Human-Carbon Interactions in Urban Systems - Publications accepted

September 8, 2014
Washington, D.C.

 

Conceptualized during the the CCIWG/US Carbon Cycle Science sponsored Workshop on Human-Carbon Interactions in Urban Systems, the following papers written by the scientific community have been accepted for publication in a special issue of Earth's Future, the American Geophysical Union's Open Access Journal (Accepted, unedited articles published online and citable. The final edited and typeset version of record will appear in future.):

 

A critical knowledge pathway to low‐carbon, sustainable futures: integrated understanding of urbanization, urban areas and carbon

 Authors

Patricia Romero-Lankao, Kevin Gurney , Karen Seto , Mikhail Chester , Riley Duren , Sara Hughes , Lucy Hutyra , Peter Marcotulio, Lawrence Baker, Nancy Grimm, Christopher A. Kennedy, Elisabeth Larson, Stephanie Pincetl, Daniel Runfola, Landy Sanchez Peña, Gyami Shrestha, Andrea Sarzynski, Johannes J. Feddema, Joshua Sperling, and Eleanor Stokes.

Key Points

  • We need integrated, coproduced approaches to urbanization, urban areas & carbon.
  • Urbanization uncertainties are of similar magnitude to carbon uncertainties.
  • Lock‐ins in urbanization, cities and carbon constrain low‐carbon transitions.

Urbanization and the carbon cycle: Contributions from social science

Authors
Peter J. Marcotullio, Sara Hughes, Andrea Sarzynski, Stephanie Pincetl, Landy Sanchez Peña, Patricia Romero‐Lankao, Daniel Runfola, Karen C. Seto

Key Points

  • Urban socio‐institutional dynamics are important influences on GHG emissions.
  • No consensus exists on details of urban socio‐institutional‐GHG relationships.
  • Integrated research for an urbanization science is necessary.

 

Urbanization and the carbon cycle: Current capabilities and research outlook from the natural sciences perspective

Authors
Lucy R. Hutyra, Riley Duren, Kevin R. Gurney, Nancy Grimm, Eric A. Kort, Elisabeth Larson, Gyami Shrestha

Key Points

  • Large carbon fluxes and rapid change make cities key carbon cycle elements.
  • Cities represent ideal interdisciplinary carbon cycle process laboratories.
  • Sustained campaigns in representative cities will transform urban carbon science.

 

Positioning Infrastructure and Technologies for Low-carbon Urbanization

Authors
Mikhail V. Chester, Josh Sperling, Eleanor Stokes, Braden Allenby, Kara Kockelman, Chris Kennedy, Larry Baker, James Keirstead and Chris T. Hendrickson

Key Points

  • Infrastructure and social institutions are inextricably linked.
  • Infrastructure GHG assessment views systems as static and isolated.
  • Process, complexity, and management challenges exist for reducing emissions.