Browsing by Subject "systemaattinen kirjallisuuskatsaus"
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(2024)As an almost enclosed sea, the Baltic Sea is generally defined as eutrophic, as external nutrient loading has exceeded the natural processing capacity of the system during the last 50-100 years. Nutrients have also accumulated in the sediments of the Baltic Sea. The Baltic Sea is naturally sensitive to eutrophication due to the combination of very long residence times and stratification increasing deep sea anoxia. Research questions for this systematic review are: how much have the nutrient concentrations and the trophic state of the Baltic Sea changed from the Litorina stage to the end of the pre-industrial era compared with the industrial era – year 2000, how has the nutrient status of the Baltic Sea changed between the year 2000 and the 2020´s and how do the future (modelled) scenarios of eutrophication of the Baltic Sea compare to the present state? This systematic review followed the PRISMA process. To be included in this thesis, each article found in the search had to fulfil at least one inclusion criterion without any exclusion criteria. The aim of the criteria was to find all time-unlimited original studies and necessary review articles. The databases of my thesis are Helka, Helda, Scopus, Web of Science and Google Scholar. Moreover, I included in my thesis some relevant reports from HELCOM, Finnish Environment Institute, Natural Resources Institute Finland, and Ministry of the Environment. Overall, 89 articles qualified answering at least one research question. 66 articles answered one research question. 19 articles answered two research questions 1-2 and 2-3, but none discussed the combination 1 and 3. Four articles answered all research questions. Over the millennia, hypoxia and cyanobacteria blooms took place in many parts of the Baltic Sea. As the Litorina Sea stabilized, there was more oxygen in the deep basins whilst phosphate decreased in the surface waters. At the beginning of the industrial era, nitrogen and phosphorus loads started to rise significantly. When it comes to the future scenarios of the eutrophication of the Baltic Sea, the trophic state might generally 1) decrease, 2) improve somewhat, or 3) improve to a good status in most basins. A near-pristine Baltic Sea is not reached in any of the scenarios.
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(2022)Peatlands are ecosystems of global importance for biodiversity conservation. Peatlands are wetland ecosystems which provide a critical habitat for many rare and specialized species. Biodiversity maintains the provision of ecosystem services, which are the benefits people obtain from ecosystems. The loss of biodiversity and peatland degradation constitute global challenges. One of the main reasons why biodiversity loss and peatland degradation remain challenges is nested in the failure to account for the range of economic benefits of ecosystem services and biodiversity in relevant policy making. The role of peatlands in maintaining global biodiversity has often been underestimated in global, regional and local land use planning and conservation measures. This thesis undertakes a systematic literature review on the empirical economic valuation literature on peatland ecosystem services and biodiversity. The two main aims of this literature review are to synthesize the current state of knowledge on this phenomenon and analyse the role of biodiversity in the economic valuation of peatland ecosystem services by answering specific research questions. This systematic literature review employs the data of 23 peer-reviewed English language papers published between 2006 and June 2021. The studies were chosen for analysis based on a selected search strategy and screening process. The data analysis was undertaken using the qualitative data analysis software Atlas.ti which is a tool used to help organize analysed material with the help of descriptive codes. Based on the findings of this thesis, the inclusion of biodiversity in the economic valuation of peatland ecosystem services has become a standard procedure. This is showcased by the number of studies applying stated preference approaches. The sample included studies applying different valuation methods in order to value many ecosystem services. The studies including biodiversity in economic valuation often find that biodiversity conservation policies can be cost-effective, and that people are generally willing to pay for biodiversity conservation and would derive economic benefits from this. Biodiversity is included in the studies as different elements, mainly as a specific species or as a reference to wildlife. Biodiversity is also found to be closely related to cultural ecosystem services and their benefits. Many studies find that people value familiar peatland landscapes, and biodiversity plays an important part in defining that value. Some studies find that human activity plays an important role in maintaining biodiversity in semi-natural peatland landscapes. Hence, biodiversity conservation needs to be in some accordance with local interests. Biodiversity provided founding principles for policy making, but previously implemented practices, such as existing conservation measures and the extractive use of peatlands exerted much influence on final economic values. Moreover, biodiversity plays different roles in determining the objectives of the studies. Eight studies use biodiversity as the justification for conducting the economic analysis. Most studies include biodiversity as a study component among others under valuation. The portrayal of biodiversity influences the focus of the studies and how biodiversity contributes to the findings of the literature. The body of literature on the economic valuation of peatland ecosystem services remains small. The geographical distribution of the sample is skewed towards Europe and Southeast Asia. There is a notable upward trend in the number of studies which have been published in the last five years. The literature demonstrates that the economic valuation of peatland ecosystem services and the need to adopt sustainable peatland management with biodiversity conservation have become relevant and topical issues in policy making. There is a significant need to address the issue of peatland degradation and biodiversity loss by increasing awareness. Further research is needed to establish a more comprehensive understanding of the links between peatlands, ecosystem services and their values. In addition, future research could study how the provision of information and the contribution of biodiversity awareness and knowledge influence economic valuation.
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(2021)This Master’s thesis is two-part. The first part is the Methodological Introduction, which introduces the background of this research, the research process, methods and ethical considerations. The second part is a manuscript of a scientific article, sent for review in the scientific journal Sage Open, with the title Wicked problems in Africa – A systematic literature review. The article is a systematic literature review of the usage of Horst W. J. Rittel and Melvin M. Webber’s wicked problems concept in peer-reviewed scientific literature focusing on Africa. The reviewed 45 scientific articles were chosen using a systematic methdolology, basing on a set of inclusion criteria. Based on the reviewed literature, three research questions were answered by utilizing the tabulation of key information from the articles, and with content analysis. The research questions are: 1) What are the main themes and concrete manifestations of issues descri-bed as wicked in the African context? 2) What are the geographic foci of articles that use the concept of wicked problems in the African context? 3) Is the concept of wicked problems utilized and therefore seen as applicable by authors affiliated with African cultures? Based on the reviewed articles, a typology is formed. According to this typology, wicked problems in the African context can be interlinked, exacerbated, or contextual. Especially important is the contextuality, which the concept of dual wickedness reminds us of. In addition, the research states that the lack of usage of the wicked problems concept in scientific literature on Africa may be because of the English-language or Western background of the concept. Based on the results, we suggest, that future characterizations of the wicked problems concept should include context-sensitivity.
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