ABSTRACT
This chapter provides a brief historical review of restoration ecology, sources of information, guidelines for project perspectives, and an introduction to the concept of ecological layers. The interdisciplinary nature of restoration ecology facilitates team approaches for solving environmental problems, which should help integrate public and private initiatives. One common oversight of restoration projects is the evaluation and documentation of successes and failures. Just as functioning ecological systems use feedback mechanisms to maintain themselves, restoration projects should have a built-in way of monitoring progress, conducting maintenance or modification, and reporting eventual accomplishments. Success can be equated to a series of small, integrated projects that build toward a larger restoration goal. One should tackle problems that have realistic solutions given the inevitable time and funding constraints. The most successful and beneficial restoration projects often are traced to the efforts of one individual who was able to stimulate the enthusiasm of others.
