Big data and the future of urban ecology: From the concept to results
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g data and the future of urban ecology: From the concept to results Jun YANG 1
1,2*
Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Earth System Modelling, Department of Earth System Science, Tsinghua University, 2
Beijing 100084, China; Tsinghua Urban Institute, Beijing 100084, China
Received April 1, 2020; revised June 23, 2020; accepted July 27, 2020; published online August 20, 2020
Abstract Urban ecology is experiencing the third paradigm shift. To understand the interactions between the social system and the natural system in the city across time and space, and to provide theories and solutions to sustainable urban development are essential tasks for urban ecology in the next decade. Big data can play a crucial role in future urban ecology studies due to the interdisciplinary nature of urban ecology, the fact that cities are factories of big data, and the new insights gained by using big data in studies. Nevertheless, to translate big data from a concept to research results that can guide planning, policymaking, and management of cities, we need to overcome multiple challenges existing in the theoretical framework, data acquisition, and analytic methods. Urban ecologists should enhance the collaboration with the data scientists to increase the application of big data in studies of urban biodiversity, urban ecosystem services and human wellbeing, and processes of urban ecosystems. Keywords Citation:
Big data, Social media, Research paradigm, Sustainable development, Urban ecosystem
Yang J. 2020. Big data and the future of urban ecology: From the concept to results. Science China Earth Sciences, 63, https://doi.org/10.1007/s11430020-9666-3
1. Introduction Urbanization is a type of human activities that have profound impacts on the Earth system. Urban areas only occupy 3% of the land surface but account for two-thirds of primary energy consumption and 70% of carbon dioxides emitted from the energy sector globally (International Energy Agency, 2016). Urbanization over the globe is not going to stop in the foreseeable future. The United Nations predicts that the ratio of the urban population to the global population will increase from 55% to 68% between now and 2050 (United Nations, 2019). Therefore, sustainable urban development is a critical issue in the 21st century that will likely determine the future of the humankind. Within this context, urban areas are viewed as labs where
* Corresponding author (email: [email protected])
the harmonic coexistence of humankind and the ecosystem in the future can be tested (Barot et al., 2019). As a discipline that studies the relationship between the urban ecosystem and human society, urban ecology has a responsibility to provide theories, methodologies, and solutions to this test. Urban ecology has gone through significant changes in the past two decades in order to fulfill this responsibility. Currently, urban ecology is experiencing a paradigm shift. This shift is made evident in changes in the main research questions, research methodologies, and goals of urban ecol
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