Like any other causes granted their own special day of the year, the world’s forests are cherished in principle but unappreciated in practice. In the case of forests, though, the lack of appreciation is quite literal. Despite the sophistication of financial and economic systems and models, there is as yet no universally accepted framework to recognize and value forests beyond their function as remote warehouses where logs are stored vertically. This unfortunate status is also shared by other useful elements or services of nature — known as ‘natural capital.’ However, things may be set to change. The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) is a global study backed by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) which focuses on “the global economic benefit of biological diversity, the costs of the loss of biodiversity… and the failure to take protective measures versus the costs of effective conservation.” TEEB makes the case for integrating the economics of biodiversity and ecosystem services into decision-making — by governments and the private sector. Why is this important? Because every day huge, invisible flows of natural capital assist global and local economies to turn, but remain unrecognized, unmonitored and unregulated. This results in mismanagement, abuse, and misappropriation by both the public and private sectors, which in turn leads to the degradation of ecosystems and the loss of biodiversity. So what? — you may ask. What have ecosystems ever done for me? Read on thejakartaglobe/business/natural-capital-value-invaluable/
Posted on: Thu, 20 Mar 2014 22:48:58 +0000
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