section 1. Savannas : biogeographical and ecological perspectives -- section 2. Carbon, water and trace gas fluxes in global savannas -- section 3. Remote sensing of biophysical and biochemical characteristics in savannas -- section 4. Perspectives on patch- to landscape-scale savanna processes and modeling -- section 5. Regional carbon dynamics in savanna systems : remote sensing and modeling applications -- section 6. Continental and global scale modeling of savannas -- section 7. Understanding savannas as coupled human-natural systems -- section 8. Synthesis.