How do we stem biodiversity loss?

Efforts to value and protect ʼnatural capital’ - Earth’s lands, waters, and biodiversity and the stream of benefits that flow from it - have emerged over the past decade in many arenas that formerly seemed far removed from matters of ecology and conservation. For example, several large multi-national corporations have teamed up with conservation organisations to incorporate the values of nature into corporate operations (e.g., Dow Chemical Corporation and The Nature Conservancy, Coca Cola and World Wildlife Fund, Unilever and the Natural Capital Project). The World Bank initiated the Wealth Accounting and Valuation of Ecosystem Services (WAVES) programme. Governments worldwide have established the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES). These, and many other initiatives, make clear that many people now recognise the vital importance of nature for human well-being.