Interactions of grasslands with forest at the landscape level: topical issues and challenges attached to land management in agro-silvo-pastoral landscapes.

This chapter discusses the interactions of grasslands with forests and other woodlands, with emphasis on the use of agrosilvopastoralism as a system for landscape management. In then reviews some research advances that support an enhanced understanding of the inter-linkages between human societies and ecosystems in agrosilvopastoral systems. The ideas were illustrated with examples of agrosilvopastoral systems in southern-Europe mountain and Mediterranean conditions. Finally, the current knowledge to provide new prospects for meeting the tricky challenges currently associated with the sustainable management of agrosilvopastoral landscapes, and the conservation or enhancement of their ecosystem services.