Solve global ecological problems with international science programs

Science and Technology Daily reporter Lu Chengkuan

The 28th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) recently concluded in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. It was the largest climate change conference ever, bringing together to discuss how to tackle the growing climate crisis.

Affected by climate change and human activities, 25% of the world's terrestrial ecosystems are currently degraded to varying degrees. This is expected to rise to 75% by 2050.

In order to cope with the threat of climate change and put the world on the path of sustainable development, the Global-ERCaN International Science Program on Ecosystem Restoration and Carbon Neutrality (Global-ERCaN) recently held its first academic exchange meeting. Experts and scholars from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and other international institutions and more than 10 countries at home and abroad have reached an agreement on international scientific research exchanges and cooperation. Together, they will solve the ecological challenges facing the world.

Yu Guirui, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said in an interview with Science and Technology Daily: "Ecosystem degradation and climate change response are major challenges facing the world today, and the mainland needs to establish extensive international cooperation in these two fields and use scientific methods to find the 'key' to deal with the challenge." ”

In order to achieve the "double carbon" goal, the three northeastern provinces have accelerated the construction of clean energy projects. The picture shows the Dalian Zhuanghe offshore wind power project. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Yang Qing

Restoring ecosystems is the key to solving the problem

How to improve the monitoring capacity of terrestrial carbon sinks, and how to evaluate the contribution of China's terrestrial ecosystem restoration project to carbon neutrality? These are the questions discussed in depth by relevant scholars at the first academic exchange meeting of the Global-ERCaN cultivation project.

It is reported that the Global-ERCaN cultivation project was jointly initiated by Yu Guirui, academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and Werner Kutch, director general of the European Carbon Integrated Observing System (ICOS). In January 2023, the International Cooperation Bureau of the Chinese Academy of Sciences officially approved the Global-ERCaN cultivation project.

On June 5, 2021, the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration (2021-2030) was officially launched. The Initiative aims to establish a collaborative platform for all stakeholders to participate in actions to protect and restore ecosystems, contribute to ecosystem restoration, and contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. At the same time, in the international context of responding to the threat of climate change, achieving carbon neutrality has become a consensus.

In Guirui's view, ecosystem restoration and carbon neutrality are two sides of the same coin, two sides of the same earth system. "Ecosystem degradation is caused by the destruction of the natural environment by human activities and the overexploitation of resources by humans. The 'key' to solving this problem is to restore ecosystems. Only by scientifically promoting ecosystem restoration can we not only strive to achieve carbon neutrality, but also contribute to the sustainable development of ecosystems. Yu Guirui said.

In fact, as early as the sixties and seventies of the twentieth century, UNESCO launched the International Programme on Biology (IBP) and the Man and the Biosphere Programme (MAB). These two programs aim to conduct systematic research on global ecosystem restoration, carbon cycling and other processes. In addition, countries such as China, the United States, and the United Kingdom have also launched global academic organizations and international scientific programs such as the International Long-Term Ecological Research Network, the International Flux Observation and Research Network, and the Critical Earth Zone Observation Program.

"However, the existing international science programs are not big international science programs for ecological restoration and carbon neutrality. At present, there is a lack of long-term observations and experimental data on ecosystem restoration and carbon sequestration worldwide. There are still many scientific problems and management bottlenecks in developing countries, which hinder the realization of global sustainable development and carbon neutrality goals. Niu Shuli, the special coordinator and researcher at the Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said frankly that there is an urgent need to integrate global forces to monitor and evaluate ecosystem restoration and carbon neutrality, and understand the dynamic changes of the carbon cycle and its environmental response mechanism in the process of ecosystem restoration. "This is of great scientific significance for achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and tackling climate change. Niu Shuli said.

The mainland has a deep scientific research accumulation in related fields

The goal of the Global-ERCaN incubation project is to integrate the efforts of various countries and cooperate in relevant research.

The mainland has a deep accumulation of research on ecosystem restoration and carbon neutrality. In the past 30 years, the China Ecosystem Research Network (CERN) has made important achievements in ecosystem scientific research and biodiversity conservation as an important base for ecosystem positioning observation, scientific experiments and scientific and technological demonstrations in mainland China. Through the long-term positioning of different ecological types, CERN provides a large amount of basic data and technical support for ecosystem restoration.

The China Terrestrial Ecosystem Flux Observation and Research Network (ChinaFLUX) has also made important progress in the expansion of observation sites, the research and development of new technologies, the understanding of the mechanism of ecosystem carbon-nitrogen-water exchange processes, and the evaluation of the spatiotemporal pattern of carbon-nitrogen-water fluxes. After 20 years of development, the number of observation sites in ChinaFLUX has increased from 6 in 2002 to 79 at present, and the observation plots cover the main terrestrial ecosystem types in China. This provides important observations for assessing the restoration process and carbon sink capacity of ecosystems in China.

Both the China Ecosystem Research Network and the China Terrestrial Ecosystem Flux Observation and Research Network are the core networks and important partners of the International Long-Term Ecosystem Research Network and the Global Flux Network. This kind of good international cooperation can provide solid support for the development of a wider range of international scientific projects.

In Guirui's words, the mainland has its own "circle of friends" in the field of ecosystem restoration and carbon neutrality research.

At present, the Global-ERCaN cultivation program has attracted dozens of scientists from 11 countries and different fields to participate in this international collaborative research based on open science. At the same time, five Chinese working groups have been set up under the Global-ERCaN cultivation project, which are led by the Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Center for Ecology and Environmental Sciences, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the South China Botanical Garden, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Shenyang Institute of Applied Ecology, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and the Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Through partnerships with international agencies such as the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), as well as researchers from the United States, Canada, Japan, Finland, Australia and other countries, Global-ERCaN has established a Transition Scientific Committee, its secretariat and four thematic working groups.

Extensive cooperation for sustainable development

How to make full use of the potential of ecosystems and improve the carbon sequestration capacity of terrestrial ecosystems through ecosystem restoration and management, nature conservation and other means?" Niu Shuli said.

It is understood that at present, the academic community has listed four topics in order to answer these basic questions. For example, we should select degraded ecosystem sites around the world, build a dynamic database of typical ecosystem restoration, evaluate key ecosystem functions in the global ecosystem restoration process, and analyze the impact mechanism of ecosystem restoration on the carbon cycle process, so as to establish a sound scientific theory and a mature management technology system.

Yu Guirui described to reporters the blueprint in his mind: after three years of development, the Global-ERCaN cultivation project can establish a dynamic global platform, build an accurate carbon sink measurement system, quantitatively evaluate the carbon sequestration benefits of ecological restoration, and provide a basic scientific framework for the implementation of the next international big science plan. "With a mature infrastructure system, good experience in international cooperation and an international team of young talents, coupled with the country's emphasis on ecological construction, I believe that day will not be too far away. Yu Guirui said.

Speaking at the first Global-ERCaN academic exchange, Werner Kutch stressed the importance of sharing scientific data to find solutions together in a multilateral world. "Sharing means trust, and trust is the only way to work together and work with a common standard on a global scale. Werner Kutch says that data sharing multiplies good papers and data. Scientists in other parts of the world may have different ideas. They will come up with more insights, which will ultimately lead to better solutions.

"The Global-ERCaN cultivation project aims to integrate the world's advanced research forces, establish extensive international cooperation in the field of ecosystem restoration and carbon neutrality, work with international counterparts to improve academic capabilities in the field of sustainable development, put forward management and policy solutions that are conducive to the sustainable development of global degraded ecosystems, and accelerate the realization of the 'dual carbon' goal." Yu Guirui said.

Editor: Xiang Yanhong