Human ecosystems vs ecological ecosystems
Human ecosystems vs ecological ecosystems - an illusionary division
Wikipedia defines an ecosystem as follows: An ecosystem (or ecological system) consists of all the organisms and the physical environment with which they interact.
In this definition the title of this piece is already explained. The ecosystem encompasses both human and ecological worlds. Splitting these is possible only in linguistics, in reality they are completely intertwined on Earth.
Unfortunately, in human society this disconnection is often presented as fact, or worse - the ecological systems are ignored. The economic systems that drive most current societies exclude Earth’s resources. Economy students get taught the following economic system:
Thankfully, this picture is getting outdated. Many new classes are representing economy like this:
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Or, in very innovative classes, the system becomes even more inclusive, like this:
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These three models give an overview of what scientists might call the Human Ecosystem, albeit from an economic perspective.
Unfortunately, looking at the more inclusive models does not always translate to appropriate actions. The awareness of our planet’s finite resources and our dependency on and integration in Earth’s ecosystem is something that makes many humans uncomfortable. Staying in denial, avoiding the threat, but also making governmental decisions more in line with the linear economic systems is a habit that seems hard to shake.
Ecosystems
In ecology, however, there is nothing to fear or deny. First of all; denial is not making anything any better. Moreover, ecology is not a threat at all. On the contrary, it is the source of all life and the structures in which it works are beautiful in its simple complexity.
Now, ‘simple complexity’ might sound like a contradiction. But look at the first lessons on ecosystems in elementary school where food chains are discussed. They are usually illustrated like this;
Pretty simple, right? Unfortunately, the reality of food chains, similar to the economic systems, is in most cases not so neatly linear. Studying food chains reveals they are not chains, but rather intricate webs that look more like this:
But now it looks complex! All these lines criss-crossing through each other. All these different species interacting. Some of the babies of one species might be eaten by the prey of its adult version. Although, through its complexity there is a simplicity:
It is simply a pyramid! Alas, in this picture level 0 is missing, which represents the resources. And again, the pyramid suggests an illusory linearity. All these organisms will at the end of life be reduced to (non) organic material that becomes a resource for others. So, what makes it simple? It will happen all by itself. Even if it is not completely understood by scientists, ecologists or economists. Even if one of the many criss-crossing lines was missed in the observations, it will happen.
The ecosystem may not be self explanatory, but it is self governing.
The Clash
Even so, what happens when these so-called ‘human’ and ‘ecological’ ecosystems meet? First of all, they already do by existing. As stated earlier, humans are part of Earth’s ecosystem. But at this point in time, human activity is tipping some scales and causing disruption in age-old systems. Is this detrimental to the Earth's ecosystem? Actually, no. Earth’s ecosystem is self-governing. It will adjust to these new settings and continue on.
Unfortunately, humans are not that flexible. As a species we are thriving in Earth’s current settings. Many changes will be detrimental to our ability to live on this planet. From an ecosystem perspective, we are a plague that has outgrown its place in the ecosystem and, due to resource depletion, will be knocked off its spot in the food web and suffer great loss of the population. It is sad that human activities, affecting not just Earth’s resources but the entire climate, also bring down a lot of other species.
Ecosystem Integration
But there is hope! By embracing human interconnectedness with ecosystems, many fruitful collaborations become visible all around us. Affecting the ecosystem does not make humans unique. Many species, called ecosystem engineers, change their environment actively to make it suit their needs. Ants, bevers, elephants, but also coral and kelp are all examples of species that engineer an ecosystem to enable them to thrive. The key thing is that, since they have been doing this for a long time, many other spots (niches) have opened up for other species to join their created ecosystem. In many cases species actively create habitat for other species to invite their function into their ecosystem. Leaf cutter ants for example ‘farm’ a fungus in their nest. They feed them leaves and ‘milk’ them for sugar. Closer to home in Europe, ants are known to farm aphids. Guarding them from predators and milking them for honeydew.
These ecosystem engineers create flourishing ecosystems that benefit many species. They don’t do this from an altruistic perspective, but with a purely functional aim; to create room for their life.
A good example of human ecosystem engineering is the story of the redevelopment of the Loess Plateau in China. This video shows you how this area, first degraded by human activity and erosion, was restored by ecological restoration. The process was not simple and the experience gained cannot simply be extrapolated to all other ecosystems. But it gives hope on how human ecosystem engineers can integrate and collaborate within earth's ecosystems.
