Satisfying the changing needs of human populations has relied on the appropriation and distribution of nature's finite stocks and fluxes, i. e., ecosystem services, over increasingly large scales. The production, delivery, and consumption of these stocks and fluxes (PDCES) not only links populations across scales but also vastly different ecosystems and landscapes. Changes in ecosystem stocks and fluxes, consumer needs, and distribution networks raises two questions about the dynamics of landscapes linked through PDCES. First, how do coupled landscapes influence each other? Second, how do linked landscapes respond to perceived or ongoing change? Addressing these questions is critical to uncover the range of responses that people and ecosystems have to change or to avert negative externalities as countries work towards satisfying human population basic needs, dealing with global change, working towards fulfilling UN Sustainable Development Goals, and designing sustainable futures.

Coupling of landscapes through PDCES is clearly visible in tropical mountainous regions where a diverse set of biophysical conditions makes these systems key players in hydroclimatic and biogeochemical cycles that directly and indirectly sustain the livelihood of many people around the world. Highland (hillslopes) and lowland (valleys) landscapes are linked through numerous processes, including seasonal migration, and flows of water and sediments. The subset of stocks and fluxes appropriated from the hillslopes as wells as their consumption in the lowlands has changed through time with resulting shifts in landscape configuration and functioning. Here, I focus on watersheds located in three countries (Guatemala, Puerto Rico, and Colombia) and explore major shifts in landscape configuration most likely driven by an increased demand for a subset of ecosystem goods and services. I further explore, the unintended negative consequences of these major shifts on ecosystems and human populations. Finally, I will make a case for rural communities that still make their living in mountainscapes.