The research component of the UK NEA follow-on phase commenced in ealry 2012 and focuses on the following four areas:
► The further development of the economic analysis of the UK NEA to increase the breadth of ecosystem services analysed, to broaden our understanding of the value of natural capital stocks and ways in which this value can be better represented in national wealth accounts, as well as analyse the macroeconomic implications of the findings of the UK NEA.
► Further exploration of cultural ecosystem services and how cultural, shared and plural values for ecosystem services can be better understood and operationalised into a range of decision making contexts alongside economic analyses.
► Development of the analysis of future ecosystem changes, applying and developing the UK NEA scenarios to enable and enhance the outputs of the other objectives and to examine a range of societal responses to the possible future changes.
► The development and enhancement of tools and other supporting materials for use by a range of key user groups from the public, private and voluntary sectors, to enable them to make best use of this evidence. The balance in emphasis between developing totally new tools or enhancing existing assessment processes will depend upon an initial review of user needs.
One of the key roles of the Secretariat will be in communicating the messages from the UK NEA and new information generated under this project, and there will be opportunities for a range of stakeholders to engage in that process.
The follow-on phase will also develop a database of evidence and experts involved in the UK NEA for use by other projects, such as those called for under the White Paper for the Natural Environment.
Further information on the 10 UK NEA follow-on phase Work Packages can be accessed by clicking on the relevant work package title in the table below.
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Working Package Title
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Working Package Aim
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1
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To develop the framework and address evidence issues in order to perform a Natural Capital Asset Check
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2
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To provide a scoping review and research agenda for understanding the macroeconomic implications of ecosystem service change and management in the UK
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3a
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To conduct economic analysis of the value of ecosystem service change to the UK, examining the trade-offs between selected ecosystem services and their values arising from alternative land-uses
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3b
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To value ecosystem services in coastal and marine environments; investigate how they link to changes in terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems through appropriate indicators of change; and understand how future changes to the marine environment may impact ecosystem service delivery
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4
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To extend the theoretical, methodological and practical understanding of Cultural Ecosystem Services
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5
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To understand the respective impact of cultural, shared and plural values, versus aggregated individual values on decision making and outcomes
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6
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To deepen the analysis of the six scenarios developed in the UK NEA to facilitate the inclusion of a wider range of ecosystem services and explore how these influence well-being values
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7
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To assess viability and interaction of current policies/practices/institutions for delivering an Ecosystem Approach against the UK NEA scenarios, and therefore the implications for the design of future response options
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8
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To examine the cultural and behavioural barriers and enablers to embedding consideration of ecosystem knowledge in policy decision-making
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9 & 10
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Review, develop and enhance tools and resources to take account of the findings/methods of the UK NEA
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