Meta-studies in land use science: Current coverage and prospects.

Area of Science:

• Land Use Science
• Environmental Science
• Human-Environment Systems

Background:

• Traditional land use science relies on case studies.
• Meta-studies synthesize findings to identify general patterns in land use change.
• Existing meta-studies have gaps in addressing urbanization and socioeconomic impacts.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review existing meta-studies in land use science.
• To identify research gaps in land use change processes and impacts.
• To propose a framework for integrating meta-studies of land use change.

Main Methods:

• Literature review of meta-studies in land use science.
• Analysis of addressed land use change processes (deforestation, agriculture, urbanization).
• Analysis of addressed land use change impacts (biodiversity, biogeochemical cycles, socioeconomic consequences).

Main Results:

• Meta-studies predominantly focus on deforestation and agricultural land use change.
• Urbanization, wetland, and grassland dynamics are underrepresented in meta-studies.
• Biodiversity and biogeochemical cycles are common impact focuses, while socioeconomic consequences are rare.
• Land use change processes and impacts are often studied in isolation.

Conclusions:

• There is a need for more comprehensive meta-studies covering diverse land use changes and socioeconomic impacts.
• A conceptual framework is proposed to link meta-studies of land use change processes and impacts.
• Integrating meta-study findings can advance the understanding of coupled human-environmental systems and identify trade-offs.