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University of Vermont

Modelling

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Full-Text Articles in Mental and Social Health

Machine Learning For Ecosystem Services, Simon Willcock, Javier Martínez-López, Danny A.P. Hooftman, Kenneth J. Bagstad, Stefano Balbi, Alessia Marzo, Carlo Prato, Saverio Sciandrello, Giovanni Signorello Oct 2018

Machine Learning For Ecosystem Services, Simon Willcock, Javier Martínez-López, Danny A.P. Hooftman, Kenneth J. Bagstad, Stefano Balbi, Alessia Marzo, Carlo Prato, Saverio Sciandrello, Giovanni Signorello

Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources Faculty Publications

Recent developments in machine learning have expanded data-driven modelling (DDM) capabilities, allowing artificial intelligence to infer the behaviour of a system by computing and exploiting correlations between observed variables within it. Machine learning algorithms may enable the use of increasingly available ‘big data’ and assist applying ecosystem service models across scales, analysing and predicting the flows of these services to disaggregated beneficiaries. We use the Weka and ARIES software to produce two examples of DDM: firewood use in South Africa and biodiversity value in Sicily, respectively. Our South African example demonstrates that DDM (64–91% accuracy) can identify the areas where …


New Perspectives In Ecosystem Services Science As Instruments To Understand Environmental Securities, Ferdinando Villa, Brian Voigt, Jon D. Erickson Apr 2014

New Perspectives In Ecosystem Services Science As Instruments To Understand Environmental Securities, Ferdinando Villa, Brian Voigt, Jon D. Erickson

Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources Faculty Publications

As societal demand for food, water and other life-sustaining resources grows, the science of ecosystem services (ES) is seen as a promising tool to improve our understanding, and ultimately the management, of increasingly uncertain supplies of critical goods provided or supported by natural ecosystems. This promise, however, is tempered by a relatively primitive understanding of the complex systems supporting ES, which as a result are often quantified as static resources rather than as the dynamic expression of human-natural systems. This article attempts to pinpoint the minimum level of detail that ES science needs to achieve in order to usefully inform …