An Ecological Approach for Mapping Socio-Economic Data in Support of Ecosystems Analysis: Examples in Mapping Canada’s Forest Ecumene

Abstract

Integrating socio-economic dimensions in ecosystems analysis and management is becoming increasingly important, particularly from a mapping standpoint. A key challenge with such integration is reconciling different geospatial representations based on census and administrative frameworks with natural ecosystems boundaries.This article presents one method for addressing this challenge by mapping an information rich 'ecumene'. In this approach, communities are mapped as human habitats using natural boundaries as opposed to administrative-type boundaries, integrated with authoritative socio-economic data. To illustrate the benefits of this approach, two example applications are provided that: 1) map and estimate the population of the 'forest ecumene' of Canada, and 2) map labour force distribution patterns associated with the forest sector and its relation to forest areas in Canada. Benefits and limitations of this approach are discussed, from which a number of priority areas for future research are identified.