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Datasets, Tools & Reports

MA Ecosystem Services Guide for Decisionmakers »

Evidence is accumulating that taking an Ecosystems Services Approach can make development more sustainable by sustaining nature’s capacity to provide needed goods and services.This guide assembles that evidence for use by a decision maker. It details the processes that they can use, beginning with a conceptual framework that links development and ecosystem services and ending with guidance for choosing policies to sustain ecosystem services.
By offering decision makers the conceptual and practical guidance for choosing policies that better attend to ecosystem services, this guide aims to help unite nature and development. Instead of solely working to protect natur from development, we may also begin to invest in nature for development.
Resource Type: Reports
Developing and Mainstreaming Ecosystem Service Indicators Workshop »

UNEP-WCMC In collaboration with the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Commission for Ecosystem Management (IUCN -CEM) and the World Resources Institute (WRI) organised and hosted an international workshop on Ecosystem Service Indicators from September 22nd - 23rd 2009. Funded by the Swedish International Biodiversity Programme (SwedBio), the workshop brought together 16 experts from all over the world in the fields of indicators and ecosystem services. The aim of the workshop was to identify a suite of ecosystem service indicators of policy relevance, and the datasets available/necessary to underpin them, that could be applied within assessments and monitoring at different scales.
Resource Type: Reports
Scoping the potential benefits of undertaking an MA-style assessment for England »

The aim of this study was to identify and examine potential benefits of undertaking an ecosystem assessment for England. The need for such a study has arisen largely as a result of the 2005 Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA) which not only demonstrated the importance of ecosystem services to human wellbeing, but also showed that at global scales, many key services are being degraded and lost.
Resource Type: Reports
Carbon Storage in Protected Areas »

This reports looks at the carbon storage function of protected areas as a contribution to the development of strategies for reducing emissions from land use change. In particular, it is relevant to the current discussions surrounding reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD) under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
Resource Type: Reports
Carbon emissions from forest loss in protected areas »

This study combines the best available data on carbon stocks and deforestation with protected area data to estimate the area of forest loss within the protected area network of the humid tropical forest biome during 2000-2005.
Resource Type: Reports
Biodiversity Scenarios: Projections of 21st century change in biodiversity and associated ecosystem services »

This synthesis focuses on estimates of biodiversity change as projected for the 21st century by models or extrapolations based on experiments and observed trends. The term “biodiversity” is used in a broad sense as it is defined in the Convention on Biological Diversity to mean the abundance and distributions of and interactions between genotypes, species, communities, ecosystems and biomes. This synthesis pays particular attention to the interactions between biodiversity and ecosystem services and to critical “tipping points” that could lead to large, rapid and potentially irreversible changes. Comparisons between models are used to estimate the range of projections and to identify sources of uncertainty. Experiments and observed trends are used to check the plausibility of these projections. In addition we have identified possible actions at the local, national and international levels that can be taken to conserve biodiversity. We have called on a wide range of scientists to participate in this synthesis, with the objective to provide decision makers with messages that reflect the consensus of the scientific community and that will aid in the development of policy and management strategies that are ambitious, forward looking and proactive.
Resource Type: Reports
Ecosystems and Human Wellbeing: A Manual for Assessment Practitioners »

This Manual makes the methods of the MA and associated sub-global (local and regional) assessments widely accessible. While the MA is the most comprehensive assessment of ecosystems carried out to date, there are other related assessment processes such as Global Environment Outlook (GEO), Global International Waters Assessment (GIWA), Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), Land Degradation Assessment in Drylands (LADA), International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science and Technology for Development (IAASTD) and World Water Assessment. Lessons learned from these assessments supplement the best practice of ecosystem assessment identified through the MA. The publication of this Manual aims to encourage more assessments at scales which are relevant to policy and decision makers.

Resource Type: Reports
Carbon, biodiversity and ecosystem services: Exploring co-benefits. Nigeria: Preliminary Results »

Well-planned and carefully implemented REDD+ actions can have positive outcomes that are additional to emissions reductions. Such ‘cobenefits’ include conservation of biodiversity and maintenance of ecosystem services. Potential cobenefits from REDD+ are highly relevant in Nigeria, where services provided by forests make an important contribution to the livelihoods of local communities (Aruofor 2001).
Spatial analyses relating potential co-benefits to carbon stocks can support planning and decisionmaking on REDD+. Simple mapping tools can be used to help identify areas where high carbon, high biodiversity priority, and ecosystem service values overlap, and show how these relate to pressures and management options. This brochure presents results from some initial spatial analyses for Nigeria.
Resource Type: Reports
Carbon and biodiversity: A demonstration atlas »

The 24 page demonstration atlas, launched at the 14th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, shows that areas high in both carbon and biodiversity do exist and can be identified by relatively simple mapping tools. Prioritising such areas could give the 'double benefit' of reducing emissions from land use change whilst conserving biodiversity. Three regional maps along with six national maps are shown for the tropics, derived from global-scale data.
Resource Type: Reports
Carbon, Biodiversity & Ecosystem Services: Exploring Co-benefits Cambodia »

Spatial analyses relating to co-benefits can provide key information to support planning and decision-making on REDD+ at national and sub-national scales. To do so, they should be based on data developed at an appropriate scale and should address those benefits and challenges deemed most important by key stakeholders and practitioners.
This report presents results from an initial effort to produce such analyses for Cambodia. It includes new data on the distribution of terrestrial carbon stocks in Cambodia and analyses of its relation to areas of importance for biodiversity, Protected Areas and other land management units, and pressures (such as forest cover loss). It is expected that the study will be developed further in collaboration with other institutes and stakeholders.
Resource Type: Reports