EAST LANSING, Mich. — Knowledge gaps continue to hobble scientists’ assessments of the environment, a Michigan State University researcher and colleagues warn. Their warning follows sobering conclusions drawn from what they do know and could help set the global agenda for research funding in the years to come. A worldwide 2005 Millennium Ecosystem Assessment enlisted hundreds of scientists to develop a view of ecosystems through the lens of services those ecosystems provide humanity, said Thomas Dietz, director of the MSU Environmental Science and Policy Program and professor in sociology and crop and soil sciences. The MEA found about 60 percent of ecosystem services supporting life - including fresh water, fisheries, clean air, pests and climate - are being degraded or used unsustainably. The MEA projected continued deterioration at current rates. But drawing conclusions is still limited by what researchers call discipline-bound approaches that don’t fully describe the range of the Earth’s dynamic and complex biophysical and social systems. ‘In only a few cases are the abilities of ecosystems to provide human well-being holding steady, and in almost every case we’re seeing declines in ecosystems underpinning human well-being, said Dietz, who was involved in the original MEA. […]