Progress in Ecosystem Health Research and Future Prospects

Abstract

Since the Anthropocene, drastic changes in the relationship between humans and the earth have prompted human beings to pay more attention to the living environment. As a metaphor to reveal the state of humanity and nature, ecosystem health has gradually become an important issue closely related to global sustainable development ever since it was widely discussed in the 1990s. This study reviewed 4354 publications about ecosystem health from the Web of Science Core Collection by using CiteSpace software. In addition, 135 empirical papers were selected to further analyze the evaluation methods and characteristics of ecosystem health. This study was able to answer four questions: (1) What are the definitions, research content, and characteristics of ecosystem health? (2) Are there any features during the different periods of the development of the ecosystem health? Are there geographical differences in the research? (3) What are the methods and cases selected for studying ecosystem health, and under what kind of conditions do they apply? Are there any patterns or characteristics in the use of these methods? (4) What are the gaps and deficiencies in ecosystem health research, and where should we set our focus on in the future? In general, this study combined bibliometric analysis with a systematic review method, aiming to summarize the current status of ecosystem health research, make up for the deficiencies in the current review, and put forward new insights regarding the concept cognition, evaluation, and future outlook of ecosystem health research.