This paper deals with theoretical concepts, methodological steps, and case studies related to the use of plant functional traits in the assessment of vegetation responses to climate and land use. Trait-environment links are considered, and special emphasis is put on the links between vegetation structure and ecosystem function, and on the role of disturbance history in determining vegetation responses to land use at present. As a basis for discussion, published and new case studies from central-western Argentina are presented. Similar plant traits measured with different levels of precision are utilized in the description of ecosystem structure in different land-use situations along a steep regional climatic gradient. The general protocol followed in the case studies represents a data-driven, non-hierarchical, low-tech approach, that can be applied to a wide range of spatial scales, from plots to regions. Climatic factors (including extreme events and seasonality), disturbance frequency and intensity, and disturbance history are suggested as key factors to be considered in global comparisons of vegetation responses to land use and in predictive models of ecosystem dynamics.
