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Brief Introduction

This NSF project “Impacts of Ecosystem Service Payments in Coupled Natural and Human Systems (DEB 1212183)” is funded for five years (2012-2017), aiming to understand the complex human-environment systems (CHES) at Fanjingshan National Nature Reserve in China, where the habitat of the endangered Guizhou golden monkey (Rhinopithecus brelichi) and other endangered species has been affected by various human activities. Payments for ecosystem services are incentives paid to users of natural resources to reduce their use of these resources and the accompanying stresses and disturbances to the natural systems that provide the resources. Although some payment programs have been in place for over two decades, the success of payments in maintaining both ecosystems and human well-being has not been critically assessed.

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