Bank of Natural Capital

Singapore: The quest for a city in a garden.

Katrina Borromeo — Wed, 06 Oct 2010 11:18:37 +0000

A report card for Biodiversity If cities were given a report card on biodiversity, how would they fare? Who would get a pat on the back and who would receive a slap on the hand? Singapore, a city state in …

Agricultural Subsidy Removal in New Zealand

Lara Barbier — Wed, 06 Oct 2010 10:40:05 +0000

“All I’m saying is that there is a price to be paid at the sharp end…environmentally and everywhere else…for the food that is produced in a particular way.” -Prince Charles Subsidies to agriculture are amongst the largest and merit special …

Pavan Sukhdev: Tea with the Economist

Felix Schweikhardt — Wed, 06 Oct 2010 09:23:51 +0000

Imagine you get money for throwing your garbage in the bin instead of throwing it into nature. Unthinkable? No more, no less suggests Pavan Sukhdev, study leader of TEEB (The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity) in an interview with The …

Changing Consumer Preferences

Lara Barbier — Wed, 06 Oct 2010 08:10:43 +0000

Even if you don’t choose to purchase organic or environmentally friendly products, you can’t fail to notice a growing trend and increased availability of consumables which advertise their environmentally friendly credentials in your local supermarkets. The fact of the matter …

Tourism and local development

Lara Barbier — Wed, 06 Oct 2010 07:28:35 +0000

The tourism sector is one of the major employers in the world supporting over 200 million workers. ((Backes, M.; Baumgartner, C.; Pils, M. and Plüss, C. (2002) ‘Red Card for Tourism: Ten Principles and Challenges for a Sustainable Tourism Development …

Use it or lose it! Bringing back rice diversity on farmers’ fields

Katrina Borromeo — Wed, 06 Oct 2010 05:54:27 +0000

Did you know that of the thousands of rice varieties available, only a few are actually being consumed and sold in markets? Year after year, a handful of rice varieties face extinction. Unfortunately, we do not know what we are …

Watershed Management in Mongolia

Lara Barbier — Wed, 06 Oct 2010 05:25:16 +0000

Cities depend on nature Many essential services provided by local governments depend on and impact the ecosystems around them, either nearby or further afield. With Mongolia’s capital city, Ulaanbaatar, the case is no different, as the city relies heavily on …

Frequently Used Terms in TEEB

Lara Barbier — Tue, 05 Oct 2010 14:49:47 +0000

Natural Capital Natural Capital- our ecosystems, biodiversity and natural resources – underpins economies, societies and individual well-being. The values of its myriad benefits are often overlooked or poorly understood. They are rarely taken into account through markets or in day …

International Payments for Ecosystem Services (IPES) and Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD)

Lara Barbier — Tue, 05 Oct 2010 14:39:08 +0000

What are Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES)? ((Taken from the TEEB for National Policy Makers Report Chapter 5)) PES is a generic name for a variety of arrangements through which the beneficiaries of ecosystem services pay the providers of those …