Building Capacity to Place Value on Ecosystem Services for Ecosystem-Based Adaptation

Challenge

Asia-Pacific countries lack practical skills to scientifically place a value on wetland ecosystem services, limiting use of values in planning, budgeting, and adaptation.

Solution

Regional workshops, field studies, and a shared curriculum trained stakeholders to apply scientific valuation methods to wetland ecosystem services.

Overview

Ecosystem services – which are the benefits people obtain from nature and healthy ecosystems, such as food, water, flood control, and cultural values – underpin livelihoods and resilience, yet their value is rarely reflected in adaptation planning. With support from the Asia-Pacific Network for Global Change Research (APN), a multi-country initiative worked with Asia-Pacific Climate Change Adaptation Information Platform (AP-PLAT) partners in Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, and Thailand to build capacity in the scientific valuation of ecosystem services for ecosystem-based adaptation.

Scientific valuation, in this case, refers to the use of formal ecological and economic methods to estimate monetary or comparable values of ecosystem services.

Led by Dipayan Dey (South Asian Forum for Environment, India) with academic collaborators, the project combined online and in-person training, participatory field studies in contrasting wetland socio-ecologies, and co-development of an open curriculum to sustain learning.

Capacity building across four countries

The project built capacity by delivering a large-scale training program that included 38 online workshops, seven national workshops, three international workshops, and six field visits. This program trained and sensitized participants, strengthening their capacity to apply valuation methods to wetlands in adaptation planning. Policy planners, administrators, practitioners, and researchers from government, academia, and civil society participated. A total of 300+ stakeholders took part, with 217 completing all the project’s capacity-building activities. Also, 500+ wetland residents were sensitized about evaluating the services they depend on; of these residents, 300+ were from marginalized communities in Bangladesh and India.

International workshops were hosted at the Asian Institute of Technology (Thailand), Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural University, Gazipur (Bangladesh), and Stadel Campus, Kolkata (India). One global knowledge sharing session was organized at the 8th Asia-Pacific Adaptation Network Forum in Incheon, South Korea. Sessions covered plural values, machine learning approaches, and the advantages and potential risks of placing values ecosystem services in climate planning.

Wetland valuing case studies

Participatory action research generated comparable case studies in three different wetland contexts. The team examined peri-urban RAMSAR-listed East Kolkata Wetlands in India, urban “monkey’s cheek” wetlands in Thailand, and the Tanguar Haor wetland system in Bangladesh.

Provisioning and regulating services were surveyed and evaluated with communities, and pilot valuation approaches were tested to inform planning, conflict resolution, loss and damage assessment, and ecosystem-based adaptation options. The field program also built familiarity with monitoring and modeling spatio-temporal values to support ongoing management.

Co-developing an open curriculum

To sustain skills, the project co-created a detailed course on the scientific valuation of ecosystem services through multi-stakeholder consultation with the Asian Institute of Technology (Thailand), Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural University (Bangladesh), Central Agroforestry Research Institute (India), Jadavpur University (India), and Calcutta University (India).

The curriculum was launched on an open-access website and bundled with archived learning resources covering concepts, methods, and evaluation procedures. This package is intended for continued adaptive learning by universities, agencies, and AP-PLAT partners after the project period.

Policy engagement and dissemination

Findings from the valuation case studies were shared in a national wetland policy workshop in India. Project results also contributed to publications and a policy report on wetland conservation. Media coverage and outreach highlighted the links between valuing ecosystem services, poverty alleviation, and climate resilience.

Together, these activities broadened awareness of how valuing ecosystem services can inform ecosystem-based adaptation and budgeting.

Outcomes and results

• 38 online workshops, 10 in-person workshops, and 6 field visits delivered across 4 countries.
• 300+ stakeholders took part, with 217 completing capacity-building activities; while 500+ wetland users were made more aware about evaluating services (of whom, 300+ were from marginalized communities in Bangladesh and India.
• Comparative wetland case studies completed in India, Thailand, and Bangladesh to pilot valuation of provisioning and regulating services.
• An open-access curriculum and resource hub created with regional universities to enable continued training.
• Case study insights accepted in a national wetland policy workshop in India; a book published by Springer Nature; policy report published, news and media coverage.
• Regional preparedness strengthened for applying ecosystem service values in adaptation planning, conflict resolution, and loss and damage assessment.

Project details

Acknowledgements

This project was supported by the Asia-Pacific Network for Global Change Research (APN) under its Scientific Capacity Development Programme (CAPaBLE). Acknowledgements also go to the Asian Institute of Technology, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural University, Central Agroforestry Research Institute, Jadavpur University, and Calcutta University for collaboration in curriculum design and workshops.

Related information

• Project Permalink
• Project Final Report
• Dey, D. and Roy, J. eds., 2022. Biorights: The Neo-economic Conservation Paradigm for Global South (Vol. 7). Springer Nature. https://www.apn-gcr.org/publication/biorights-the-neo-economic-conservation-paradigm-for-global-south/
• MoEFCC, 2022. Sahbhagita: Workshop for conservation and wise use of wetlands. National Center for Sustainable Coastal Management, Chennai, May 21 2022. https://www.apn-gcr.org/publication/sahbhagita-workshop-for-conservation-and-wise-use-of-wetlands/
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