Myanmar's natural capital maps are available online at http://www.myanmarnaturalcapital.org
Science Meets Art In Myanmar
A new WWF Myanmar report and website highlight how Myanmar's natural capital-including its forests, coastlines, waters, and biodiversity--sustains the country's
economy and the well-being of its people.
When Myanmar held its first general elections in decades last November, WWF's
Hanna Helsingen wasn't sure what to expect.
Before the polls opened at 6am she donned a longyi--Myanmar's version of a sari-and took a stroll through downtown Yangon.
"I saw this crazy guy coming down the street, waving a purple pinky in the air," she
said. At first alarmed, she quickly realized he wasn't crazed, but ecstatic.
He had just come from a polling booth...
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Dispatch From The Field:
Mission To Nairobi
BY ANNE GUERRY
Editor's Note: So often in the NGO
and academic sphere, we or our
peers traipse halfway around the
world for meetings, conferences, and
summits. Once there we listen to a
parade of accomplished, influential speakers and hope to learn a few things. But what
is it that sinks into our memories?What is it that changes us? Often what we
experience outside the meeting rooms is as powerful as what we hear inside.
2pm May 14, Seattle
My plane ticket to Kenya arrives in my inbox, courtesy of the UN Environment
Program, only three days before I'm scheduled to fly out. It turns out I really am going
to the other side of the world for a two-day meeting, the UNEP Science-Policy Forum,
where I've been invited to say something inspiring about natural capital. I know little of
Nairobi other than that it's unsafe and choked with traffic.
10am May 17, Seattle
Wondering about the sanity of going so far to deliver one little inadequately prepared
talk, before leaving the house I have one of Edgar Allen Poe's "imp of the perverse"
moments and consider just leaving my suitcase by the door, and settling in at home
to work for the day.
1pm May 18, Amsterdam
I'm surrounded by American missionaries full of excitement about the months they
will spend in Kenya and neighboring countries and their belief in God's plan for them.
I think about my own little mission--I too have some gospel to spread.
10pm May 18, Nairobi
After a 9-hour flight from Europe over the Sahara, we land in Nairobi...
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China's Natural Capital
Efforts Paying Off
This month Science
published the results of China's first
national ecosystem assessment,
showing how the country's massive
investments are paying off in ways
that will make people safer, by
reducing the risk of natural
disasters, improving water quality,
and mitigating climate change.
China began investing billions to restore ecosystems, paying farming families to
replant trees on steep slopes and other vulnerable areas, after a series of floods and
landslides in the 1990s killed thousands of people.
"China has gone further than any other country," said Gretchen Daily in a Stanford
News Service story featuring the research. "In the face of deepening environmental
crisis, China has become very ambitious and innovative in its new conservation
science and policies and has implemented them on a breathtaking scale."
Photo credit: XiXinXing/Shutterstock
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InVEST is our flagship tool with 18 different models for
mapping and valuing ecosystem services. Check out all our
software at naturalcapitalproject.org/software.
Keynote Speakers Lining Up
For 2017 Natural Capital Symposium
WWF'S CARTER ROBERTS & TNC'S MARK TERCEK TO SPEAK
Interest in natural capital is flourishing, as is the role
of the annual Natural Capital Symposium as a
convening for innovators in this growing field.
After 2016's successful gathering at Stanford
University, leaders from two of the world's largest
environmental organizations, and core NatCap
partners--The Nature Conservancy (TNC) and
WorldWildlife Fund (WWF)--have already
marked their calendars to attend as keynote
speakers in 2017.
"The Natural Capital Symposium is an
enormously valuable convening of scientists from
across the country working to transform the way
the world approaches today's biggest
WWF's Carter Roberts
Photo credit: Deb Lindsey/WWFUS
challenges," said Mark Tercek, President and CEO of TNC, who will be returning in
2017 for the second year in a row. Tercek pushed 2016 attendees to provide more
data-driven, actionable information during his keynote address, which he recapped
in a recent blog post. "Together," he said, "we're helping decision-makers see that
protecting nature is the smartest investment they can make."
In 2017, WWF President and CEO Carter Roberts
will also give a keynote address.
"Leaders in places like Myanmar, Mozambique,
and the Arctic are seeking sound scientific
guidance and tools to make decisions about their
development options," Roberts said. "Bringing
together scientists and policymakers at events like
the Natural Capital Symposium increases the
prospect that their questions will be answered in a
way that protects the planet and provides benefits
for all its inhabitants."
TNC's Mark Tercek
Photo credit: Dave Lauridsen
Both WWF and TNC have had strong showings of
staff at the symposium, with WWF hosting
international delegations from Southeast Asia and Africa, and TNC bringing in
representatives of water funds across Latin America, for example.
For more information about the event, check out The Natural Capital
Project's webpage, with information about speakers, submitting posters and
abstracts, and travel arrangements.
Recent Press & Publications
Managing forest ecosystem services for hydropower production
Vogl, Adrian L., P. James Dennedy-Frank, Stacie Wolny, Justin A. Johnson, Perrine Hamel,
Urvashi Narain and Anil Vaidya
Environmental Sciences & Policy. 61: 221-229. July 2016. doi: 10.1016/j.ecoser.2016.03.004
Study Finds China's Ecosystems Have Become Healthier
Te-Ping Chen, The Wall Street Journal, June 17, 2016
China's environmental conservation efforts are making a positive impact, Stanford scientists say
Bjorn Carey, Stanford News, June 16, 2016
Improvements in ecosystem services from investments in natural capital
Ouyang, Zhiyun, Hua Zheng, Yi Xiao, Stephen Polasky, Jianguo Liu, Weihua Xu, Qiao Wang, Lu
Zhang, Yang Xiao, Enming Rao, Ling Jiang, Fei Lu, Xiaoke Wang, Guangbin Yang, Shihan Gong,
Bingfang Wu, Yuan Zeng, Wu Yang and Gretchen C. Daily
Science 352: 1455-1459. June 17, 2016. doi: 10.1126/science.aaf2295
We're (not) running out of water - a better way to measure water scarcity
Kate Brauman, The Conversation, June 5, 2016
Global Water Data: We'll Show You the World, Sort Of
Brauman, Kate A.
Open Rivers: Rethinking The Mississippi. No. 2, Spring 2016.
Valuation of ecosystem services to inform management of multiple-use landscapes
Ma, Shan, Jennifer M. Duggan, Bradley A. Eichelberger, Brynn W. McNally, Jeffrey R. Foster,
Eda Pepi, Marc N. Conte, Gretchen C. Daily and Guy Ziv
Ecosystem Services 19:6-18. June 2016. doi:10.1016/j.ecoser.2016.03.005
For more news stories and publications, check out Our Library. Access to full articles may require
library access.
Thank you for your continued interest in The Natural Capital Project. If you have any
questions, please feel free to contact us at [email protected].
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