Does an Earth system perspective provide fundamental insights into ecology

Earth systems science focuses on exciting and integrative concepts that have emerged in the past few decades, catalyzing synthetic research among a variety of disciplines and examining processes that link the atmosphere, hydrosphere, geosphere and biosphere. Ecology is a key component of Earth system science, but an Earth systems perspective has yet to emerge strongly in ecological journals. In Fundamental Processes in Ecology: An Earth Systems Approach, Wilkinson argues that an Earth systems perspective leads to the question, ‘what are the fundamental processes in ecology?’ and thereby provides a novel and thought-provoking organizational framework for ecology.