World Wildlife Fund - Annual Report 2007 - (Page 26)

Natural Capital: Putting a Price on Nature By Dr. Taylor Ricketts Sometimes pushing the limits of conservation means changing our perspective on a problem or challenging established assumptions. Doing so can unlock whole new approaches to conservation and lead to waves of success on the ground. Assumption: Conservation and economic development are by nature at odds – a family can either earn money off their land or set it aside for conservation. With colleagues at Stanford University and The Nature Conservancy, we decided to turn this assumption on its head: What if people could be rewarded for conserving their land through payments from other people who value the “ecosystem services” that land provides? Could those who use the water that is cleaned when it flows through wetlands pay the owners of the wetlands to conserve that ecosystem? How cool would that be? That’s how the Natural Capital Project was born. To be fair, the concept of ecosystem services – and payments – has been around for a while. The goal our three organizations now share is to make them an operational force for conservation. We have set up experimental sites – in China, Tanzania, the Mesoamerican Reef, California and Hawaii – to test valuing ecosystem services in explicit economic terms. Some say it is politically dangerous to put a price tag on nature; others say it can’t be done. Both could be true, but we believe the venture is worth the risk, as the rewards could be huge. In Tanzania’s Eastern Arc Mountains. Ancient forests here sustain thousands of species unique to the area. They give birth to half a dozen rivers providing water and electricity to more than 4 million people. Local villagers depend on the forest for firewood, medicinal plants, building materials and food. But in recent decades over 70 percent of the forest has been destroyed by logging, fires and farmland conversion. River flows have declined, interfering with hydropower and leading to increasingly frequent rolling blackouts in Tanzania’s capital, Dar es Salaam. In short, the links between nature and human well-being are as tightly forged here as anywhere on Earth. ■ When WWF’s Taylor Ricketts is in the field studying nature, sometimes he sees penguins and other times he sees dollars and cents. His focus: determining the economic value to humans of ecosystem services provided by forests, wetlands and other natural areas. 26 worldwildlife.org http://worldwildlife.org

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of World Wildlife Fund - Annual Report 2007

WWF - Annual Report 2007 Contents The Landscapes of People's Lives The President’s Report Africa, Land of the Soul Building Prosperity from Africa’s Natural Wealth A Namibian Odyssey Natural Capital: Putting a Price on Nature Investing in Fish and Fishermen Wildlife in the Balance Africans on the Move WWF Results Across the Globe A Different Kind of Fieldwork A River Dammed Pooling Efforts in the World’s Aquarium More Than Just the Daily Catch All Along the Equator A Partnership for Freshwater Funding and Financial Overview Statement of Activities Ways to Give Staff National Council Board of Directors

World Wildlife Fund - Annual Report 2007

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