Ecosystem Services Assessment for Informed Decision Making
Ecosystems play an important role in sustaining and supporting humans and development sustainability. The ecosystem services framework is so developed to help holistically identify, measure, and quantify the importance, use and value of ecosystems to human society so as to allow consideration and mainstreaming of ecosystems in policy and development decision-making.
For whom?
Development and environmental professionals as well as decision-makers interested in protection, integration, and mainstreaming of ecosystems in development and policy.
Course content
This course is intended to deliver a tool useful in practice that combines and integrates biophysical and social-economic aspects of ecosystem services in developing a systematic and holistic assessment of the role and contribution of ecosystems to human society. In terms of contents, the course is composed of:
- The ecosystem services framework and relevance to sustainable development
- Types of ecosystem services assessment, metrics, and contexts of application
- The demand and supply framework for ecosystem services
- Biophysical assessment of ecosystem services
- Socio-economic assessment of ecosystem services
- Spatial mapping of ecosystem services
- Tools for ecosystem services
- Procedure for developing ecosystem services assessment
- Case studies
The course combines diverse didactic approaches, particularly, a field trip integrated with a group assignment in practicing and developing an ecosystem service assessment for a focal area linked to policy such as room for river projects in the Netherlands. It will also include a roleplay game for managing a mangrove ecosystem in relation to economic development such as tourism, participatory decision-making, and inclusive development.
Course Coordinator
Yong Jiang
Associate Professor of Water Resources Economics
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