Ecosystem services

From Indian vultures to Chinese bees, Nature provides the 'natural services' that keep the economy going. From the recycling miracles in the soil; an army of predators ridding us of unwanted pests; an abundance of life creating a genetic codebook that underpins our food, pharmaceutical industries and much more, it has been estimated that these and other services are each year worth about double global GDP.

The Living Planet Report relates the Living Planet Index – a measure of the health of the world's biodiversity – to the Ecological Footprint and the Water Footprint – measures of humanity's demands on the Earth's natural resources.

Life itself as well as the entire human economy depends on goods and services provided by earth's natural systems. The processes of cleansing, recycling, and renewal, along with goods such as seafood, forage, and timber, are worth many trillions of dollars annually, and nothing could live without them.

This document discusses the need to balance short-term water productivity gains – in particular in agriculture - with the long-term role that water flows provide for maintaining sustainable landscape ecosystem services (ESS), and serving multiple benefits to human well-being. The document provides a summary of concepts around the nexus of water productivity, water flows in landscapes and ecosystem services.

This publication highlights the interconnectivity and linkages between coastal ecosystems (mangroves, coral reefs, seagrasses, estuaries, and lagoons) across environmental, economic, social, and management contexts. It presents innovative approaches to better understand, protect and value ecosystems services across linked habitats, informing the trade-off of different land-use management decisions and the effects on healthy systems from drawing on ecosystem services from linked habitats.

Die Biodiversität ist unsere Lebensgrundlage - ihr ökonomischer, ökologischer, sozialer und ästhetischer Wert kann nicht hoch genug eingeschätzt werden. Im Jahr 2003 beschlossen die Umweltminister Europas daher, den Verlust der Biodiversität bis ins Jahr 2010 zu stoppen. Haben wir dieses Ziel erreicht? Die vorliegende Studie des Forum Biodiversität Schweiz gibt fundierte Antworten auf diese Frage.

UNDP's Environment and Energy Group is pleased to publish this Report which will be a cornerstone for future approaches and policy dialogue on the economics and management of ecosystem services. The Report highlights the economic contribution of biodiversity conservation and ecosystem services to development and equity in Latin America and the Caribbean. It is to serve as an economic tool for decision makers so that ecosystem services are considered in sectoral and national planning.

This report is a contribution to the UN's International Year of Biodiversity and is a complement to the UNEP-hosted Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) which is bringing visibility to the wealth of the world's natural capital. It documents over 30 successful case studies referencing thousands of restoration projects ranging from deserts and rainforests to rivers and coasts.