International Symposium on the Dynamics of Coupled Natural and Human Systems was held at Wuhan Botanical Garden (WBG) on June 2-3, 2014. It was jointly organized by University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Wuhan Botanical Garden and Anhui Agricultural University. 

Hosted by Prof. ZHANG Quanfa at WBG and Prof. SO Conghe at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, this symposium attracted more than 20 representatives from American, Indonesia, China, etc.  

The International Symposium on the Dynamics of Coupled Natural and Human Systems focused on the strategies to understand the dynamics of the coupled natural and human systems, including data collection in both the natural and human systems, data analysis method, modeling strategies, short- and medium- term goals that can be achieved with the project. 

During the symposium, 16 lectures were made. The Academician of CAS, FU Bojie delivered a presentation entitled “Ecosystem services changing under GfG Program in the Loess Plateau of China”. Prof. Richard Bilsborrow from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill shared the experience of using surveys to collect data to evaluate programs like the SLPC in China. Dr. SUN Ge  from USDA Forest Service gave a lecture entitled “Relationships between Reforestation and Water Resources: Science, Public Perception, and Policy Implications in China”. Dr. ZHANG Kerong  from WBG gave a talk on changes in vegetation and soil properties during secondary succession following agricultural abandonment. 

This symposium discussed the effects of large scale ecological programs on the coupled natural-human systems, and emphasized the necessity of carrying out multi-disciplinary and multi-scale researches. This symposium has greatly promoted the communication and understanding between international counterparts. 

International Symposium on the Dynamics of Coupled Natural and Human Systems Held in WBG (Image by WBG)