This set of policy briefs describes how NCA can be used as a tool to address global issues such as sustainable development, poverty, and valuing marine and coastal ecosystems.
Natural Capital Accounting and the Sustainable Development Goals
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) aim to eradicate poverty and place all countries on a sustainable development path by 2030. This requires better and more integrated information on how the economy, environment and society interact. Natural capital accounting can help deliver the SDGs by making explicit the links between the economy and the environment, enabling sustainable policy decisions and actions, and monitoring progress.
Using Natural Capital Accounts to Inform Marine and Coastal Ecosystems Policy
Marine and coastal ecosystems provide a range of critical ‘ecosystem services’, from biodiversity and culture to carbon storage and flood protection. Yet pollution, overfishing, climate change and habitat destruction are rapidly degrading these ecosystems, putting cities and communities, water quality and livelihoods at risk. Using natural capital accounting (NCA) to work out the full value provided by marine and coastal ecosystems and the losses attributable to development activities could inform policies for sustainable management.
