Natural Capital Accounting: International context, benefits, tools and challenges

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1 Natural Capital Accounting: International context, benefits, tools and challenges Ivo Havinga United Nations Statistics Division Parallel session on Natural Capital Accounting MAES HIGH-LEVEL CONFERENCE 22 May 2014, Brussels

2 Policy settings Barbados plan of action, Mauritius strategy of implementation UNDESA UNEP UNDP OECD initiatives on Green Growth/Green Economy Broader measures of progress/beyond GDP World Bank Natural Capital Accounting/ WAVES Post-2015 UN development agenda/sdgs Aichi targets of CBD strategic plan (e.g. Target 2) EU biodiversity strategy UNDP Poverty and Environment UNEP TEEB IPBES

3 Post 2015 Development Agenda Vision and responsibility 1. End extreme poverty in all its form in the context of sustainable development 2. A global, people-centred and planet-sensitive agenda to address the universal challenges of the 21 st century Promoting sustainable development Supporting job-creating growth Protecting the environment Providing peace, security, justice, freedom and equity at all level

4 Focus areas: Poverty eradication, building shared prosperity and promoting equality Sustainable agriculture, food security and nutrition Economic growth, employment and infrastructure Industrialization and promoting equality among nations Energy Environmental sustainability Focus areas: Water and sanitation Sustainable Consumption and Production Climate Change Conservation and sustainable use of marine resources, oceans and seas Ecosystem and biodiversity Inclusive economic development Post 2015 Development Agenda Equality Sustainability Human rights Peace and human security Focus areas: Health and population dynamics Education and life-long learning Gender equality and women s empowerment Sustainable cities and human settlements Inclusive human development Focus areas: Water and sanitation Means of implementation/global partnership for sustainable development Peaceful and inclusive societies, rule of law and capable institutions

5 OWG: Proposed targets for ecosystems and biodiversity Halt the loss of all biodiversity and protect threatened species Ensure conservation and sustainable use of ecosystems, including through restoration of degraded critical ecosystems Maintain genetic diversity of both farmed species and their wild relatives Ensure sustainable management of all forests and mountain ecosystems Achieve a land degradation neutral world Ensure fair and equitable sharing of benefits derived from natural assets, including genetic resources End poaching and trafficking of endangered species Eliminate invasive alien species Ensure inclusion of indigenous and local communities in decision making, and promote traditional knowledge of indigenous peoples

6 Vision: A life of dignity for all Mainstream sustainable development at all levels integrating economic, social and environmental aspects and recognizing their interlinkages, so as to achieve sustainable development across all dimensions 6

7 Natural Capital Accounting Vision: Mainstream natural capital, including biodiversity, into national accounts for decision making Natural Capital Accounting Environment and the Economy Integrated approaches: Data collection Information organization Monitoring and reporting Water Climate Change Forests Biodiversity Energy Mineral resources Agriculture Tourism Disaster Reduction Urbanization and Rural Development Oceans / Marine Resources Ecosystem Fisheries System of Environmental Economic Accounting(SEEA)

8 Benefits of SEEA in support of NCA and measurement of biodiversity SEEA provides the framework for organizing and transforming sectoral data into integrated policy-relevant information and supports NCA and measurement of biodiversity. Sectoral Data Integrated information Integrated information provides a comprehensive picture to support policy making. 8

9 Natural capital accounting: enabler for the transformative agenda SEEA Part 1 - SEEA Part 2 - SNA Central Framework Experimental Ecosystem Accounting Support measurement of biodiversity Inform post 2015 development agenda and SDGs Integrate natural capital into national accounts

10 SEEA Central Framework - System-based coherence - Linking economic, environment and social dimensions Economy Production and consumption Natural inputs (e.g. timber, mineral, water, aquatic resources, etc.) Residuals (air and water emissions, waste) Environment

11 SEEA Experimental Ecosystem Accounting System based coherence linking economic, environment and social dimensions Individual & societal well-being Benefits to human and economic activity Human inputs (e.g. labour, produced assets) Ecosystem services Ecosystem characteristics like biodiversity Ecosystem condition Intra-ecosystem flows/process Ecosystem asset Inter-ecosystem flows/process

12 Challenges of the international statistical and research institutions Methodological challenges Fragmented and silo-ed statistical production processes Fragmented, silo-ed and single purpose statistics and indicators that are not integrated in a coherent framework Measurability of ecosystem services and assets Responses Harmonization of concepts, definitions, methods and mapping tools for international comparison of environmental assessments i.e. SEEA Experimentation and testing of statistical units a different spatial scales, classification of ecosystems and ecosystem services, measures of biophysical and valuation of ecosystem services and conditions under an internationally coordinated programme of biophysical baseline assessment s International synthesis of findings of baseline assessments in advancing SEEA ecosystem accounting for purposes of information and resource management