title: Natural capital and ecosystem services informing decisions: From promise to practice.
abstract: The central challenge of the 21st century is to develop economic, social, and governance systems capable of ending poverty and achieving sustainable levels of population and consumption while securing the life-support systems underpinning current and future human well-being. Essential to meeting this challenge is the incorporation of natural capital and the ecosystem services it provides into decision-making. We explore progress and crucial gaps at this frontier, reflecting upon the 10 y since the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment. We focus on three key dimensions of progress and ongoing challenges: raising awareness of the interdependence of ecosystems and human well-being, advancing the fundamental interdisciplinary science of ecosystem services, and implementing this science in decisions to restore natural capital and use it sustainably. Awareness of human dependence on nature is at an all-time high, the science of ecosystem services is rapidly advancing, and talk of natural capital is now common from governments to corporate boardrooms. However, successful implementation is still in early stages. We explore why ecosystem service information has yet to fundamentally change decision-making and suggest a path forward that emphasizes: (i) developing solid evidence linking decisions to impacts on natural capital and ecosystem services, and then to human well-being; (ii) working closely with leaders in government, business, and civil society to develop the knowledge, tools, and practices necessary to integrate natural capital and ecosystem services into everyday decision-making; and (iii) reforming institutions to change policy and practices to better align private short-term goals with societal long-term goals.
authors.affiliation: The Natural Capital Project, c/o School of Environment and Forest Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195; Woods Institute for the Environment, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305; anne.guerry@stanford.edu.
authors.forename: Anne D
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: Guerry
authors.affiliation: Institute on the Environment, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN 55108; Department of Applied Economics, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN 55108; The Natural Capital Project, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN 55108;
authors.forename: Stephen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Polasky
authors.affiliation: Department of Integrative Biology, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97333;
authors.forename: Jane
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Lubchenco
authors.affiliation: Woods Institute for the Environment, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305; The Natural Capital Project, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305;
authors.forename: Rebecca
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Chaplin-Kramer
authors.affiliation: The Natural Capital Project, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305; Department of Biology, Center for Conservation Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305; Global Economic Dynamics and the Biosphere, Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, Stockholm SE-104 05, Sweden;
authors.forename: Gretchen C
authors.initials: GC
authors.lastname: Daily
authors.affiliation: Woods Institute for the Environment, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305;
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Griffin
authors.affiliation: The Natural Capital Project, c/o School of Environment and Forest Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195; Woods Institute for the Environment, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305;
authors.forename: Mary
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ruckelshaus
authors.affiliation: Centre for Social and Economic Research on the Global Environment, School of Environmental Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich NR4 7TJ, United Kingdom;
authors.forename: Ian J
authors.initials: IJ
authors.lastname: Bateman
authors.affiliation: Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education for Peace and Sustainable Development, New Delhi 110 029, India;
authors.forename: Anantha
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Duraiappah
authors.affiliation: Stockholm Resilience Centre, Stockholm University, Stockholm SE-106 91, Sweden;
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Elmqvist
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305;
authors.forename: Marcus W
authors.initials: MW
authors.lastname: Feldman
authors.affiliation: Global Economic Dynamics and the Biosphere, Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, Stockholm SE-104 05, Sweden; Stockholm Resilience Centre, Stockholm University, Stockholm SE-106 91, Sweden; Beijer Institute of Ecological Economics, Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, Stockholm SE-104 05, Sweden;
authors.forename: Carl
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Folke
authors.affiliation: World Wildlife Fund, Washington, DC 20037;
authors.forename: Jon
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hoekstra
authors.affiliation: The Nature Conservancy, Seattle, WA 91805;
authors.forename: Peter M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Kareiva
authors.affiliation: Institute on the Environment, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN 55108; The Natural Capital Project, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN 55108;
authors.forename: Bonnie L
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Keeler
authors.affiliation: Institute of Population and Development Studies, School of Public Policy and Administration, Xian Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi Province 710049, People's Republic of China;
authors.forename: Shuzhuo
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: World Wildlife Fund, Washington, DC 20037; World Wildlife Fund-UK, The Living Planet Centre, Surrey GU21 4LL, United Kingdom;
authors.forename: Emily
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: McKenzie
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Urban and Regional Ecology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, People's Republic of China;
authors.forename: Zhiyun
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Ouyang
authors.affiliation: Natural Resources and the Environment, Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, Stellenbosch 7599, South Africa;
authors.forename: Belinda
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Reyers
authors.affiliation: Gund Institute of Ecological Economics, and Rubenstein School for Environment and Natural Resources, University of Vermont, Burlington, VT 05405;
authors.forename: Taylor H
authors.initials: TH
authors.lastname: Ricketts
authors.affiliation: Stockholm Resilience Centre, Stockholm University, Stockholm SE-106 91, Sweden;
authors.forename: Johan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Rockström
authors.affiliation: The Nature Conservancy, Santa Cruz, CA 95060;
authors.forename: Heather
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Tallis
authors.affiliation: Department of Geography, and Conservation Research Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 1TN, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Bhaskar
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Vira
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources / Q000191:economics / Q000379:methods / Q000639:trends; D003657:Decision Making; D004463:Ecology / Q000191:economics / Q000379:methods / Q000639:trends; D017753:Ecosystem; D006801:Humans; D011640:Public Policy
keywords: beneficiary; decision making; human well-being; resilience; sustainable development