According to the analysis by BC3 researchers Itxaso Ruiz and María José Sanz, published in the scientific journal Science of the Total Environment, the effects of local land use practices (present and past) in the Mediterranean Basin have contributed to intensify desertification, landscape degradation, loss of biodiversity and climate change, among others.

Ruiz and Sanz indicate that knowledge of how past land use practices have impacted the regional climate provides insight into relevant key processes to more holistically shape future measures to protect ecosystem services in the Mediterranean Basin, including climate change and biodiversity.

The new ways used in approaching the analysis proved to be very useful in identifying the positive and negative interactions between services and factors.

The authors of the research also point out that the work may be relevant in the context of decision-making on land management in the basin. In this sense, they propose that policies at the local and regional level in the Mediterranean basin should be taken integrating knowledge from different disciplines, and that past impacts should be taken into account for future adaptation strategies, thus avoiding greater impacts.