The biennial series of conferences on Ecosystems and Sustainable Development (ECOSUD), originating from the work of the late Nobel laureate, Ilya Prigogine, raises the challenge of seeking to integrate thermodynamics, ecology and economics into “ecodynamics.” The conference is not only a platform to present novel research related to ecological problems from all over the world, but it also gives opportunities for new emergent ideas in science arising from the cross fertilization of different disciplines, including mathematical models and eco-informatics, evolutionary thermodynamics and biodiversity, structures in ecosystems modelling and landscapes to mention but a few.

This book contains papers presented at the Eighth International Conference in the well-established conference series on Ecosystems and Sustainable Development. Conference topics include: Ecosystems modeling; Natural resources management; Environmental indicators; Sustainable development studies; Data mining applications; Energy and the environment; Soil contamination; Waste management; Ecotoxicity.