Expert Meeting on Advancing the Measurement of Ecosystem Services for Ecosystem Accounting

Following the decision of the United Nations Statistical Commission (UNSC) at its 48th session, the revision of the System of Environmental-Economic Accounting 2012–Experimental Ecosystem Accounting (SEEA EEA) is underway. The SEEA EEA was endorsed by the UNSC at its 44th session in March 2013 as an important step in the development of a statistical framework for ecosystem accounting. The SEEA EEA offers a synthesis of the current knowledge in ecosystem accounting and serves as a platform for its development at national and sub-national levels.

The aim of the revision process is to build on existing knowledge and experience to develop agreed methodologies on measuring ecosystem extent, ecosystem condition, ecosystem services and valuation of ecosystem assets and services. As a part of the revision process, it has been agreed to focus on a number of selected ecosystem services and use a bottom-up approach to work towards agreed definitions and treatment of ecosystem services in an ecosystem accounting context. As such, ten key ecosystem services were identified, for which discussion papers were drafted outlining their definition(s), biophysical measurement methods and valuation with respect to accounting.

This expert meeting will provide the opportunity for invited experts and representatives from project countries to consider the measurement of ecosystem services in depth and determine an appropriate research agenda that could be informed by or further tested in the project countries and elsewhere in order to advance towards common approaches for ecosystem accounting.