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SUMMARY:Towards a General Theory of Lorenz Ordering Applied to Ecological 
 Domiance and Earth Observation Systems of Forest Ecosystems - Ruben Valbue
 na\, Coomes group
DTSTART:20170518T120000Z
DTEND:20170518T123000Z
UID:TALK71782@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:42122
DESCRIPTION:The goal of this research is to develop a general theory on Lo
 renz curves adapted to ecological dominance\, which would provide a framew
 ork to many applications in forest science and in particular lead to impro
 ved methods for quantifying biodiversity and carbon stocks in forest ecosy
 stems using Earth Observation (EO) technologies.\n\nCommitments on Reducin
 g Emission from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD)\, taken by sig
 natories to the 2015's Paris agreement\, imply a need to developing method
 s for forest carbon accounting and monitoring at global scales. For this r
 eason\, EO technologies are becoming key to REDD\, since they enable to mo
 nitor forest degradation throughout large inaccessible areas. EO consists 
 of remote sensors\, like spectral cameras and laser scanners on-board plan
 es or satellites\, which supply valuable information about forest gain and
  loss. The information acquired is however mainly reflected from the topmo
 st dominant part of the forest canopy\, making it difficult to detect ille
 gal logging underneath the dominant crowns. Mathematical methods describin
 g dominance in tree populations are therefore key to improving our underst
 anding of the signal received by remote sensors. Previous research on EO a
 ssessments of forest structure has focused on the study of tree diameter d
 istributions rather than their Lorenz curves. With regards to biodiversity
 \, the attention has been aimed at richness and diversity indices\, rather
  than competitive dominance.\n\nThis research proposes a radical shift tow
 ards a novel point of view: that using instead a mathematical framework ba
 sed on Lorenz ordering can improve our understanding on competitive domina
 nce\, and therefore on the characteristics of the EO signal received from 
 forest ecosystems. The Lorenz curve is a method widely employed in econome
 trics for analysing inequality in wealth distribution in societies. This r
 esearch proposes to adapt the method to ecology\, to show relationships of
  inequality among sizes of trees growing in vicinity\, which are key to un
 derstanding tree competition and the relative dominance of some individual
  trees above others. In turn\, these could also provide a better understan
 ding on the relationships between forest biomass and signals obtained from
  remote sensors\, ultimately leading to an increase in the certainty of EO
 -assisted assessments of carbon stocks and biodiversity in forest ecosyste
 ms.
LOCATION:Department of Plant Sciences\, Large Lecture Theatre
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