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Where are ‘Cultural’ and ‘Social’ in Ecosystem Services? En prensa. A Framework for Constructive Engagement

Authors:
Kai Ming Adam Chan at University of British Columbia
Kai Ming Adam Chan
Anne Guerry at Stanford University
Anne Guerry
Patricia Balvanera at National Autonomous University of Mexico
Patricia Balvanera
Sarah C. Klain at Utah State University
Sarah C. Klain
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Abstract

A focus on ecosystem services (ES) is seen as a means for improving decisionmaking. In the research to date, the valuation of the material contributions of ecosystems to human well-being has been emphasized, with less attention to important cultural ES and nonmaterial values. This gap persists because there is no commonly accepted framework for eliciting less tangible values, characterizing their changes, and including them alongside other services in decisionmaking. Here, we develop such a framework for ES research and practice, addressing three challenges: (1) Nonmaterial values are ill suited to characterization using monetary methods; (2) it is difficult to unequivocally link particular changes in socioecological systems to particular changes in cultural benefits; and (3) cultural benefits are associated with many services, not just cultural ES. There is no magic bullet, but our framework may facilitate fuller and more socially acceptable integrations of ES information into planning and management.
Chan et al accepted BioSci (where are cultural and social in E
S).pdf
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Chan e tal 2012 Bioscience Where are cultural and social in ecosystem service
s?.pdf
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All content in this area was uploaded by Patricia Balvanera
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




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Uncorrected version

























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Uncorrected version























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Uncorrected version
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




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Uncorrected version
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


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Uncorrected version






















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Uncorrected version






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
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

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
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
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

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Uncorrected version
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
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

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Uncorrected version
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



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






















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

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
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
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

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Uncorrected version
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



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























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Uncorrected version






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




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

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


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


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


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



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Uncorrected version


















 
 










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Uncorrected version













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
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

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


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


























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





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
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



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
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
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
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
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


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Uncorrected version























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Uncorrected version









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
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
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Uncorrected version
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







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Uncorrected version





















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Uncorrected version





















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













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Uncorrected version



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
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
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







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Uncorrected version






































































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Uncorrected version








 

























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... There are at least eight dimensions of value that are relevant for environmental valuation, and corresponding choices of valuation methodology (e.g. preferences vs. principles vs. virtues; other-oriented vs. self-oriented; market-mediated vs. not) Chan, Guerry, et al., 2012;. There are intrinsic, instrumental and relational values (Chan et al., 2016;Chan et al., 2018;Díaz et al., 2015;Himes & Muraca, 2018). ...
... There are felt values, valued attributes, valued assets and valued entities (Jones et al., 2016;Rawluk et al., 2017;Rawluk et al., 2019;Schroeder, 2013). But while this field has long critiqued economic valuation and the utility theory of value that roots it (Adams, 2014;Chan, Guerry, et al., 2012;Gatto & De Leo, 2000;Kallis et al., 2013), it has adopted a wide range of alternative valuation approaches that do not specify a corresponding theory of value (in the sense of a theory that enables the identification of which of several outcomes is better, for an individual or a group, or more broadly). ...
... Such an integrated conception, spanning apparently disparate strands of literature, is fundamental to both intergovernmental assessment (such as via IPBES) and this journal (Díaz et al., 2015;Gaston et al., 2019). In this context, 'multiple values of nature' was intentionally inclusive of the study of values and valuation in relation to ecosystem services (Chan, Guerry, et al., 2012;Daily et al., 2009;Daniel et al., 2012;Gould, Morse, et al., 2019;Gould, Pai, et al., 2019), nature's contributions to people (Díaz et al., 2018;Pascual et al., 2017), and relational values and social values IPBES, 2022;Jacobs et al., 2016;Kenter, 2016). ...
The multiple values of nature show the lack of a coherent theory of value—In any context
Article
Full-text available
  • Apr 2025
Pathways to sustainability require a broader and fuller representation of the multiple values of nature in policy and practice. In this People and Nature special feature entitled ‘The Multiple Values of Nature’, researchers interpreted all three key words differently: multiple, values and nature. The articles also engaged variously with concepts, theory, practice and data. In the face of this diversity, some see a burgeoning field and others see a mess. In this editorial, we characterize the diversity of these contributions and consider whether the field is poised to become mainstream. Specifically, we ask what might be limiting its efforts to unsettle the dominance of economic valuation. Like the broader field, the articles engage little with theory, and only one paper engaged with a theory of value (the dominant ‘utility theory’, rejecting a component of it). All articles thus seemed dissatisfied or disengaged with existing theories of value; this suggests that popular theories of value cannot properly account for the diversity of ways that people value and relate to nature. Perhaps there is a fundamental lack in how we understand value in any context (not just nature). As this fledgling field matures, we argue that building theory is key. Specifically, there is a need to articulate a theory of value to accommodate the multiple values of nature, which relates the various concepts to empirics, and which serves as a foundation to guide practice. To facilitate this theory development, we outline a set of ways that a new theory of value would need to differ from the dominant economic (utility) theory of value in order to explain what is known about the multiple values of nature. Whether by illustrating and enlivening an existing alternative theory of value or by inspiring a new theory, perhaps this fledgling field of the multiple values of nature is poised to disrupt much broader understandings of what matters to people and why. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.
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... Cultural services are also realised by ecosystem functions that produce ecosystem goods, but these are not consumed (non-consumptive use). In the former case, value is derived from the commodity produced from the ecosystem good, for the latter, value is derived from the human activity, the experience that depends on the ecosystem good (Chan et al., 2012). For regulating services, the ecosystem service is realised by the ecosystem function itself, but value is derived down the line from the ecosystem good that is produced. ...
... In fact, for the purpose of monitoring, there would be no difference in the types of measurements and data needed to understand how NCP are changing, and, more generally, there is little operationalizable difference between both terms (Kadykalo et al., 2019;Costanza, 2024). However, the need to reflect additional worldviews is important and much work has been done to recognise the value of ecosystem services beyond their instrumental importance (Chan et al., 2012;Himes and Muraca, 2018;IPBES, 2023;Farley et al., 2024). We welcome the efforts to expand our understanding of the spiritual, cultural and other relational values of ecosystem services. ...
Towards a unified ontology for monitoring ecosystem services
Article
Full-text available
  • Apr 2025
Ecosystem services (ES) are an important part of global and national environmental policies. In this context, there is a call for the monitoring of ES to support their management. However, the proliferation of terms used within ES science is a barrier to standardised monitoring. Monitoring ES requires knowing exactly what variables to measure and how they relate to change in the states of ES. It further requires interoperability between methodologies used by information systems to operationalise data flows. Here, we aim to systematise the language used to define ES and the terminology used in their monitoring by developing an ontology for ES monitoring. Ontologies are tools that operationalise concepts and the relationships among terms used to define them. An ontology allows people and machines to use terms consistently. Building on advances in other disciplines , the ES monitoring ontology systematises the language of ES across major conceptual frameworks advancing conceptual clarity and operationalisation of ES. We test the ES monitoring ontology with data from three ES in British Columbia, Canada, to highlight how it can enable information sharing and monitoring. We show that the ontology can organise and retrieve information and data for ES monitoring in a systematic way. Our work contributes to advancing interoperability of ES, taking a step towards systematically understanding ES change with automated tools. We invite members of the ES community to join the effort of developing this ontology for ES so that can it contribute to the challenge of systematically monitoring change in social-ecological systems.
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... The next major challenge to be overcome is thus operational: the development of valuation pathways for human perceptions of ecosystem value which are currently generally considered intangible, and without a priori knowledge as to whose values should be counted [21][22][23]. This is an evolving field that necessarily involves a multidisciplinary approach that can intrinsically capture different integrated knowledge systems and hold authentic perceptions of the people. ...
... The data shows that Statements about ES values could be elicited from many types of groups (e.g., teachers, councils, youth groups). This is relevant to current ES conversations in the literature and also calls for deeper consideration as to whose values should now be counted [21][22][23] and for the integration of indigenous knowledge [45][46][47]. Previously, it was environmental or development experts who produced information on ES values on behalf of local people who were not thought able to understand the full meaning of the externally generated questions. ...
Demonstrating the Values-Based WeValue InSitu Approach to Capture Hidden Intangible Benefits of Ecosystem Services in Nigeria
Article
Full-text available
  • Mar 2025
The valuation of the benefits to humans of ecosystem services (ESs) provided by nature has become increasingly important. A current challenge is the measurement of the range of benefits which are not traded in the marketplace and are generally considered intangible, with further challenges to even classify them formally, e.g., as cultural ecosystem services (CESs). Previous studies have emphasized a related challenge: the strong need for engagement of not just experts but ’ordinary people’. Approaches using participatory approaches and less formal communication pathways to draw out local CES values have been reported. However, critical reflections of those studies reported significant differences in understanding between ’outsider researchers’ and ’locals’, calling validity deeply into question. Even deliberative approaches backfired by significantly modifying local social constructs during elicitation. In this study, we demonstrate a fundamentally different kind of approach, developed from the bottom–up sustainability indicator development process called WeValue InSitu. It focuses not on improving deeper top–down ‘engagement’ of a specific topic, but instead on improving local articulation of existing envelopes of in situ human shared values, naturally integrated. The WeValue InSitu output is a framework of separate but interlinked concise Statements of local shared values. Some of these Statements may refer to values concerning ecosystems, but situated amongst others. Here, we analyze the outputs from 23 convenience groups in three sites in Nigeria and investigate the shared values found empirically against existing economics-based MEA classifications. The findings include hybrid values which span existing CES sub-categories and even across into market-based categories. This opens a discussion as to whether future ES valuation frameworks might evolve more usefully with foundations built on empirically derived typologies of human values, rather than bolt-on modifications to financially based economics concepts. It also raises questions about the validity of current valuations made which cannot capture empirically found human values.
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... The notion of the services that ecosystems (ES) provide to humans presents a new framework for understanding humanenvironment relationships and managing them in a more sustainable way (Costanza et al. 1997, Folke 2006a, De Groot et al. 2006, 2010, Egoh et al. 2007, Fisher et al. 2008, 2009). However, this proposal, aside from the risk of economistic reductionism (Ariely 2008, Stiglitz et al. 2010, Chan et al. 2012a, 2012b, Felipe-Lucía et al. 2014, presents from the outset a clear biophysical prejudice, focusing on the factors and elements of ecosystems that provide services to human beings, but paying little or no attention to the opposite direction, that is, to the services that humans provide, or could potentially provide, for the maintenance of core ecosystem processes. ...
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... The natural environment provides diverse contributions, such as opportunities for recreation, spiritual fulfillment, and esthetic experiences, which have a substantial impact on human well-being across different scales [1]. Academics have consistently stressed the significance of elucidating the intricate trade-offs between humans and nature and revealing the ways in which elements of the natural environment intersect with human wellbeing [2]. ...
A Study on the Spatiotemporal Characteristics of the Xi’an Metropolitan Area Based on the Coupling and Coordination of Ecosystem Services and Human Well-Being
Article
Full-text available
  • Feb 2025
The escalating conflict between ecosystem degradation and the rising demands of humanity has rendered the attainment of a scientific balance between ecosystem services and human well-being a critical concern in research on human–environment coupling and sustainable development. Metropolitan areas are pivotal in long-term sustainable development strategies and regional equity due to rapid urbanization and the tension between ecosystem degradation and human well-being. This study proposes a novel perspective, transitioning from a “cascade” to a “coupling” approach in examining the relationship between ecosystem services and human well-being. Taking the Xi’an metropolitan area as the research subject, the research employs a coupling coordination degree model to analyze the spatiotemporal characteristics of their relationship across multiple scales. The key findings of the paper are as follows: (1) We found a severe shrinkage in the ecosystem service value (2000–2020). The ecosystem services in the Xi’an metropolitan area were significantly compromised under the pressure of homogenized human well-being improvement, resulting in weak coupling and coordination between the two. (2) There was a spatial imbalance between supply and demand. Ecosystem service values displayed a core-to-periphery increasing spatial pattern, while human well-being levels exhibited a core-to-periphery decreasing distribution, indicating a marked spatial mismatch. (3) Diverse coupling dynamics within the region were identified. Driven by factors such as the resource distribution, land use, scale effects, and benefit allocation, the coupling relationships between ecosystem services and human well-being varied across development stages and contexts. Ecosystem services functioned as either flexible facilitators or constraints on human well-being improvement. This research provides a blueprint for sustainable development, offering a framework to balance urban growth with ecological health while ensuring equitable well-being across the Xi’an metropolitan area. The study highlights the need for strict ecological space protection, enhanced urban development quality, and integrated human–environment system management. Efforts should focus on minimizing land use trade-offs and spatial competition, strengthening spatial synergy in supply–demand coupling, and promoting sustainable regional development.
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... CEPs serve as crucial platforms for fostering collaborative dialogue between community members and local authorities, enabling the identification of specific needs related to CNV in walkability (Svara & Denhardt, 2010). Engagement programs often lead to the incorporation of culturally significant elements into the urban fabric, creating visually stimulating environments that celebrate diversity and enhance the overall aesthetic experience of walking (Chan et al., 2012). ...
How walkable are our cities for older adults? Mediation of comfort, convenience, and aesthetics
Article
Full-text available
  • Feb 2025
Background This study investigates the mediating role of comfort (CMT), convenience (CNV), and aesthetics (AST) in the relationship between the enablers of an age-friendly built environment for walkability (BEW) and outcomes such as increased physical activity level (IPL), increased socialization (ISL), and improved quality of life (IQL) in older adults. The research emphasizes the importance of creating age-friendly environments to support the well-being and quality of life of older adults, with implications for urban planners and policymakers to promote sustainable and inclusive design. Methods The research follows a positivist paradigm using a quantitative approach and survey strategy with a cross-sectional design. A sample of 333 older adults was selected using the convenience sampling technique, and data were gathered through a self-administered questionnaire. Results Findings from hypothesis testing indicate that, among the enablers, age-friendly urban design policies (AUP) are the most significant construct, positively impacting all three mediating variables. AST was found to have a significant positive effect on IPL and ISL, while CMT and CNV significantly influenced IPL and IQL, respectively. Conclusion These results suggest implications for urban planners and policymakers to enhance the contribution of BEW toward IPL, ISL, and IQL for older adults. The research offers valuable insights for academics and practitioners, emphasizing the importance of sustainable design while ensuring inclusivity to promote the well-being and quality of life of older adults.
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... As social systems develop and material needs for cultivated land are met, people place greater emphasis on non-material benefits, such as spirituality and culture. The non-material benefits derived from cropland ecosystems, such as spiritual enrichment, cognitive development, reflection, recreation, and aesthetic experiences, have led to the development of another type of cropland function: cultural landscape functions [32,33]. Such functions are seen as "secondary products" of the interaction between cropland systems and social systems. ...
How Can the Capability Approach Contribute to a New Perspective on the Value of Cropland Ecosystem Services?
Article
Full-text available
  • Feb 2025
Cultivated land ecosystems are complex systems that integrate human activities with natural environments, playing a critical role in both ecological and socio-economic processes. These ecosystems face significant challenges, including land degradation, soil erosion, and biodiversity loss. Despite their importance, there is currently no standardized conceptual framework or unified approach for valuing cultivated land ecosystems and their ecosystem services. This paper aims to address this gap by developing a comprehensive framework that incorporates the unique characteristics of cultivated land ecosystems, with particular focus on the relationship between ecosystem services and human well-being. It introduces a novel theoretical approach for evaluating these services through the capability approach, emphasizing the integration of key concepts, the clarification of ecosystem service definitions, and the classification of their functions. Furthermore, the study explores the practical applications of this framework for the management and valuation of cultivated land ecosystems. The capability approach, as an innovative solution, is utilized to support and enhance the ecosystem services and benefits provided by cultivated land ecosystems, ultimately contributing to improved social well-being. The findings of this research are crucial for promoting sustainable management practices and advancing the implementation of ecological compensation strategies within the context of cultivated land.
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Conservation and Development in Uganda
Book
Full-text available
  • Jan 2018
Uganda has extensive protected areas and iconic wildlife (including mountain gorillas), which exist within a complex social and political environment. In recent years Uganda has been seen as a test bed and model case study for numerous and varied approaches to address complex and connected conservation and development challenges. This volume reviews and assesses these initiatives, collecting new research and analyses both from emerging scholars and well-established academics in Uganda and around the globe. Approaches covered range from community-based conservation to the more recent proliferation of neoliberalised interventions based on markets and payments for ecosystem services. Drawing on insights from political ecology, human geography, institutional economics, and environmental science, the authors explore the challenges of operationalising truly sustainable forms of development in a country whose recent history is characterised by a highly volatile governance and development context. They highlight the stakes for vulnerable human populations in relation to large and growing socioeconomic inequalities, as well as for Uganda's rich, unique, and globally significant biodiversity. They illustrate the conflicts that occur between competing claims of conservation, agriculture, tourism, and the energy and mining industries. Crucially, the book draws out lessons that can be learned from the Ugandan experience for conservation and development practitioners and scholars around the world.
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Framing ecosystem services to change behavior: economic vs. cultural benefits debate overshadowed by political orientation, place attachment, and lakefront residence
Article
Full-text available
  • Feb 2025
Ecosystem services may serve as a powerful communications concept in that they frame environmental issues through their effects on human well-being. However, a debate has arisen about whether it is more effective in changing people’s behaviors to frame services as providing material, monetary benefits, or to focus on the nonmaterial, cultural benefits associated with human-nature relationships. Using an online survey (N = 292), we examined the effects on concern, behavioral intentions, and action of video messages about cyanobacteria blooms in Lake Champlain, Vermont, USA, that focused on ecosystem services framed as economic or cultural benefits, both individual and collective, along with the roles of political orientation, lakefront residency, personal relevance, information recall, place attachment, and socio-demographics. Place attachment strongly predicted behavioral intentions and personal relevance of the messages. However, the messages did not affect any outcome variables except when considering lakefront residency. Not only did lakefront residents report greater place attachment, but respondents who received the Individual Cultural benefits message found it more personally relevant, resulting in greater behavioral intentions than those receiving the Collective Cultural benefits message. Open-ended questions revealed that negative reactions to certain messages and feelings of ecological grief may also be influencing behavior. We explored what the lack of a main treatment effect and the presence audience segmentation effects could mean for communicators and researchers interested in environmental behavior change. We conclude that while cultural benefit-focused messages may not affect change through short, one-way communications, they could still have an impact when incorporated into longer, more interactive approaches.
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A Typology for the Classification Description and Valuation of Ecosystem Functions, Goods and Services
Article
Full-text available
  • Feb 2002
  • ECOL ECON
An increasing amount of information is being collected on the ecological and socio-economic value of goods and services provided by natural and semi-natural ecosystems. However, much of this information appears scattered throughout a disciplinary academic literature, unpublished government agency reports, and across the World Wide Web. In addition, data on ecosystem goods and services often appears at incompatible scales of analysis and is classified differently by different authors. In order to make comparative ecological economic analysis possible, a standardized framework for the comprehensive assessment of ecosystem functions, goods and services is needed. In response to this challenge, this paper presents a conceptual framework and typology for describing, classifying and valuing ecosystem functions, goods and services in a clear and consistent manner. In the following analysis, a classification is given for the fullest possible range of 23 ecosystem functions that provide a much larger number of goods and services. In the second part of the paper, a checklist and matrix is provided, linking these ecosystem functions to the main ecological, socio–cultural and economic valuation methods.
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Mis-measuring our lives : why GDP doesn't add up?
Book
  • Apr 2010
Mismeasuring Our Lives is the result of this major intellectual effort, containing pressing relevance for anonyme engaged in assessing how and whether our economy is serving the needs of our society. The authors offer a sweeping assessment of GDP's limitations as a measurement of the well-being of societies and introduce a bold array of new concepts from sustainable measures of economic welfare to evaluations of savings and wealth and a "green GDP". At a time when policy makers worldwide are grappling with unprecedented global financial and environmemntal issues. Mismeasuring Our Lives is an essential guide to measuring the things that matter most.
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