ESP Training “Valuing and Capturing the Benefits of Ecosystem Restoration”

 

When: Monday 8 Oct. 14:00-17:30

Where: WII seminar room

Instructor: Rudolf de Groot, Associate Professor Wageningen University & Research, the Netherlands and Chair of Ecosystem Services Partnership

Brief description 

Most land use (change) decisions are still based on incomplete information about the real welfare effects (costs and benefits) because many so-called externalities (positive and negative) associated with the change in land use and management are neglected. This leads to loss and degradation of ecosystems and their services affecting human well-being. Worldwide more than 25% of the land surface is now more or less degraded (UNCCD Global Land Outlook, 2017), affecting the lives of 1/3 of the global human population and costing between 4 and 20 trillion US$/year in terms of damage, repair or replacement costs (Costanza et al., 2014). Better information is therefore needed on the benefits (monetary and non-monetary) of restoration, conservation and sustainable use of ecosystems and landscapes.

To assess the many benefits of nature conservation, landscape restoration and sustainable land management in a systematic, effective and efficient way, good guidelines supported by practical tools and online databases, are essential. To develop these Guidelines, ESP is working together with the Commonland Foundation that is investing in large-scale landscape restoration projects. Restoring ecosystems and managing landscapes more sustainably costs money, but if all the benefits provided are properly accounted for, usually the money spent is (much) less than the financial and economic returns.

In this ½-day course, a 9-step approach will be presented to value and capture the benefits of ecosystem restoration and sustainable land management (see Figure 1 below). The Training will consist of a mix of lectures on the various steps in these guidelines, illustrated by case studies and online demonstration material, including ample time for questions and discussion. Depending on the interest and experience of the participants they can also bring in their own case study and submit specific questions which can be discussed during the Training. Well before the conference those people who registered for this Training will receive a copy of these guidelines and further instructions how to prepare.

Figure 1.  Framework for valuing and capturing the benefits of ecosystem Restoration, conservation and sustainable land management (De Groot, R.S. et al., 2018)

Training timetable

Registration fees for training

Fee Types*	Early Bird**	Normal Fee
Standard	€25	€40
Student	€0	€0
Low-income country delegate	€20	€35

  *All fees are in EURO.

  **The Early Bird fee is only applicable until 15 August 2018, 17:00 CET.

Registration closes on Sept 9; places are limited to 30 persons. For further inquiries, please contact assistant@esp-asia.org