Social-ecological networks in urban ecology research

Tanja Maria Straka , Örjan Bodin, Daniel Teodoro, Lotta Kluger, Fiona Rickowski, Zeno Porro, Joanna L. Coleman, Sophie Lokatis, Sarel Cilliers, Cynnamon Dobbs Brown, Monika Egerer, Maria Felipe-Lucia, Lynn Govaert, Solène Guenat, Amy K. Hahs, Sujay Kaushal, Sonja Knapp, Sophia Kochalski, Brenda Lin, Stephen Livesley, Florian Ruland, Caragh Threlfall, Nicholas Williams, Jonathan Jeschke

Urban ecosystems are complex and dynamic, shaped by feedback loops between social and ecological components. However, urban ecology requires tools to unravel this complexity. Social-ecological networks (SENs) offer a conceptual and analytical framework by integrating network theory to understand the relationships between and within social-ecological systems. Here, we integrate perspectives from urban ecology and SEN research to introduce SENs as a promising, yet underexplored, framework for advancing urban ecology research. With an example from Melbourne, Australia, we demonstrate how SENs can advance our understanding of urban biodiversity conservation. Lastly, we propose nine key themes for future urban biodiversity research that will benefit from exploration through an SEN approach. By adopting and further developing the SEN framework for urban ecology, researchers can gain structural and relational insights into urban social-ecological systems. Importantly, an SEN framework may not only bridge the inter- but also transdisciplinary gap between research and practice.