem services but are increasingly affected by land-use change, hydraulic works, and inadequate wastewater management. This study investigates the links between geomorphological transformation and river water quality in the Central Eurytania drainage basin (Greece) over the past two decades, within the institutional framework of European and Greek environmental legislation, with emphasis on the protection and restoration of aquatic ecosystems. Georeferenced satellite imagery from 2003/2010 and 2023, Google Earth Engine (GEE, Python Earth Engine API: 1.7.20)-based spatial analysis, high-resolution UAV orthomosaics, and seasonal spectrophotometric analyses were integrated to assess spatial and temporal dynamics. Results indicate that land-use changes, including the construction of solar parks, expansion of tourism infrastructure, and partial agricultural abandonment, reflect ongoing socio-economic shifts influencing fluvial processes. Water-quality analyses further showed that channel alteration and wastewater inputs jointly degrade ecological conditions. The findings highlight the need for integrated watershed management focused on riparian buffer restoration, improved wastewater control, and systematic monitoring of hydromorphological change. The proposed interdisciplinary framework contributes to the assessment of environmental resilience in Mediterranean mountainous watersheds, which are increasingly vulnerable to climatic and socio-economic pressures. Full article

Given China’s strategic need to alleviate poverty and promote high-quality development in the Yellow River Basin, in this paper, we adopt the unique perspective of ecological migration to dynamically analyze changes in the spatial structure, spatial differentiation, trajectory, and formation mechanism of multidimensional poverty. This study finds the following: (1) In recent years, multidimensional poverty in the contiguous poverty-stricken areas represented by Liupan Mountain in Ningxia has shown a tendency to change from overall poverty to partial poverty. (2) The influence of rural per capital net income on multidimensional poverty has been gradually slowing down over time, which reflects the evolution of the concentrated contiguous poverty-stricken areas represented by the Liupan Mountain area in Ningxia from absolute poverty to relative poverty. (3) Geographical capital and economic development exert a high degree of direct impact on multidimensional poverty. However, as key carriers of spatial reconstruction, ecological migration is not a direct first-order input factor. Instead, it indirectly influences the spatial reconstruction of poverty by reshaping the distribution of population, housing, cultivated land, and infrastructure, with its effects reflected in core indicators such as per capita cultivated land and ecological vulnerability. Establishing a long-term poverty alleviation mechanism for advantageous industries, building a multidimensional education system for poverty reduction, and implementing ecological migration are important pathways to alleviate and eliminate multidimensional poverty in this region. Full article

This article addresses the regeneration of extractive landscapes through the case study of the abandoned quarry system of Cutrofiano in the Salento region of Southern Italy, positioning the quarry as a critical interface between geology, architecture, and contemporary environmental challenges. The study aims to redefine the quarry landscape not as a residual void, but as a potential ecological and cultural infrastructure. The research adopts an interdisciplinary methodology combining geomorphological and geotechnical surveys, historical and cartographic analysis, spatial interpretation, and a multi-criteria assessment framework to identify vulnerabilities and transformation potentials. The results include a strategic masterplan articulated into three integrated interventions: the conversion of the open-pit quarry into a flood-control basin for hydrogeological risk mitigation and sustainable water management; the transformation of the quarry floor into an energy park; and the design of cultural spaces for public use and territorial enhancement. These strategies demonstrate the feasibility of reconciling environmental safety, renewable energy production, and heritage valorization within a single morphological logic. The study concludes that the quarry can be reinterpreted as a regenerative landscape model, offering transferable tools for Mediterranean contexts characterized by similar geological and socio-economic conditions. Full article

This article critically examines the evolving integration of urban and peri-urban agriculture (UPA) into green infrastructure (GI) concepts, a discussion gaining relevance amid geopolitical instability and global disruptions, such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine. These events have exposed food systems' vulnerability and reinforced the importance of preserving fertile urban and peri-urban land to enhance food security and sovereignty. UPA’s capacity to deliver several ecosystem services further reinforces its significance for socio-environmental policies. Based on a cross-disciplinary literature review, the study traces the conceptual evolution of GI from early models that separated agricultural and urban landscapes to contemporary frameworks that position agriculture as a central dimension of urban systems. It then analyses concepts such as Continuous Productive Urban Landscapes (CPUL), Edible GI, and Agroecological Urbanism, evaluating how they intersect with the core landscape ecology principles underpinning GI: multifunctionality, connectivity and spatial heterogeneity. Focusing on the European context, the discussion highlights key factors influencing GI-UPA integration: the definition of production model, the planning approaches guiding its development, and the policy frameworks required to support it. The paper concludes that embedding UPA within GI planning is pivotal to advancing integrative, resilient, and socially just urban greening strategies. Full article