Environment and Ecology in the Mediterranean Region

About this book

The Mediterranean Basin with its mountainous shores, high biodiversity and spectacular scenery is located at the intersection of Africa and Eurasia. All through the 8000 years of human development it has experienced tremendous in its history and biogeography. Approximately 300 million people live here today. Although the evergreen maquis, vineyards, olive plantations and natural woodlands cover the lands all over the basin, but it is facing severe destruction of habitats due to deforestation, intensive grazing and fires, in particular a severe coastal degradation due to infrastructure development, which are changing the landscape. Both the historical heritage and geography of the lands is facing a great threat due to urbanisation and fragmentation. Time has come for its inhabitants to weigh their impact on its eco-geography in order to save the biodiversity as well as history of the basin. Environment and Ecology in the Mediterranean Region is synthesising the knowledge from different disciplines so as to increase the awareness among the humans in the basin.

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Biography

Prof. Dr. Recep Efe has authored a number of scientific books, published numerous articles in refereed scientific journals and conference proceedings, with emphasis on ecosystem analysis, ecology, land cover change and vegetation analysis. He is, or has been, on the editorial boards of five international journals in Ecology and Geography, has organised several international conferences including GEOMED, TROGAS, IKES and served on committees of many international conferences. He is a member of the European Geosciences Union, Balkan Geographical Association, and International Geographical Union.

Prof. Dr. Munir Öztürk has a proven track record of over 100 research publications in highly reputed professional journals, in the fields of ecology, environmental sciences and ethnobotany, in addition to 50 chapters in international books and guest editorship of The Malaysian Forester, Environmental Geology (Springer), Journal of Environmental Biology, and Social and Behavioral Sciences Procedia (Elsevier). Has published more than 30 books (Daya Publishers, Cambridge Scholars, Birkhauser Verlag, and Springer), and is a recipient of more than 15 honours and awards.

Dr. Shahina A. Ghazanfar is Head of Temperate Regional Team at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, UK. She got her Ph.D. from Cambridge University, UK and has worked in Pakistan, West Africa, Sultanate of Oman and Fiji. Her expertise is the flora, vegetation and biogeography of the Arabian Peninsula and SW Asia. Her research also includes medicinal and useful plants and halophjytes of SW Asia. She was co-editor for the Flora of Tropical East Africa before taking on as Head of Temperate Section. She has published several books, book chapters and papers on flora and vegetation of the Arabian Peninsula, and has taken an active part in the organisation of several scientific conferences.