Delivering the Blueprint for a Green Economy, 30 Years On

Can economic approaches be relied upon to conserve nature?

A conference organised by the Cambridge Conservation Initiative (CCI)

With sponsorship by the OECD Co-operative Research Programme

Thursday 19th September

David Attenborough Building,

Pembroke Street, Cambridge, CB2 3QZ

Agenda ...... 2 Conference Location ...... 4 Conference Speakers and Abstracts ...... 5 Conference Organisers and Session Chairs ...... 16 Attendee list ...... 21

Agenda

Environmental economists have been telling us for decades what changes are needed to our economic system to enable better stewardship of nature. The seminal Blueprint for a Green Economy was published 30 years ago and clearly set out the required principles of an economic system that takes nature’s values into account. Numerous high level plans and blueprints outlining natural capital and green economy approaches have followed in its wake.

Such approaches have had some impact on business and public policy. But, so far, they have failed to halt the over-exploitation and under-investment in nature.

What more needs to change for economic approaches to deliver a green economy? Or are there limits to what economics can solve?

09:00 Registration

09:15 Welcome: Dr. Mike Rands

09:20 The Blueprint for a Green Economy 30 years on Prof Bhaskar Vira, University of Chair Cambridge 09:25 Dr. Ichiro Nakayama, OECD The OECD Cooperative Research Cooperative Research Programme Programme and its support for research into managing natural capital 09:40 Prof. Anil Markandya, Basque Centre From Blueprints to Implementation for Climate Change 10:10 Prof. Gretchen Daily, Stanford The Power of Economics to Harmonize University Natural Capital Project People and Nature 10:25 Dr. Katharine Bolt, Cambridge Are there limits on economics to deliver Conservation Initiative / RSPB nature conservation? 10:40 Discussion

11:00 COFFEE

11:15 HM Treasury The Dasgupta Review of the Economics of Biodiversity

11:25 Mainstreaming environmental values across public policy Matthew Agarwala, Bennett Institute Chair for Public Policy 11:30 John Maughan, Green Growth Review of natural capital approach Knowledge Platform (GGKP) implementation 11:45 Annawati van Paddenburg, Global Integrating natural capital into green Green Growth Institute (GGGI) growth assessments to inform government decision making 12:00 Ed Perry, OECD Mainstreaming natural capital into public policy: insights from the OECD 12:15 Discussion

12:30 – 13:30 LUNCH

13:30 Reflecting environmental values in decision-making across a landscape James Vause, UNEP-WCMC Chair 13:35 Prof. Ian Hodge, University of Organisations for the local governance of Cambridge natural capital 13:50 Roel Posthoorn, Marker Wadden Marker Wadden, the importance of smart Project governance in landscape scale ecological restoration 14:05 Prof. Unai Pascual, Basque Centre for Mind the gap: Landscape level relational Climate Change and IPBES values in voluntary agri-environmental programs 14:20 Ivo Mulder, UN Environment Blended finance as a means to direct Programme private finance towards sustainable land use 14:35 Discussion

14:45 COFFEE

15:00 National experience of using economics to better manage nature Martin Lok, Natural Capital Coalition Chair 15:05 Gretchen Daily, Stanford Natural Natural capital science and policy for an Capital Project Ecological Civilization in China

15:20 Joey Au, Government of New Zealand The re-emergence of natural capital accounting in New Zealand – why now, why that and why we must continue?

15:35 Stuart Whitten, CSIRO Environmental market design in Australia

15:50 Discussion

16:00 The costs and benefits of using economics to achieve a more sustainable future Jonny Hughes, UNEP-WCMC Chair 16:05 Ruth Davis, RSPB and DEFRA Where do economic approaches fit into the politics of change around nature? 16:20 Final panel discussion

17:00 Close

Thursday evening: For delegates attending the dinner, this will be held from 18:00 at Magdalene College which is a 10-15 minute walk from the David Attenborough Building: Magdalene College, Magdalene St, Cambridge CB3 0AG. Google Maps link: https://goo.gl/maps/HNE1ZaZvWAtQYqZy8

For delegates attending the workshops on Friday, these will be held in the David Attenborough Building main seminar room from 10am. Further details will be provided separately.

Conference Location

The conference is being held in the main seminar room of the David Attenborough Building:

David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge, CB2 3QZ, UK

To find the main entrance, please go through the arch on Pembroke Street (see arrow on map), opposite the junction with Tennis Court Road. The David Attenborough building is the large building ahead of you, with the Museum of Zoology and the whale skeleton at the front. The main entrance is up the steps on the far right (see star on map)

The David Attenborough Building is close to the main bus station in Cambridge, Drummer Street, which is a few minutes’ walk away. Please visit the Cambridge Country Council's website for more information on bus timetables, routes, etc. The railway station is c. 20-25 minutes' walk away from the building. Click here for a map of the walking route between the David Attenborough Building and the station. There is a taxi rank by the station as well as numerous bus stops. There is no car parking on site, apart from two disabled car-parking spaces. Please contact reception in advance to request use of these. The nearest car park is the Grand Arcade car park, the entrance to which is on Corn Exchange Street, but it is very expensive. We would recommend the park and ride system for drivers. You can view the map of the park and ride sites on the council's website. You might also find the following links useful:

 How to get to Cambridge  Interactive map of the Cambridge University  More information about the David Attenborough Building

Conference Speakers and Abstracts

Joey Au

Position / Organisation

Principal Policy Advisor, Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment, Government of New Zealand & Institute for Governance and Policy Studies, Victoria University of Wellington

Talk title

The re-emergence of natural capital accounting in New Zealand – why now, why that and why we must continue?

Abstract

Over the past years, we have witnessed a renewed effort to go beyond Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in measuring wellbeing and social progress. More recently, the New Zealand Government has made a commitment to do the same. The adoption of a “Living Standards Framework” or a stronger wellbeing lens across government has created the need for more and better data to not only track progress but also inform policy. Environmental data, specifically Natural capital accounting, has seen a renewed focus from a number of government departments in New Zealand, including both Statistics New Zealand (measurement) and the New Zealand Treasury (policy- makers). The aim is to provide more information about the quantity, state and value of natural capital in New Zealand, and inform decision-making by providing more quantitative information on the environmental costs and benefits of public policies. While the measurement of natural capital is not an easy one, this journey has started in New Zealand and must continue. Wellbeing is associated with people’s ability to live the lives they value. If the purpose of public policy is to improve the wellbeing of individuals and communities then measuring the progress of wellbeing, which includes natural capital, is of public interest.

Biography

Joey Au is Principal Policy Advisor at the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE), a Committee Member of the New Zealand (NZ) Government Economics Network (GEN) and on the New Zealand Association of Economist (NZAE) Council. He has previously worked at the NZ Treasury as Senior Advisor to the Chief Economist and at the OECD as an Economist.

Dr. Katharine Bolt

Position / organisation

Senior Economist, RSPB and Co-Coordinator for the CCI Natural Capital Working Group

Talk title

Are there limits on economics to deliver nature conservation?

Abstract

The Blueprint for a Green Economy stressed that achieving a green economy required urgent policy change in three areas: valuing the environment, accounting for the environment, and creating incentives for environmental improvement. The past 30 years has seen significant progress on valuation with sophisticated tools and advice on ‘how to do it’ now readily available.

Yet, much more needs to be done to create the incentives needed to reduce over-exploitation and under-investment in natural resources. It will be argued that more attention should be placed on what to do when economists cannot provide valuations to aide decision-making. Clearer accountability is needed and systems governance to achieve better management of natural capital.

Biography

Dr. Bolt is an environmental economist working in policy and advocacy. Her main interest is around how to address the failure of our economic system to take the importance of the natural world into account. She has worked on a wide range of policy issues in the UK and internationally, having previously worked at UNEP-WCMC and the World Bank as well as being seconded to the UK’s Natural Capital Committee. She leads the RSPB’s work on natural capital and is currently on secondment to the Cambridge Conservation Initiative where she is co-managing the CCI Natural Capital Hub which serves the Natural Capital Working Group.

Professor Gretchen Daily

Position / Organisation

Director, Center for Conservation Biology, Bing Professor of Environmental Science, Department of Biology Senior Fellow, Woods Institute for the Environment

Talk title #1

The Power of Economics to Harmonize People and Nature

Abstract #1

An awakening is underway, to the values of nature and the risks and devastating costs of its loss. I will summarize briefly an approach to valuing nature in policy and finance, advanced by the Natural Capital Project, an international partnership. Using new forms of science, data, software, and engagement, the approach is being deployed by governments, investors, businesses and communities all over the world. China and Latin America stand out today for innovation at scale, illuminating pathways toward green, inclusive development

Talk title #2

Natural Capital Science and Policy for an Ecological Civilization in China

Abstract #2

China’s ongoing efforts to build an ecological civilization constitute the most comprehensive and large-scale strategy to achieve inclusive, green growth by any major economy. The lofty ambition is to weave the diverse strands of nature into the fabric of Chinese society, not only to protect human wellbeing but also to elevate it. I will briefly describe the core elements of this transformation, with emphasis on the natural capital dimensions, including (i) the China Ecosystem Assessment; (ii) land zoning; (iii) Ecological Development Strategy; (iv) financial investments; and (v) Gross Ecosystem Product.

Biography

Gretchen Daily is Bing Professor of Environmental Science, Senior Fellow in the Stanford Woods Institute, Director of the Center for Conservation Biology, and co-founder and faculty director of the Natural Capital Project. An ecologist by training, Daily’s research is on understanding the

dynamics of change in the biosphere, their implications for human well-being, and the deep societal transformations needed to secure people and nature. She works extensively with governments, multilateral development banks, businesses, communities, and NGOs. Working together, the aim is to illuminate the connections between people and nature, and to advance innovative approaches for improving the well-being of both.

Daily co-founded the Natural Capital Project (www.naturalcapitalproject.org), a global partnership that is integrating the values of nature into policy, finance and management globally. Its tools and approaches are now used in 185 nations through the free and open-source Natural Capital Data & Software Platform. Daily has published several hundred scientific and popular articles, and a dozen books, including last week Green Growth that Works: Natural Capital Policy and Finance Mechanisms from Around the World. Daily is a fellow of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the American Philosophical Society.

Ruth Davis

Position / Organisation

Deputy Director, Policy, RSPB

Talk title

Where do economic approaches fit into the politics of change around nature?

Abstract

This talk will focus on the extent to which current approaches to natural capital have penetrated the political economy of decision-making, particularly in the UK; barriers to the take-up of natural capital approaches; lessons that can be learnt from other sectors (in particular, transformation in the energy economy); and some steps that could be taken to increase the impact and saliency of NC approaches in 2020 and beyond. Biography

Ruth Davis is a writer, campaigner, political analyst and conservationist with over twenty years’ experience in the environment sector. Her areas of interest include the relationship between environmental politics, social justice and the wider politics of the common good; the importance of place and a love of nature in determining identity and fostering well-being; and how these forces interact with different models of economic development and democratic participation, to shape future land-use planning, housing and infrastructure choices. She took her first degree in English at Oxford before studying at Kew Gardens and Reading University, where she obtained an MSc in Plant Sciences. Between 1997 and 2001 she managed an extensive programme of conservation projects for Plantlife – the Wild Plant Conservation Charity - before joining the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, where she lead the Society’s work on water and climate change. From 2009 to 2015 she was Political Director at Greenpeace UK, where she helped develop and implement campaigns on climate and energy, fair and sustainable fishing and the protection of the Arctic. Ruth writes extensively about the philosophy, politics and practice of environmentalism, and was awarded an MBE for services to the environment in 2014.

Professor Ian Hodge

Position / Organisation

Professor, University of Cambridge, Dept. Land Economy

Talk Title

Organisations for the local governance of natural capital

Abstract

Because of the complex interactions in the provision of ecosystem services, effective delivery of value from natural capital depends on a co-ordinated approach. These interactions are also often best understood and valued at a local scale. The government’s 25 Year Environment Plan proposes an element of local delivery through a catchment system operator but without any detail. We have also proposed a role for Local Environmental Governance Organisations. Local governance would provide locally based valuation and decision-making, planning for natural capital, working with relevant stakeholders and procuring the delivery of ecosystem services. A system of such organisations might be imposed at a national scale or it might evolve from existing local government or partnerships. There is currently a wide variety of local initiatives that seek to co-ordinate aspects of ecosystem management. These may be established by government or by voluntary bodies. Some have capacity to influence land use while others are purely consultative. None combines direct influence and broad coverage across ecosystems services. In the absence of a nationally imposed layer of governance, there is a need to extend the role of such organisations by granting them extra powers and /or merging roles to establish a broader remit.

Biography

Ian is Professor of Rural Economy and Fellow of Hughes Hall in the University of Cambridge. He came to Cambridge in 1983 and was the Gilbey Lecturer until 2000. Prior to that he lectured in agricultural economics at the Universities of Newcastle and Queensland. He was head of Department of Land Economy, 2002-2011. He is a member of Defra’s Economic Advisory Panel and Rural Academic Panel. He undertakes research and publishes in the areas of rural environmental governance, property institutions, rural development and land use, including books on Rural Employment (with Martin Whitby), Countryside in Trust (with Janet Dwyer), Environmental Economics, and the Governance of the Countryside, published by Cambridge University Press in 2016.

Professor Anil Markandya

Position / Organisation

Former Scientific Director/ Distinguished Ikerbasque Professor, Basque Centre for Climate Change

Talk title

From Blueprints to Implementation

Abstract

The talk will cover the role of Blueprint for a Green Economy (BGE) in mainstreaming the ideas of environmental economics in economic policy. It sets out the main messages that BGE laid out 30 years ago and how they are relevant today. The themes from the book it develops are: a. The role of natural capital, what it consists of and how it is important to track changes in the stock as part of efficient management of the natural environment as well as monitoring progress on sustainable development.

b. How the idea of sustainable development has been operationalized through the ´capitals approach` and through incentives that take account of the environmental impacts of actions. c. Rethinking the economy-environment trade-off so it is perceived differently and ways of obtaining both sustainable growth and environmental quality are promoted.

The main tools for implementation of a green economy consist of valuing the environment, accounting for economic growth and wellbeing in ways that better record the use of the environment and providing the right incentives to different agents so they do not overuse and misuse our limited environmental resources. These tools are described and progress in using them is discussed.

The talk goes on to look at what overall progress has been made in moving to a green economy. While there have been positive changes in some areas, the overall picture is one of major environmental challenges where the situation is deteriorating. Some suggestions for what needs to be done to reverse these trends are offered.

Biography

Anil Markandya is a resource economist who has worked in this field for over thirty years and is acknowledged as one of the leading authorities. He graduated from the London School of Economics with a Master of Science in Econometrics in 1968 and was awarded his Ph.D. on the Economics of the Environment in 1975. Since then he has divided his time between academic and advisory work. On the academic side he has published widely in the areas of climate change, environmental valuation, environmental policy, energy and environment, green accounting, macroeconomics and trade. Some of his best-known works include, ´Blueprint for a Green Economy’, ´Green Accounting in Europe’, ´Reconciling Trade and Development’ and ´Cleaning the Ganges’.

He has held academic positions at the universities of Princeton, Berkeley and Harvard in the US and at University College London and Bath University in the UK. He was a lead author for Chapters of the 3rd and 4th IPCC Assessment Reports on Climate Change. He was appointed the Executive Director for the Basque Centre for Climate Change in April 2008.

Professor Markandya has worked extensively on climate change and energy and environment issues and has received a number of awards. He was one of the core team that drafted the IPCC 4th Assessment that was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007. Recently he was author of a paper on climate regulation that was awarded 2nd Prize at the World Energy Council in Rome in November 2007. In 2008 he was nominated by Cambridge University as one of the 50 most influential thinkers on sustainability in the world. In 2012 he was made President Elect of the European Association of Environmental & Resource Economists (EAERE), his two year term as President beginning January 2014.

Professor Markandya has also been an advisor to many national and international organizations, including all the international development banks, UNDP, the EU and the governments of India and the UK. At the World Bank he was a Lead Advisor and worked closely on energy and environmental issues with many governments in Asia, Central Europe and the Former Soviet Union.

John Maughan

Position / Organisation

Research Programme Manager, Green Growth Knowledge Partnership (GGKP)

Talk title

Review of natural capital approach implementation

Abstract

The Green Growth Knowledge Platform (GGKP) is a global network of organisations and experts that identifies and addresses knowledge gaps in green growth theory and practice. Among the key knowledge gaps preventing natural capital implementation identified by the GGKP Natural Capital Expert Working Group is a dearth of "success stories". To flesh out this knowledge gap, the GGKP teamed up with UCL to conduct a systematized review of over 300 natural capital case studies in grey and academic literature, comparing them on the basis of natural capital stock, region, information type, policy relevance and policy impact. The results show that most case studies focus on providing technical advice. Of those which explicitly work to inform policy, including many examples from the accounting literature, impact is rarely assessed suggesting a large gap in ex- post impact analysis. Next steps for this work include building a robust online GGKP database of natural capital case studies and disseminating best practices for producing success stories in the green growth and natural capital field.

Biography

John Maughan manages the Green Growth Knowledge Platform’s engagement in research and knowledge generation. He serves as the Secretariat’s primary focal point for the GGKP research committees. Prior to joining GGKP, John worked on international economic and environmental affairs at UN Environment and the US Government. He has produced various publications on sustainable development and international economic law. Originally from Minnesota, USA, he is an alumnus of the Graduate Institute for International and Development Studies in Geneva and Reed College in Portland, Oregon.

Ivo Mulder

Position / Organisation

Programme Officer, UN Environment Programme

Talk title

Blended finance as a means to direct private finance towards sustainable land use.

Abstract

My presentation first focuses on a) the problem statement: public & private incentives are almost unilaterally destroying ecosystems; b) why is so little private capital directed to sustainable land use? c) Overview of UNEP’s overall approach to create positive change + examples of blended finance models (e.g. loans and bonds) to direct private finance

Biography

Ivo Mulder is a Programme Officer at UNEP Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) and leads the programme on ecosystems, water and biodiversity. Over the past years he has built a team at UNEP FI and founded the Natural Capital Declaration, which aims to mainstream natural capital integration in the finance sector. He also directed an innovative project on sovereign credit risk (called E-RISC) and co-initiated the REDD+ project at UNEP FI that stimulates private sector engagement. Mr. Mulder published more than forty articles and reports on how and where climate change,

ecosystem and water issues are financially material for banks, investors and the broader corporate sector. He has over eight years of experience working in the UN, academia, consulting and with NGOs on building the business case for companies – especially financial institutions - to deal with climate, water and ecosystem changes. He holds a MSc in Environmental Sciences from Wageningen University in the Netherlands

Dr. Ichiro Nakayama

Position / Organisation

OECD Cooperative Research Programme representative & National Institute of Fisheries Science, Tokyo

Talk title

An overview of the OECD Co-operative Research Program: Biological Resource Management for Sustainable Agricultural Systems

Abstract:

Dr. Nakayama is the representative of the OECD Cooperative Research programme that is sponsoring this meeting. In this presentation he will introduce the OECD and the Cooperative Research Programme and talk about how the conference is expected to contribute to their research theme of managing natural capital.

Biography

Ichiro NAKAYAMA received his Ph.D. in fish genetics from University of Paris VI, France and he was the Director General in National Research Institute of Fisheries Science (NRIFS), Fisheries Research Agency Japan till March 2018. He has experience not only in science field but, also in the administration field.

He was Assistant Director to Counsellor (Energy and Environment), Council for Science and Technology, Cabinet Office, Government of Japan in 2001-2003, Counsellor, Fisheries Agency, Government of Japan in 2011-2013. He conducted his research team in fish and algae genomics in NRIFS, his research field is Aquaculture and Fisheries Science, main subjects are Fish Genetics, Breeding, Biotechnology, Molecular biology. He moved to Nippon Suisan Kaisha, Ltd. from April 2018 as aquaculture R&D Adviser. Since 2016, he was nominated as a Scientific Advisory Body member at Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Cooperation Research Programme (CRP), he is one of the co-ordinators for Theme I (MANAGING NATURAL CAPITAL FOR THE FUTURE).

Annawati van Paddenburg

Position / Organisation

Deputy Director and Head of Sustainable Landscapes, Investment and Policy Solutions Division, Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI)

Talk Title

Integrating natural capital into green growth assessments to inform government decision making

Abstract

While economies have gradually started to include emission reduction measures into economic systems, measuring change and accounting for natural capital in economic systems more holistically is still far from reality. Data is limited, information is sporadic and appropriate natural capital indicators are not yet standardised. Policy and economic decision makers see interventions to restore land, reduce biodiversity loss and manage climate risks as a burden - a cost - rather than an investment which leads to increased longer-term productivity and prosperity - green growth.

The Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), is building the evidence base for green growth, that investing in actions which enhance natural capital supports sustainable economic development. As a treaty-based intergovernmental agency, GGGI supports developing and emerging government partners to move towards a green growth economy, one which is environmentally sustainable and socially inclusive. A key thematic area is Sustainable Landscapes, which recognizes that landscape interventions, such as intercropping, agroforestry, organic farming, solar irrigation which enhance natural capital as well as interventions to strengthen their stewardship of such capital (human and social capital), are critical inputs to the economy. Business models with the above types of interventions embedded inherently in their operations contribute to current and future well-being, the climate agenda, biodiversity and land degradation neutrality goals. Entrepreneurs and early movers in this space need to be championed and supported by national and local governments. Yet, how do we bring the importance of investing in nature to the attention of economic and financial-oriented ministries beyond the Ministry of Environment?

GGGI’s delivery mechanism in countries to design sustainable landscapes investment and policy solutions is through a 3Returns framework. Green growth assessments are done at landscape scale and include extended-CBAs to include the assessment of costs and benefits of externalities. Natural capital and social capital loss/gain linked to selected interventions are quantified and monetized where possible. Green business models and projects are designed with 3Returns in mind - three potential financial flows: financial returns from increased productivity, and financial returns from monetized social and natural capital benefits. Innovative market and result- based mechanisms can help generate additional revenue streams from secured natural assets, which can help reduce risks of investment. Political will, a shift in economic policies, a progressive financial sector and blended instruments are needed to scale and mainstream such business models in the economy. The process of integrating natural capital in the eCBAs of green growth assessments in Indonesia is shared as an example.

There does not need to be a trade-off between the economy and the environment. Integrating natural, human & social capital, as critical inputs to the economy and individual business models of companies and cooperatives and recognizing these inputs as an investment rather than a cost will help transform policies, government budgets and taxation structures and garner the buy-in from economically and financially relevant ministries. Outcome-based cross sectoral policies as well as outcome-based economic and financial instruments with standardized natural capital targets and indicators implemented in a coordinated way across government agencies can significantly help nations move closer to a true green growth economy.

Biography

Annawati (Anna) van Paddenburg is Thematic Head of Sustainable Landscapes, Deputy Director at GGGI’s Investment and Policy Solutions Division and leads GGGI’s global strategy on Sustainable Landscapes working closely with Latin America, Africa and Asia-Pacific GGGI Member Countries. Her portfolio covers forest, agriculture, coastal and marine sectors with relevance to climate and food security, sustainable growth and development. In collaboration with GGGI’s member countries, and in partnership with financiers and private sector, her team originates projects and designs business models, develops and scales jurisdictional investment

projects/programs in the above sectors by means of reducing risks through good business model design, financial and policy instruments. Prior to this function, Anna shaped GGGI’s Indonesia Program on plans, policies and scaling of REDD+, energy and economic zones projects at both national and subnational levels. Anna, has over 15 years of experience in emerging and developing countries. She comes with a wealth of knowledge on valuations of ecosystem services and the integration of these in investment decisions. She completed her MSc in Geo-information Science in the Netherlands and her Honours degree in Environmental Science in Australia. Anna authored the Heart of Borneo: Investing in nature for a green economy publication, a cutting edge spatial- economic assessment on a local geography highlighting environmental and social impacts of a green economy. With a diverse background, Dutch by nationality, a youth in remote parts of Papua New Guinea & the Indonesian archipelago, Anna is now based at GGGI’s headquarters in Seoul, South Korea.

Professor Unai Pascual

Position / Organisation

Ikerbasque Research Professor, Basque Centre for Climate Change (BC3)

Talk title

Mind the gap: Landscape level relational values in voluntary agri-environmental programs

Abstract

In this talk I will provide arguments for expanding beyond the economic logic of Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES)-like agri-environmental programs. PES programs can be seen as value articulating institutions, as they articulate particular normative values in their rules, scope, criteria, priorities. Such values are generally associated with pursing economic efficiency by means of internalizing the external costs (via nudging the behaviour of potential best value for money ecosystem service suppliers). The values embedded in PES tend to be purely instrumental and align with a green growth / green economy rationale. Here I suggest that PES need to reflect, reinforce and sustain non-instrumental, yet anthropocentric values,that are key for fostering environmentally sustainable and socially fair human-nature relations. PES need to recognize relational values (RVs), i.e., the preferences, principles, and virtues associated with relationships with nature (land, water, biodiversity, etc.) as articulated by policies and social norms. I argue that agri-environmental programs that follow a PES logic while neglecting RVs can create unintended conflicts with agrarian values, thus undermining program effectiveness and its transformative potential for instance by crowding out stewardship motivations. I suggest that PES could bridge instrumental and relational values and that this requires pluralistic (rather than monistic) valuation approaches.

Biography

Prof. Unai Pascual is an ecological economist with more than 20 year experience bridging the social and natural sciences for understanding complex social-ecological systems. He obtained a MSc (1998) and PhD in Environmental Economics (2002) from the University of York. After lecturing at the School of Economic Studies of the University of Manchester (2000-2002) he worked at the Land Economy department of the University of Cambridge (2002-2011). He is Ikerbasque Research Professor at the Basque Centre for Climate Change (BC3) since 2011 and affiliated to the Centre for Development and Environment of the University of Bern, Switzerland, since 2018. He was member of the multidisciplinary expert panel (MEP) of IPBES (2015-2018), being involved in various assessment management committees, as lead author of the Global Assessment, and currently co-Chair of the Values Assessment (2018-2022). He is also co-chair of the Natural Assets Knowledge Action Network of Future Earth, and member of the scientific

steering committee of the Global Land Programme, and ecoSERVICES (also of Future Earth) as well as member of various other international advisory committees such as of BiodivERsA. He has conducted research projects in many countries around the world, including Europe, the USA, Mexico, Peru, Bolivia, Colombia and India.

Edward Perry

Position / Organisation

Special Advisor, Environment Directorate, OECD

Talk title

Mainstreaming natural capital into public policy: insights from the OECD

Abstract

Drawing on OECD’s multi-country datasets, this presentation will share insights on mainstreaming biodiversity into agriculture, fisheries, finance and other policy areas. It will highlight key messages from OECD’s report to the G7 Environment Ministers on “Biodiversity: Finance and the Economic and Business Case for Action”.

Biography

Edward Perry joined the Environment Directorate of the OECD in 2018 as an advisor. In this role he has provided strategic support to the Environment Director on various environmental issues, and coordinated and drafted inputs to the G7, G20 and other policy fora. Edward is currently working with OECD’s biodiversity team, and was a co-author of the report to the G7 on Biodiversity: Finance and the Economic and Business Case For Action. Prior to the OECD, Edward was the Climate Change Policy Coordinator at BirdLife International. He holds an MPhil in Geography and Environment from the University of Oxford, with a specialisation in biodiversity conservation and management, and a BSc from University College Utrecht in the Netherlands.

Roel Posthoorn

Position / Organisation

Director, ‘Marker Wadden Project, Natuurmonumenten (the Dutch Society for the Preservation of Nature)

Talk title

Marker Wadden, the importance of smart governance in landscape scale ecological restoration

Abstract

The Markermeer is one of the largest fresh water lakes of Europe. Decades long declining birdlife and fish stock are the expression of ecological problems and are blocking -due to the N2000 status of the lake- economic development. National and regional government decided in 2010 to transform the lake into a ‘futureproof ecological system’, to invest in restoring biodiversity and thus make room for further economic development. The estimated investment of 630 million euros however led to a deadlock.

In 2012 Natuurmonumenten (NGO) presented the ‘dream’ of the construction of an artificial archipelago with the aim to create a ‘bird paradise’ and to improve water quality: Marker Wadden. The National Postcode Lottery granted the first step of the dream with 15 million euros. The instant availability of private/philantropy money triggered government to join in with a budget of 35 million euros. This starting capital of 50 million euros was enough to start the tender process.

A co-operation was set up between the governmental organisation Rijkswaterstaat and NGO Natuurmonumenten to build the first group of islands in 2014. The actual realization started in 2016 and immediately wildlife has benefited, particularly birds. Created mostly out of locally available clay and fine sediment, the five low-lying islands measure about 1000 hectares and provide an avian sanctuary. The largest island has a marina, footpaths and beaches and is opened to the public. The project has four objectives: improving the water quality of the Markermeer, creating a ‘bird paradise, providing room for people to experience nature and providing room for innovation. The last objective made room for a tailor made governance structure and technical, social and financial innovations.

Key in smart governance was understanding and bringing together the different drivers of government, businesses, science and NGO’s. Restoring biodiversity in degraded landscapes needs the management of change. Lessons learned are working on parallel levels (macro, meso and project level), mobilize people with ‘longing’ -the return of inspiration, work together with government agencies and use their knowledge of bureaucracy, leave room for innovation and stick to an entrepreneurial approach, manage opportunities instead of avoiding risks.

Success factors in restoring biodiversity in the Markermeer are smart governance, a starting budget from a private philanthropy organization, a biodiversity net gain mandate and a strict legal framework (N2000). Biography

Roel is the initiator of the Marker Wadden and responsible for the management of the project for the clients of Rijkswaterstaat and Natuurmonumenten. He has a degree in environmental studies as well as in forestry and nature management.

Dr. Stuart Whitten

Position / Organisation

Principal Institutional and Environmental Economist, CSIRO Land and Water, Australia

Talk title

The potential for environmental market design. What is needed to make them work?

Abstract

Australia was an early enthusiastic exponent of markets for ecosystem services – primarily focusing on biodiversity management but also more widely across the environmental market space. In the early 2000s, building off an intergovernmental national competition and deregulation process in other sectors of the economy, governments and others explored the opportunity to introduce similar concepts in the environmental sector (Whitten et al. 2004). Early success in decoupling water rights from land and the success of the BushTender reverse auction program in Victoria initiated a national push through the National Market Based Instruments Pilots program (Grafton 2005). It would be remiss to note that interest was also generated by the US experience through the CRP, wetland mitigation banking and other approaches.

The early indicators were broadly positive – with Australia becoming a hotbed of experimentation in conservation tenders over the last fifteen years (Rolfe et al. 2017), development of biodiversity offset programs across all mainland states and at the national scale, and a substantial growth in environmental NGOs in Australia. Yet in recent years the early success seems to have diminished somewhat. Conservation tenders have failed to become default approaches though this may be as much caused by a reduction in public investment in the environment than failed markets and major programs such the Biodiversity Conservation Trust of NSW biodiversity tenders remain. Similarly, biodiversity offsetting approaches remain in place, albeit with substantial reforms over recent years and ongoing debate as to their efficacy.

What have we learnt from 20 years of experimentation and experience with environmental markets in Australia? Focusing specifically on design factors (as opposed to the overarching institutions and politics – see for example Primmer (2017)) the two key drivers appear to be reducing transaction costs and increasing market liquidity. Offset markets appear to be evolving from Salzman and Ruhl’s (2000) thin and bland towards a more liquid market. Reforms have tended to focus less on specificity of biodiversity and more on market potential. For example, there has been a shift from proponent driven offsets towards ‘over the counter’ approaches. Conservation tender design has taken a similar approach – seeking to encourage participation and reduce costs of environmental measurement and contracting. Nevertheless, active debate remains about offset effectiveness – particularly focusing on risk and risk transfer, additionality, and monitoring. It is these learnings that will be the focus of this presentation.

Biography

Stuart is an expert in environmental and institutional economics with particular specialisation is the design and delivery of environmental markets including auctions and tenders, biodiversity offsets and cap and trade approaches. He has worked on the design and implementation of environmental markets for the Australian Government (Reef Tender, Environmental Stewardship Program, Forest Conservation Fund) and for several regional natural resource management groups. At a policy level his economic expertise has supported the Great Barrier Reef water quality policy responses and biodiversity policy across three states and at the national level. His current research focus is on land management and Great Barrier Reef water quality, the economics of Qfly, and biodiversity on private land. He has coordinated several workshops and symposia: including an international workshop on 'Conservation Tenders in Developed and Developing Countries - Status Quo, Challenges and Prospects' with Tobias Wunscher in Germany, and 'Improving water quality into the GBR: From costs to public policy', 'New Horizons in Market Based Instruments’ and ‘Market- based Tools for Environmental Management’; and published widely in a variety of forums.

Conference Organisers and Session Chairs

The Cambridge Conservation Initiative and the CCI Natural Capital Working Group

The Cambridge Conservation Initiative (CCI) is a unique collaboration between the University of Cambridge and leading internationally-focused biodiversity conservation organisations clustered in and around Cambridge, UK1. It represents a critical mass of expertise — on a scale unparalleled

1 The founding partners of CCI are: TRAFFIC, The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), The British Trust for Ornithology (BTO), The UN Environment World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP WCMC), The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), The University of Cambridge, Birdlife International, Fauna & Flora International (FFI), The Tropical Biology Association (TBA), The Cambridge Conservation Forum (CCF).

anywhere in the world — at the interface of research and education, policy and action, for the conservation of biodiversity and ecosystems and exists to deliver transformational approaches to understanding and conserving biodiversity and the wealth of natural capital it represents. CCI has been created by the partners to complement existing conservation efforts. It aims to do so by the partners collaborating together, and with others. Each CCI partner already has an active programme of conservation work. By joining together in strategic collaborations, however, as CCI we aim to tackle new and existing issues with innovative approaches, and across disciplines, in ways that cannot be achieved by any one partner alone.

CCI Partners convene on specific areas of work through Working Groups. The Natural Capital Working Group brings partners together around the challenge of ‘making all the economic values of biodiversity matter’. Partners recognise that framing nature in economic terms can highlight value where none was recognised before and can help ensure nature is taken into account in some decision making processes with some audiences. Using the same economic approaches to highlight the specific value of biodiversity within nature can also highlight values that were previously invisible in certain cases. However, economic approaches cannot be a panacea for addressing environmental decline. In particular, quantification of the economic value of biodiversity almost certainly cannot be relied upon to deliver the levels of biodiversity we need, and certainly not the levels we want. The response has to be to understand how best to make use of the economic value of biodiversity where it is possible to quantify and what to do when it is not. In other words, to make all values of biodiversity matter in decision making processes across multiple audiences.

Professor Bhaskar Vira

Position / organisation

Professor of Political Economy and Fellow of Fitzwilliam College and Chair of the CCI Natural Capital Working Group

Biography

Prof Vira’s research interests centre on the changing political economy of environment and development, especially in South Asia; with a particular interest in the political ecology of forests, water, food, wildlife and land use change and the social and political context for biodiversity conservation. He is particularly concerned with the often-hidden costs of environmental and developmental processes, and the need for scholarship to draw attention to the distributional consequences of public policy choices. His work focuses on the ways in which large-scale economic, societal and environmental transformations are governed, the values that frame how human societies engage with each other and with nature, and the networks of formal and informal institutions that are intertwined in everyday decision making across a variety of spatial and temporal scales. He applies a critical political economy perspective to contemporary debates in relation to ecosystem services and natural capital, and the values of nature for human wellbeing.

Prof Vira has led large scale intellectual and policy-oriented projects that involve interdisciplinary conversations across the natural and social sciences. Trained as an economist, but with a portfolio of research that now engages across the critical social sciences and their interface with the biological and environmental natural sciences, he inhabits the interdisciplinary intellectual 'borderlands' of a number of disciplines (Human Geography, Development Studies, Institutional Economics, Environmental Studies and Conservation), while being firmly rooted in the political economy tradition. He is Founding Director of the University of Cambridge Conservation Research Institute, one of the University's Interdisciplinary Research Centres. He is closely involved with the Cambridge Conservation Initiative, and the Global Food Security strategic research initiative at the University of Cambridge, and also works with the Centre for Science and Policy and the Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership.

Dr. Thomas Maddox

Position / organisation

Senior Technical Specialist, Fauna & Flora International and Co-Coordinator for the CCI Natural Capital Working Group

Biography

Dr. Maddox has a degree in biology, a PhD in anthropology and an MBA. His career began with a focus on large carnivore ecology and conservation, spending over a decade in the field in Africa and Asia on cheetah and tiger conservation with the Zoological Society of London. But over time his focus shifted to concentrate on the interface between business and economic activity with the environment. He has worked for the Zoological Society of London, the World Bank, The Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership, WWF and Fauna & Flora International on various aspects of the relationship between economic activity and the environment. He now co-manages the CCI Natural Capital Hub which serves the Natural Capital Working Group as well as continuing as a Senior Specialist for FFI.

Dr. Matthew Agarwala

Position / organisation

Research Leader: The Wealth Economy. The Bennett Institute for Public Policy at the University of Cambridge and member of the CCI Natural Capital Working Group

Biography

Matthew Agarwala is an environmental economist interested in wealth-based approaches to measuring and delivering sustainable development. The pace of globalisation, innovation, and social, environmental, and economic upheaval leaves no doubt: 20th century statistics can’t capture 21st century progress. Matthew joined the Bennett Institute’s wealth economy project to transform economic measurement to better reflect sustainability, inequality, and human wellbeing. Initially, the project will focus on natural and social capital. Matthew regularly consults for governments (from local councils to national governments and international institutions) and scientific organizations on topics of natural capital, ecosystem services, and sustainability. He enjoys working across sectors and disciplines, and his co-authors include ecologists, economists, conservation scientists and practitioners, social anthropologists, civil servants, members of UK Parliament, and Nobel Laureates in peace, medicine, physics, and chemistry. In addition to the Bennett Institute, Matthew enjoys affiliations at the LSE (Geography & Environment + Grantham Research Institute) and UEA (Centre for Social & Economic Research on the Global Environment), and maintains active research networks in Canada, Hong Kong, Germany, USA, Japan, and throughout the UK.

James Vause

Position / organisation

Lead Economist, UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP- WCMC) and member of the CCI Natural Capital Working Group

Biography

As Lead Economist, James is working to develop economic capacity and experience throughout the Centre and to encourage economic analysis across all our programmes in projects where it can help raise the impact and influence of our work. This involves understanding and building on the rapidly developing field of economics and biodiversity and integrating this with UNEP-WCMC’s scientific, statistical and geographical work to produce policy-relevant economic analysis that is embedded in scientific knowledge. He holds a degree in Economics from the University of Cambridge and a Master’s degree in Environmental Economics from the University of York. Previously, James worked in the UK Government Economics Service, he has 14 years’ experience of applied environmental economics working across a range policy areas including transport, waste, climate change and biodiversity.

Jonny Hughes

Position / organisation

CEO, UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) and member of CCI Council

Biography

Jonny Hughes has overall leadership responsibility for WCMC whilst fostering seamless collaboration between the charity and the UN Environment Programme as UNEP-WCMC (known collectively as the Centre). As leader of WCMC, Jonny is responsible for building a high- performance culture that ensures quality outputs and measurable impact for UNEP-WCMC as it strives towards its vision for a ‘sustainable world for biodiversity and people’. Jonny reports to the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of WCMC. Before joining WCMC Jonny was the CEO of the Scottish Wildlife Trust, Scotland’s leading environmental charity, and had previously worked for the Woodland Trust and Westminster City Council. Jonny has been an elected global Councillor of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) since 2012, spending four of those years as chair of the Council’s Policy and Programme Committee. He is also a non-Executive Director of Corrour Estate, a large upland estate in Scotland, and a trustee at the People’s Postcode Lottery. He holds a B.A in Geography and Biology from Keele University, an MSc in Ecology from the University of Florence which he completed on an Erasmus scholarship, and an Honorary Fellowship at the University of Edinburgh. Jonny coaches squash and plays tennis, five- a-side football, table football and has wide interests including green urban design, Italian Renaissance art and early 20th century American literature.

Martin Lok

Position / organisation

Deputy Director, Natural Capital Coalition & Program Manager, Natural Capital, Ministry of Economic Affairs, Netherlands

The Natural Capital Coalition works with CCI through a Memorandum of Understanding.

Biography

As public professional Martin Lok has dedicated his professional life to two passions: a quest for sustainability and love for the public cause and administration. With a conviction that good results can only be achieved if processes are good and respect all interests involved. Before being seconded to the Coalition, Martin was working as Program Manager Natural Capital at the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs (EZ). His ambition is to achieve an inclusive green growth that

incorporates natural capital in all decision-making and systems of businesses, governments and the financial sector. Cross-sectoral and action-oriented collaboration are essential ingredients for the societal changes that are needed. Therefore, Martin has initiated several collaborative policy- tracks that focus on incorporating natural capital in decision making. Policy-tracks that have been developed and are implemented in close cooperation with partners ranging from business and finance to governments and conservation organizations. Martin has a Master in Forestry (Wageningen University) and a Master in the History of Arts (Leiden University).

Attendee list

Matthew Agarwala Nikoleta Jones Ludo Tolu Zara Ahmad Felicia Lasmana Rosie Trevelyan Rezvin Akter Martin Lok Anna Van Paddenburg Victor Anderson Rogelio Luque-Lora James Vause Shinichiro Asayama Anna Lyons Bhaskar Vira Neville Ash Thomas Maddox Ruth Waters Giles Atkinson Abisha Mapendembe Julia Wdowin Joey Au Anil Markandya Alex White Edward Barker Rob Marks Stuart Whitten Robert Bensted-Smith Ehsan Masood Candice Worsteling Katharine Bolt John Maughan Daniel Zeichner Richard Bradbury Emily McKenzie Weihao Zhong Abigail Burns Bernard Mercer Rachel Carmenta Charlotte Milbank Rodrigo Cassola Najma Mohamed B Cheng Nibedita Mukherjee Jane Corbett Ivo Mulder Roberto Correa Catrina Mull Peter Cosgrove Ichiro Nakayama Gretchen Daily Juan Pablo Narv√°ez G√≥mez Ruth Davis Noam Obermeister Julie Dimitrijevic Shivali Pai Deanna Donovan Arnas Palaima Rob Doubleday Yuan Pan Rob Evans Hitesh Pant Jennifer Faulkner Unai Pascual Charlie Fisher Debbie Payne Daniel Flenley Cristina Pe√±asco Laura Friedrich Ed Perry Suzy Gamgne Kamgue Fred Pilkington Lucy Garrett Audrey Plyler Barbara Goettsch Roel Posthoorn lucy goodman Blanca Racionero Miriam Guth Mike Rands Julian Harlow Dominic Ross Martin Harper Claire Rutherford Rosalind Helfand James Smith Ian Hodge Babette Tachibana-Brophy Pippa Howard Cath Tayleur Jonny Hughes Anastasiya Timoshyna