Advances in understanding and managing catastrophic ecosystem shifts in Mediterranean ecosystemsAdvances in understanding and managing catastrophic ecosystem shifts in Mediterranean ecosystems Peer-Reviewed Journal Publication Δημοσίευση σε Περιοδικό με Κριτές 2021-11-182020enThis research was conducted under the auspices of the CASCADE Project that is funded by the European Commission FP7 program, ENV.2011.2.1.4-2 – ‘Behavior of ecosystems, thresholds and tipping points,’ EU Grant agreement: 283068.One of the most challenging issues in Mediterranean ecosystems to date has been to understand the emergence of discontinuous changes or catastrophic shifts. In the era of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, which encompass ideas around Land Degradation Neutrality, advancing this understanding has become even more critical and urgent. The aim of this paper is to synthesize insights into the drivers, processes and management of catastrophic shifts to highlight ways forward for the management of Mediterranean ecosystems. We use a multidisciplinary approach that extends beyond the typical single site, single scale, single approach studies in the current literature. We link applied and theoretical ecology at multiple scales with analyses and modeling of human–environment–climate relations and stakeholder engagement in six field sites in Mediterranean ecosystems to address three key questions: i) How do major degradation drivers affect ecosystem functioning and services in Mediterranean ecosystems? ii) What processes happen in the soil and vegetation during a catastrophic shift? iii) How can management of vulnerable ecosystems be optimized using these findings? Drawing together the findings from the use of different approaches allows us to address the whole pipeline of changes from drivers through to action. We highlight ways to assess ecosystem vulnerability that can help to prevent ecosystem shifts to undesirable states; identify cost-effective management measures that align with the vision and plans of land users; and evaluate the timing of these measures to enable optimization of their application before thresholds are reached. Such a multidisciplinary approach enables improved identification of early warning signals for discontinuous changes informing more timely and cost-effective management, allowing anticipation of, adaptation to, or even prevention of, undesirable catastrophic ecosystem shifts.http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution8Van den Elsen_et_al_Front. Ecol. Evol._8_2020.pdfChania [Greece]Library of TUC2021-11-16application/pdf3.5 MBfree van den Elsen Erik Stringer Lindsay C. De Ita Cecilia Hessel Rudi Kéfi, Sonia Schneider Florian D. Bautista Susana Mayor Angeles G. Baudena Mara Rietkerk Max Valdecantos Alejandro Vallejo Victoriano R. Geeson Nichola Brandt C. Jane Fleskens Luuk Hemerik Lia Panagos Panos Valente Sandra Keizer Jan J. Schwilch Gudrun Jucker Riva Matteo Sietz Diana Christoforou Michalakis Hadjimitsis, Diofantos G Papoutsa Christiana Quaranta Giovanni Salvia Rosanna Tsanis Ioannis Τσανης Ιωαννης Daliakopoulos Ioannis Δαλιακοπουλος Ιωαννης Claringbould, Heleen de Ruiter Peter C. Frontiers Media Dryland ecosystems Ecosystem restoration Multidisciplinary Resilience Stakeholder engagement recommendations