Tuesday, 20 February 2024
11:00 – 12:30 CET
GoToWebinar

Abstract

Ecosystems provide services to economy and society. Ecological processes become services when an ecosystem potential supply interacts with a socio-economic demand. On the one hand, the match between these two sides generates a service flow; on the other hand, a mis-match may occur when a potential flow is not used, or when there are no ecosystems able to provide the needed services. Both matches and mis-matches can be eventually translated in monetary terms are respectively (i) provide the total economic value of the service flow, and (ii) the estimate of what is yearly lost because ecosystems are not able to provide what is needed. Such quantitative measurements can be used in a variety of ways: from the time series analysis, to the computation of composite indicators and sustainability scoreboards; they can also be used as input variables in conventional economic tools to assess the economic impacts of changes that affect forest ecosystems. This presentation illustrates each of these cases with concrete applications processed through the Integrated system for Natural Capital Accounting project (INCA) and further developed through the LInking ecosystem Services and Benefits to Economy THrough bridging (LISBETH) initiative.

Speaker

Alessandra La Notte holds a PhD in Environmental Economics from the University of Trento (Italy) and a Master Degree in Environmental Management and Development from the Australian National University (Canberra, Australia). She is specialized in environmental and ecosystem accounting and in the monetary valuation of ecosystem services. Since working at the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission, Alessandra developed an operational approach to assess, value and account for different types of ecosystem services through the project “Integrated system of Natural Capital Accounts” (INCA). She is also exploring how ecosystem accounts can be used in economy and finance through the initiative “LInking ecosystem Services and Benefit to the Economy THrough bridging” (LISBETH). Alessandra is part of the UN SEEA EA Technical Committee and of the UN SEEA EA Working Group on Oceans. She is currently Associate Editor for the journal Ecosystem Services (Elsevier) and member of the Value Commission of the Natural Capital Coalition.