Interaction of the three forcing mechanisms of TiP: Plateau formation, climate evolution, human impact, and their effects on ecosystems

Like Antarctica and the Arctic, the Tibetan Plateau is a key area of the globe. Its formation had a profound impact on the environmental evolution at regional and global scales and until today directly influences the habitat of billions of people. Moreover, the Tibetan plateau, like the polar regions, proves to be particularly sensitive to anthropogenic Global Change. The priority programme 1372 TiP studies the Tibetan Plateau focusing on three interlinked processes:

The key processes are analysed with respect to their impact on ecosystems on three different time scales:

• Plateau formation (uplift dynamics and related climate change) during the last millions to several tens of millions of years
• Late Cenozoic climate evolution and environmental response during the last tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of years with decadal to centennial resolution
• Phase of human impact and Global Change focusing on the present stage, the past ~8000 years, and perspectives for the future