The interaction between environmental change and human activities is com plex, requiring the concepts and tools of a number of disciplines for its effective analysis. Land-use and land-cover change has only recently become a topic susceptible to scientific research, as these concepts and tools have been devel oped and made available. Rooted in a broad community concemed with global change, systematic research has begun into land-use systems at different scales and interactions, and their links with global cyc1es of water, nitrogen and carbon are being explored. Partly based on research...

The interaction between environmental change and human activities is com plex, requiring the concepts and tools of a number of disciplines for its effective analysis. Land-use and land-cover change has only recently become a topic susceptible to scientific research, as these concepts and tools have been devel oped and made available. Rooted in a broad community concemed with global change, systematic research has begun into land-use systems at different scales and interactions, and their links with global cyc1es of water, nitrogen and carbon are being explored. Partly based on research...