The Social-Ecological Systems Laboratory is a research group of the Department of Ecology at the Autonomous University of Madrid (Spain). The main aim of the group is the promotion of research and teaching on social-ecological systems from an interdisciplinary approach. Since its establishment in 2004, it has become a leader in Sustainability Science, participating in several scientific projects focused on the relationships between human and nature, and in different training programs such as the Master Degree (MD) in Ecology, the MD in Protected Areas and the MD in Sustainability Sciences. The scope of our research covers a wide range of topics in the frontiers among nature, culture and society. From integrative disciplines such as Ecological Economics, Political Ecology, Systems Ecology, and Conservation Ecology, we aim to develop new strategies and conceptual frameworks that contribute to the transition toward sustainability. In doing so, we use various methodological tools such as natural capital and ecosystem services evaluation, characterization of functional diversity, assessment and management of social-ecological resilience, scenario analysis (ecofutures), or participative territorial planning and management, among others. Our research is intended to bring down barriers and tend bridges between social and biophysical sciences, as well as between researchers and decision-makers, to build adaptive capacities in the face of current global change.
Since 2010 UAM has been engaged in different national and international projects: the Spanish National Ecosystem Assessment (http://www.ecomilenio.es/). Since 2012 UAM has been the official representative of Spain for the EU Working group on Mapping and Assessment of Ecosystems and their Services (MAES). Since 2013, it has participated in the Regional assessment of Europe and Central Asia for the Intergovernmental Platform for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES). Members of UAM have worked in the EU funded project ESMERALDA (http://www.esmeralda-project.eu/) focusing on mapping and assessing ecosystem services from its economic, social and biophysical methods.
In MOVE, we are involved mainly in Activity 3 (Knowledge sharing), and responsible for Task 3.2 (Knowledge integration).
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Fernando Santos
