Toward a synthetic economic systems modeling tool for sustainable exploitation of ecosystems

- Richardson, Colin, Courvisanos, Jerry, Crawford, John

Title
Toward a synthetic economic systems modeling tool for sustainable exploitation of ecosystems
Creator
Richardson, Colin; Courvisanos, Jerry; Crawford, John
Date
2011
Type
Text; Journal article
Identifier
http://researchonline.federation.edu.au/vital/access/HandleResolver/1959.17/63922
Identifier
vital:3900
Identifier
ISSN:0077-8923
Abstract
Environmental resources that underpin the basic human needs of water, energy, and food are predicted to become in such short supply by 2050 that global security and the well-being of millions will be under threat. These natural commodities have been allowed to reach crisis levels of supply because of a failure of economic systems to sustain them. This is largely because there have been no means of integrating their exploitation into any economic model that effectively addresses ecological systemic failures in a way that provides an integrated ecological-economic tool that can monitor and evaluate market and policy targets. We review the reasons for this and recent attempts to address the problem while identifying outstanding issues. The key elements of a policy-oriented economic model that integrates ecosystem processes are described and form the basis of a proposed new synthesis approach. The approach is illustrated by an indicative case study that develops a simple model for rainfed and irrigated food production in the Murray-Darling basin of southeastern Australia. © 2011 New York Academy of Sciences.
Relation
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences Vol. 1219, no. 1 (2011), p. 171-184
Rights
Copyright Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
Rights
Open Access
Rights
This metadata is freely available under a CCO license
Subject
Economics; Ecosystems; Theory
Full Text
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