HARNESSING ECOLOGICAL PRINCIPLES AND PHYSIOLOGIC MECHANISMS IN DIVERSIFYING AGRICULTURAL SYSTEMS FOR SUSTAINABILITY:EXPERIENCE FROM STUDIES DEPLOYING NATUR-EBASED SOLUTIONS IN SCOTLAND

To achieve the triple challenge of food security,reversing biodiversity declines plus mitigating and adapting to climate change,there is a drive to embed ecological principles into agricultural,value-chain practices and decisionmaking.By diversifying cropping systems at several scales there is potential to decrease reliance on inputs,provide resilience to abiotic and biotic stress,enhance plant,microbe and animal biodiversity,and mitigate against climate change.In this review we highlight the research performed in Scotland over the past 5 years into the impact of the use of ecological principles in agriculture on sustainability,resilience and provision of ecosystem functions.We demonstrate that diversification of the system can enhance ecosystem functions.Soil and plant management interventions,including nature-based solutions,can also enhance soil quality and utilization of legacy nutrients.Additionally,this is facilitated by greater reliance on soil biological processes and trophic interactions.We highlight the example of intercropping with legumes to deliver sustainability through ecological principles and use legumes as an exemplar of the innovation.We conclude that there are many effective interventions that can be made to deliver resilient,sustainable,and diverse agroecosystems for crop and food production,and these may be applicable in any agroecosystem.

Adopting an ecological view of metropolitan landscape: the case of “three circles" system for ecological construction and restoration in Beijing area

Ecological construction and restoration for sustainable development are now a driving paradigm. It is increasingly recognized that ecological principles, especially landscape ecology theory, are not only necessary but also essential to maintain the long-term sustainability worldwide. Key landscape ecology principles—element, structure and process, dynamics, heterogeneity, hierarchies, connectivity, place and time were reviewed, and use Beijing area as a case study to illustrate how these principles might be applied to ecological construction and restoration, to eventually achieve sustainability. An example to more effectively incorporate the ecological principles in sustainable planning in China was presented.

ECOLOGICAL DESIGN PRINCIPLES AND THEIR IMPLICATIONS ON WATER INFRASTRUCTURE ENGINEERING

Today’s water infrastructures are the outcome of an industrial revolution-based design that are now at odds with the current sustainability paradigm.The goal of this study was to develop a vision for engineering sustainable water infrastructures.A list of 99 ecological design principles was compiled from eleven authors and grouped into three themes:(1)human dimension,(2)learning from nature(biomimicry),and(3)integrating nature.The biomimicry concept was further divided into six sub-themes;(1)complex system properties,(2)energy source,(3)scale,(4)mass and energy flows,(5)structure,and function,and(6)diversity and cooperation.The implications of these concepts on water infrastructure design suggested that water infrastructure should be conceptualized in a more holistic way by not only considering water supply,treatment,and storm water management services,but also integrating into the design problem other provisioning,regulating,cultural,and supporting ecosystem services.A decentralized approach for this integration and innovation in adaptive design are necessary to develop resilient and energy efficient water infrastructures.

TOWARDS A SUSTAINABLE CITY CENTRE:INTEGRATING ECOLOGICALLY SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT(ESD)PRINCIPLES INTO URBAN RENEWAL

This paper reflects upon a wide range of strategies focused on increasing sustainability of urban design beyond and within the scope of individual buildings.By examining the case study of the Australian city of Newcastle,the paper provides a context for a general debate about the urban design of a sustainable city centre,and discusses how urban design is affected(and can be expected to be even more affected in future)by the new paradigms of ecology.In this context,the author presents the case study of‘SolarCity’,which is based on a vision for the revitalisation of Newcastle’s city centre.It is an in-progress research and demonstration project,involving Australian and German architects,engineers and industry partners.It deals with cross-cutting issues in architecture and urban design and addresses the question:How to best cohesively integrate all aspects of energy systems,transport systems,waste and water management,climatisation,etc.,into contemporary urban design and the environmental performance of eco-buildings?The‘SolarCity’project encapsulates a vision based on the belief that urban revitalisation can be achieved and facilitated through the use of sustainable urban design principles.Consequently,this paper addresses the fundamentals of urban sustainability,such as orientation to the sun,and general strategies for more compact communities.As we begin to fully understand the consequences of our dependency on fossil energy and the automobile,the cost of mobility,and ways to integrate sustainability systems into buildings,it becomes apparent that the common knowledge of aesthetics of urban composition is no longer sufficient.

On the Construction of the Harmonious Ecosystem of Enterprises-Lessons from the Low Cost Competition of Wal-Mart

Wal-Mart＇s Darwinism deserves our attention Aiming a the problems caused by Wal-Mart. this article gives a profound analysis on the concept and model of the enterprise ecosystem and expounds basic characters （such as integrity, hierarchy, functionality, autoregalation etc.） with relevant theories and knowledge of systematology and ecology, and puts forward ecological principles for the construction of harmonious enterprises ecosystem （such as principle of interarcton, principle of co-evolution, principle of ecoflow, principle of ecological niche, principle of limiting factor and prlncipte of ecological equilibrium） in order to provide new ideas for enterpises＇operation decisions and to promote the whole enterprise ecosystem to develop more healthily, harmoniously and stcstainabty.