Challenges and opportunities for grassland restoration: A global perspective of best practices in the era of climate change

Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

Authors

  • Kelly G. Lyons
  • Péter Török
  • Julia-Maria Hermann
  • Kathrin Kiehl
  • Anita Kirmer
  • Johannes Kollmann
  • Gerhard E. Overbeck
  • Sabine Tischew
  • Edith B. Allen
  • Jonathan D. Bakker
  • Christy Brigham
  • Elise Buisson
  • Kerri Crawford
  • Peter Dunwiddie
  • Jennifer Firn
  • Devin Grobert
  • Karen Hickman
  • Soizig LE Stradic
  • Vicky M. Temperton
Grasslands are ubiquitous globally, and their conservation and restoration are critical to combat both the biodiversity and climate crises. There is increasing interest in implementing effective multifunctional grassland restoration to restore biodiversity concomitant with above- and belowground carbon sequestration, delivery of carbon credits and/or integration with land dedicated to solar panels. Other common multifunctional restoration considerations include improved forage value, erosion control, water management, pollinator services, and wildlife habitat provisioning. In addition, many grasslands are global biodiversity hotspots. Nonetheless, relative to their impact, and as compared to forests, the importance of preservation, conservation, and restoration of grasslands has been widely overlooked due to their subtle physiognomy and underappreciated contributions to human and planetary well-being. Ultimately, the global success of carbon sequestration will depend on more complete and effective grassland ecosystem restoration. In this review, supported by examples from across the Western world, we call for more strenuous and unified development of best practices for grassland restoration in three areas of concern: initial site conditions and site preparation; implementation of restoration measures and management; and social context and sustainability. For each area, we identify the primary challenges to grassland restoration and highlight case studies with proven results to derive successful and generalizable solutions.
Original languageEnglish
Article numbere02612
JournalGlobal Ecology and Conservation
Volume46
Number of pages16
ISSN2351-9894
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 01.10.2023

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright: © 2023 The Authors

Recently viewed

Researchers

  1. Laurent Lazar

Publications

  1. INSA Indicator System Sustainable Agriculture
  2. Soil and tree species traits both shape soil microbial communities during early growth of Chinese subtropical forests
  3. Temporal changes in vertebrates during landscape transformation
  4. Translating European labor relations practices to the United States through global framework agreements?
  5. Participatory and collaborative governance for sustainable flood risk management
  6. Zukunftsstrategie Nachhaltiges Unternehmertum
  7. Pre-service teachers’ perceptions of school development
  8. Procedural Frames in Negotiations
  9. Diagnose von Schreibkompetenzen
  10. Access to finance, foreign ownership and foreign takeovers in Germany
  11. Erratum to
  12. Ant seed predation, pesticide applications and farmers income from tropical multi-cropping gardens
  13. Analyzing social interactions
  14. Fraenkel versus Agnoli?
  15. Sustainability-Oriented Innovation of SMEs
  16. Readings in Twenty-First-Century European literatures
  17. The Exporter Productivity Premium along the Productivity Distribution
  18. Leadership and Goal setting for Sustainable Innovation Projects in Large Businesses
  19. E/Z isomerism without a double bond - An unusual type of stereoisomerism, and an unprecedented isomerisation in a bicyclobutane
  20. Big Data und Musik
  21. Mapping the Links of Corporate Sustainability
  22. Eco-Efficiency by Eco-Controlling
  23. Why and How to adopt Green Management into Business Organizations?
  24. Controlling von Logistikprozessen
  25. 'Bildung' jenseits pädagogischer Theoriebildung?
  26. The Financial Crisis, the Exemption View and the Problem of the Harmless Torturer
  27. Biblical texts and theologizing with children
  28. Generalist social bees maximize diversity intake in plant species-rich and resource-abundant environments
  29. Othering and Same-ing for the Young. Expanding the Theoretical and Material Horizons of Imagology with Children's Literature
  30. Wie gehe ich mit schwierigen Schülern um?